Posted in:
Restaurant Marketing
27 / 03 / 2008
There is no doubt that restaurant press releases are the most cost effective promotion for your restaurant. Providing that your releases are news worthy, the chances are you’ll be picked up by a local new publication and promoted. In the past I’ve great success when sending restaurant press releases, which in turn have spun off into other areas and opportunities for me. Like most things for them to succeed, you’ll need to do some preparation and research before sending out your first restaurant press release. I certainly don’t profess to be a restaurant publicist as sorts but I’d like to share my secrets and strategy when sending restaurant press releases to help you succeed in your restaurant business.
Why a Restaurant Press Release?
Simply because it’s a cost effective exercise that gains promotion for your restaurant with little, if any financial costs. I’ll go into the costs a bit further on, but on a whole they can next to nothing. Apart from gaining promotion in local magazines and newspapers, they can often provide subtle gains for example they provide more links to your restaurant website contributing to higher positioning in search engines.
Setting up a media portal
Before you even draft your restaurant press release, you’ll need to consider developing a media portal specifically for the media and press to have access to information which will help them draft your story. The media portal URL needs to be something easy like www.restaurantname.com/media and should contain the following elements;
- List of press releases (both current and previous releases
- List of scanned articles previously written about your restaurant
- Photo gallery of press quality photos
- Ability for media to register for updates
- Your contact details including mobile and email address
When you’ve got the media portal developed, I’d recommend hiring a professional photographer for the day who can photograph your restaurant, staff, food and wine to create a photography portfolio for the media. Media outlets that don’t need to send out their own photographer for story, maybe more inclined to include you in a last minute story. Be sure to make each of the photos are digital, are at least 21cm wide and at 300 dpi or greater. The photographs need to be digital and be a combination of lifestyle and promotional shots and ideally you’ll want the following photographs;
- outside or exterior of the restaurant
- inside the restaurant or any alfresco dining areas
- a table setting
- the bar and cellar if appropriate
- cocktails if relevant
- portraits of the chef in the restaurant and some in the kitchen
- the owner and chef or the manager and chef
- action shots of the chefs in the kitchen
- at least a dozen different food shots which portray the restaurant
Distribution of your restaurant press releases
Once you’ve setup your media portal and photo gallery you need to establish where you’ll distribute your restaurant press releases. I’d start by developing a list of 100 media outlets and freelance journalists that you’d like to send your releases to, be sure you have a combination of local, state and national publications. It’s hard to get coverage in the major publications, whereas it’s much easier to get coverage in the local publications. Don’t forget to include websites in your list as some restaurant sites like Zagats and Citysearch have considerable readership and are always looking for news worthy content. Once you’ve got your list, start by contacting them personally and asking if they want to receive your press releases. This is a time consuming process, but very necessary as you are able to get the correct email address as well as their express permission to email to them. In my experience they either say yes or they don’t write about them and refer you to a colleague of theirs.
Press Release Websites
Many food journalists and restaurant writers subscribe to news services for a source of story leads and there quiet a number of these on the internet which are both free and paid which you can use. Compared to sending it directly to local and domestic journalists, you may not get any extra diners in the restaurant specifically using press release websites, but it does help lift your rankings in the search engines by providing new links to your website.
Definitely make sure that you submit your release to
Food4Media which is a dedicated network of food writers, restaurant reviewers and journalists. As soon as you submit your restaurant press release it’s automatically syndicated to people that actually want to receive them. There are some great journalists registered in this service right around the world. Currently the Food4Media service is free.
One of the largest press release services on the internet is PRWEB. It publishes hundreds of press releases per day on all matter of topics. Apart from publishing it on their website, they also syndicate to thousands of niche websites that republish the press releases. I’ve found my restaurant press releases in the past republished on hotel sites and restaurant sites all over the world. This is a great way to acquire hundreds of links to your website very quickly. The price of submitting a press release costs approx US$130.
Aimed at restaurant franchises or publicly listed restaurant groups, the Warren Buffet owned Business Wire service allows you to send restaurant press releases to specific journalists and media outlets throughout the world. Prices start at around US$300 per release depending on where and how you are sending it. Sending your restaurant press release via their wire service to just a state is much cheaper than having them fax or email it out to major news outlets. I’ve seen my releases end up on Google News, Yahoo News as well as major newspapers I’d never think I could get into. Business Wire is not cheap but it is considered a professional and reliable wire service.
Ideas for your Restaurant Press Release
Endeavour to develop a strategy of writing a restaurant press release once a month i.e. 12 per year, this ensures you have something to focus on each month and something to promote. This will ensure that you don’t bombard journalists with your releases. Here are some ideas to keep things fresh;
- Appointment of a new Head Chef or Executive Chef
- Guest chefs or celebrity chef dinners
- Charity dinner event
- Wine dinners with winemakers
- Beer dinners with brewers
- Introduction of a organic or vegetarian menus
- Nominations to winning restaurant awards
- Involvement in food festivals or food events
- Partnerships with art galleries or artists
- Christmas Dinner Menus
How to format your restaurant press releases
So your restaurant press release doesn’t get immediately binned when it hits a journalist’s desk its best to prepare the release so it’s professionally looking with the following elements.
- Have a catchy title - get them excited to read more
- Write about 500 - 800 words maximum - don’t right a long story.
- Concentrate on the facts.
- Be sure to include 2 - 3 quotes relevant to the release
- Include the URL to your restaurant’s website
- Make sure you provide the link to the media portal
- Your contact details including mobile number and email
- If you are faxing your release be sure to have it on your restaurant letter head
The key to success
A few days after you’ve sent your restaurant press release, call a dozen of the journalists where you really want some exposure. Ask them if they got the release and if it was something they’d likely run. Then offer them to come and experience the restaurant, journalists are much more inclined to write about you after they’ve experienced your restaurant. Over time you’ll find which journalists are keen to write about you and which aren’t.