What Restaurants Can Learn from Buzzfeed’s ‘Tasty’

You’ve probably heard of, or seen, the viral videos by Buzzfeed subsidiary “Tasty”. Whether you are trying to make homemade Crème Brûlée or Guacamole Onion Rings- Tasty has you covered. This online sensation was an instant hit with their minute long clips on creating food that normally might fall out of your comfort zone, all catered to the foodie generation. With 37.5 MILLION followers, they are definitely doing something right. Here is what restaurants and others in the food industry…or food marketing industry… can learn from Tasty’s wild success online.

 

Highly Visual Content

Tasty’s quick videos are highly visual, with the occasional flash of an ingredient name on the screen- yet they are inspiring millions to get in the kitchen and try it for themselves. The traditional cookbook isn’t going to cut it for most of the millennial generation. Millennials have been coined “The foodie generation” interested in authentic food from a variety of cultures. They are comfortable trying new things, and want something visual and engaging. Rather than posting a long-form recipe of your restaurant’s famous dish, post photos making it or make a tasty-style video right from your restaurant kitchen.

stuff crust

Instagram: @BuzzfeedTasty

Don’t want to share your prized recipe? Then ensure you are taking lots of photos and videos of the dishes. It can be as simple as cheese melting on your favorite sandwich, or taking a bite out of a decadent dessert.  These mouth-watering images are sure to bring foodies right through the doors. By marketing your food right- you will inspire an audience to seek you out.

Unique Offerings

Whether it is a twist on your favorite meal or a hybrid of two cuisines, food that is unique will make business boom. Seasonal menus are an excellent way to drive excitement about new offerings. Tasty has been so popular because many of the dishes are twists on traditional favorites- something that is extremely intriguing to their audience.

Get Social

More than anything, social media is going to have a huge influence on driving traffic to your website (and restaurant). Tasty perfected social media with their native advertising techniques, consistent content, cross-platform promotion and a true understanding of their audience.

whoop#Foodie

The takeaway from the Tasty social media strategy is the true understanding they have of their audience. Tasty is entirely catered towards the Buzzfeed audience: millennials. They create visually pleasing and highly shareable content that creates a buzz around food. This same practice can be applied to restaurants looking to improve their social media marketing strategy. Take for example. “Black Tap Burgers” a typical burger joint in NYC. They began marketing their milkshakes on social media and the images went viral, leading to 3-4 hour long lines out their doors! While it may seem silly for a milkshake, millennials are looking for a visually pleasing (and delicious) food experience to share via social networks- so why not your restaurant?

ice cream

Image via @BlackTapNYC

Be Timely

Lastly, one thing we can learn from Tasty is that timely, relevant content is king. Whether you want to share the perfect meal for the Olympic  events, or Labor Day, timing is everything.

Have any questions on marketing your restaurant for success? Leave them in the comments below! We can’t wait to see your mouth-watering #foodie pictures!