PipeflowWhat guests use your profile for
Before trying out a new place, people often take a quick look: what does it look like? What food is there? Is it open today? Your Instagram profile is something like a shop window here. It does not have to be perfect, but it should answer the most important questions quickly.
Regulars use Instagram differently: they want to know what is new, such as a seasonal dish, a new cake or an event. For both groups, a profile that is up to date and makes people want to visit is worthwhile.
Menu and daily specials
The menu is one of the things guests look for most often. Do not just post it as a photographed sheet that is barely readable on a phone. Separate posts about dishes with a good photo and a sentence about each work better, plus a link in your bio to the current menu on your website.
Daily specials and lunch menus are ideal for regular posts as they change all the time. Make sure, though, that a post with Monday's special no longer looks like a current offer on Thursday. Add the day of the week, or use Stories for very short lived notices, as they disappear again after a while.
If you state allergens or ingredients, the details must be correct. If in doubt, refer to the menu on site or on your website instead of repeating them in every post.
Showing the team, kitchen and guests
People like to go where they feel welcome. So do not just show plates, but also who is behind them: the cook plating up, the waiter who has been there for years, the delivery from a local farm in the morning.
Ideas that work in most places:
- Behind the scenes: prep in the morning, freshly baked bread, jam being made.
- Suppliers: where meat, vegetables or coffee come from, if that matters to you.
- Seasons: the first asparagus dish, pumpkin weeks, the beer garden or the terrace in spring.
- Events: live music, themed evenings, holidays, rooms for celebrations.
- Guests: only if they have clearly agreed. Without consent, take photos of empty tables or hands holding cups, where nobody is recognisable.
Opening hours and key information
Nothing annoys guests more than standing at a locked door although something else was stated online. So keep every place where your opening hours appear up to date: your website, your Google Business Profile and Instagram.
On Instagram, the key information belongs in your bio: what you are, where you are and how to book a table. With a professional account you can also add contact options. Announce changed hours, holiday closures or days off on public holidays with a separate post as well, ideally a few days ahead.
For information that stays important, Story Highlights are a good fit, for example on the menu, bookings, directions or vouchers. They stay visible at the top of your profile.
Good photos without a professional
Food photos taken with a phone turn out better than many people think. The key points:
- Daylight: a table by the window is often the best spot for photos in your place. Avoid harsh sun and flash if you can.
- Be quick: photograph the dish while it is fresh. Salad wilts, sauces form a skin, the milk foam on the coffee fades.
- Calm background: move distracting glasses, napkins and salt shakers out of the picture.
- Choose the angle: flat dishes like pizza or bowls often look good from above, burgers or cakes rather from the side.
- Stay honest: the dish in the photo should look like what lands on the guest's table.
- Build a stock: when a new dish goes on the menu, take a few photos straight away, before service starts.
Handling reviews and comments
Guests comment, ask questions by message or tag you in their own posts. Reply to questions about bookings, opening hours or allergens as soon as possible, otherwise the person will call the next place.
Many reviews are not on Instagram but on Google and review platforms. A thank you for kind praise or a calm reply to criticism shows everyone reading along how you treat guests. You can also use a nice review as the occasion for a post. Ask the person first, though, whether you may show their name or their text.
If guests tag you in their posts, you can share them, for example in your Story. Here too: only use other people's photos with permission from the person who took them.