I was recently interviewed by Sean Finter, CEO of Barmetrix on the topic of successful social media campaigns.

Check out the quick video below for my top three tips:

Date: Tuesday January 31st at 2pm EST, 7pm UK/Ireland

Duration: 1 hour approx.

Registration Link: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/414312784

Location: Online

Cost: Free

__________________________________________________________________

If there’s one thing we all want in our businesses, it’s more customers. Bars, Restaurants, Cafes, Hotels and Catering Companies will all clamor for more customers in 2012 and will spend vast sums of money in their efforts to fill those seats.

I understand, yet 1000s of businesses will close their doors this year unable to keep up with increased competition, higher rents, lower customer numbers, less disposable incomes, more choice than ever for customers and less return on advertising dollars than ever before.

In fact, only 14% of consumers now trust traditional forms of advertising such as TV, Radio, Newspapers and Magazines when it comes to making a dining decision or trying a new establishment.

So what influences customers and what makes them take action? Customers still dine out, still try new restaurants and bars and still spend their disposable income outside of the home.

Research shows us that 78% of us now make our purchasing decisions based on peer recommendations. That is the opinions and feedback of friends, coworkers and relatives. And where do we get this information from them? Where do they share this information? Increasingly its on Social Media.

So with this in mind, it makes sense to focus our efforts on attracting more customers through these channels. More customers who leave reviews, become our fans, take pictures, tweet about an experience, invite their friends to do the same, constantly influencing their circle of contacts while helping us reduce our advertising costs.

In this webinar, we are going to detail 10 ways you can use social media tools like Facebook, Twitter & Review Sites in 2012 to attract and influence new customers.

Barry Chandler, founder of Interactive Hospitality and best knows The Bar Blogger will showcase how bars and restaurants are successfully using social tools to grow an online following and a customer base that turns up at the door with their cash in their hands.

He will look at what platforms you should be set up on based on where your customers are, what content they want to see, what makes customers take action, how local businesses can help you, and how doing so can change how your business attracts and keeps customers that continue to influence their friends long after they first dine with you.

There has never been a more important time to understand what this staggering growth in social media means to our bars and restaurants. Never has there been a more important time to understand how to leverage this potential and start filling seats today.

Only those registered live for this event will be able to ask questions directly to Barry as well as be the first to learn about his new coaching program that will be opened up to 10 businesses for less than the price of a cup of coffee every day.

You won’t want to miss this live event. If you take away one idea that gives you the edge over your competitors or helps you attract even a single new customer it will be an hour well spent.

Don’t take my word for it, have a look at what some of our past webinar attendees had to say:

“This was a great webinar as it shed light on several ways to execute on social media. It helps a small pub like ours find ways to target specific markets, people, etc. Thank you and keep up the great work.” -Caven Boggess

“I work for a food distributor and work directly with customers who are always asking questions in regards to social media…this is by far the BEST information I’ve received. It has been very great in directly relating to bars and restaurants. Thank you! I will be following you in the future!” -Becky Fleming

“I am so happy that I clicked on your ad to listen to this webinar. It has been so helpful. Very nice webinar. Will keep in touch for sure. I will now customize my FB page, unlink my twitter with my FB and always create more engaging posts and some new promotion ideas. Thank you.” -Carolyn Sullivan

“It answers a lot of questions about why I’m not getting sales from Facebook.” -Brenda Flinn

“In the planning stages so this was VERY helpful and informative. Thank you!!!” -Susanna McCarthy

“You gave us some great ideas. Thanks Barry.” -Bryan Hofmann

“Great seminar Barry! I really enjoyed it because of all the tips that you had for promotions, exactly how to carry out the promotions, and the fun tools that you use to get the job done!” -Lori Rubenstein

“Thanks Barry. The way you use facebook is fantastic. I particularly found the examples useful.” -Ian Allan

More feedback here

__________________________________________________________________

Date: Tuesday January 31st at 2pm EST, 7pm UK/Ireland

Duration: 1 hour approx.

Registration Link: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/414312784

Location: Online

Cost: Free

If you run an Irish Pub or Restaurant in the US, then you won’t want to miss this upcoming workshop in January in Washington D.C. I’ll be speaking there alongside a great lineup of speakers and vendors for hands on workshop designed to tackle your current operational issues and set you up for a profitable 2012.

Click on the image to register and reserve your place and see more details below:

Register now, space is limited to the first 75 applicants! (only $99!)

To reserve a reduced-rate room in the Phoenix Park Hotel for either Monday or Tuesday night, click here.
For more information, contact Brendan Barry at 571-296-8572 or bbarry@irishbusinesssolutions.net

Due to the great response to our last webinar on Facebook Strategies, (see below) which was attended by almost 400 bar and restaurant owners, we have put together a similar webinar focused on Twitter strategies that bars and restaurants can easily use to attract more customers and build loyalty among their current customer base:

*********************

Join Barry Chandler, founder of Interactive Hospitality and TheBarBlogger.com for an online training experience designed to help bar & restaurant owners attract more customers by leveraging proven strategies on Twitter.

Date: Monday October 3rd 2pm EST, 7pm London/Dublin time

Space is limited.

Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/818241121

Over the course of an hour or so, he will demonstrate in depth:

1. An overview of Twitter and what it means to bars & restaurants
2. Understanding the Twitter language, terms and commands
3. How to know if Twitter is being used in your town or by your customers
4. How to add twitter into your current marketing strategies
5. How to grow your Twitter following
6. How to leverage Twitter to see what your competitor’s customers are saying about them
7. What content to post, when to post it and how often to post it
8. How to attract new customers in the door using simple twitter strategies
9. How to use Twitter to improve your customer service
10. How to use Twitter to resolve complaints through Twitter
11. How to leverage Twitter to allow you proved amazing customer experiences: the WOW factor
12. How to track & Analyze your success with Twitter
13. What tools to use to manage Twitter most efficiently in your bar/restaurant

    Much much more…

Barry will also answer all of your questions during this live online event. You’ll be able to see Barry’s computer screen as he demonstrates different examples and covers each point in depth.

All you need is a computer with speakers to watch and listen or if you just want to hear the audio, you’ll be able to call-in and listen too.

Space is limited.

Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/818241121

Feedback from previous webinars:

Join Barry Chandler, founder of Interactive Hospitality and TheBarBlogger.com for an online training experience designed to help bar & restaurant owners attract more customers by leveraging proven strategies on Facebook.

When: Tue, Sep 6, 2011 at 2:00 PM EST
Where: Online
Over the course of an hour or so, Barry will explain in depth:

1. How to layout your Facebook Page for maximum engagement and interaction
2. What Facebook Tabs to add to your page and why
3. How to collect your Facebook Fan’s email addresses as well as their “Like”
4. How to get customers back onto the bar and restaurant as a result of your Facebook efforts.
5. How to track which of your customers have visited because of Facebook
6. What content to post, when to post it and how often to post it.
7. How to “leverage” other Facebook Pages in your area and attract their fans too.
8. How to benefit from customers “checking-in” on Facebook at your venue.

Much much more…

Barry will also answer all of your questions during this live online event. You’ll be able to see Barry’s computer screen as he demonstrates different examples and covers each point in depth.

All attendees will receive a copy of Barry’s report: “33 Content Ideas & Tips for engaging your Fans on Facebook”.

All you need is a computer with speakers to watch and listen or if you just want to hear the audio, you’ll be able to call-in and listen too.

Click here to register now

You can’t have missed it. Marketing has changed forever. Many of you reading this blog post, found me originally through LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter. If you hadn’t, you might never have known I existed! Well, I’m glad you found me. In any case, the same methodology applies to YOUR business. If you’re not finding new and creative ways to get in front of your customers, you’ll stagnate and die. There’s no point in sugar coating it for you.

Earlier in the week I sent out a Tweet highlighting the greatest use of Twitter by a Restaurant ever. This incident has gone on to be highlighted by most major news organizations, newspapers as well as lighting up the web. Well, why don’t you see for yourself  by checking out the video below. What you need to realize is that THIS is the future of marketing. Ignore it and be left behind.

Why online of course!

ESPN has teamed up with Samsung and Disney-owned Playdom Online Games to create the Sports Bar and Grill application. The game was launched just over three weeks ago and already has more than 480,000 monthly active users.

It uses the FarmVille-style of casual gaming, letting fans run their own virtual sports bar and grill with all the day-to-day management duties expected from a real one. Along the way, players must win over loyal customers, decorate the walls with sports paraphernalia and show simulated live and on-demand games on their flat-screen TVs. ESPN also provides real-time scores and news, and ESPN Radio can be turned on in the game.

You can interact with friends and must complete challenges to move forward in the game. The more patrons you serve and keep happy, the bigger the buzz, popularity and success of the bar and grill.

As more money is brought in, the bar expands and gets flat-screen TVs, the Samsung Galaxy Tab, posters, signs, arcade games, sports memorabilia, tables, chairs, bar stools and more. Just like the real thing, without the risk!

You can find out more about the game Here.

We know there are still restaurant owners and managers out there making the same crotchety back-in-my-day comments about Twitter and “tweeting.” And while those jokes may still be funny in the right setting – a retirement community, for example. (We kid, we kid.) – the bottom line is your business simply can’t afford to ignore social media’s 140-character juggernaut.

Here are a few tips for figuring out how your establishment should be taking advantage of Twitter. Notice the word “whether” didn’t appear in that last sentence. This isn’t a choice, people.

Twitter tutorials and FAQs are available in thousands of places on the web, but here are the bullet points. Users post 140-character updates (“tweets”) about whatever they choose, usually from their cellular phones. Those tweets are instantly viewable by anyone who chooses to connect, or “follow,” the user’s account. Some news organizations, businesses and celebrities have built massive Twitter followings, providing an immediate and highly powerful form of communication.

(Don’t believe us? Ask your tween what Justin Bieber had for lunch yesterday.)

And while you must follow a person to have all of their tweets sent to you directly, Twitter’s enormous dialogue collective – 200 million tweets per day from users representing 13 percent of all online Americans – is a searchable gold mine.

Say you want to know what customers are saying about your business at any given moment. Simply go to Twitter search (twitter.com/search) and enter the name of your establishment. Try common misspellings and creative uses of punctuation. That search can be modified to target specific cities, locations and entire phrases. Even in more passive usage form Twitter can be a tool to monitor and tweak your customer experience.

The more proactive among you will want to set-up an account and start following customers. Users who write comments about you (both positive and negative) are the first place to start, but there are other tactics to employ.

Does you primary competition have a large following? Don’t be afraid to follow their followers. They’ve done some of the hard work for you and have established the level of local Twitter participation.

Is there a shopping mall or movie theater near your location? People who frequent those spots are obvious potential customers and there is no reason you can’t harness that following.

Keep in mind that in a perfect world you will be taking all of these steps. But once you’ve done your due diligence you will determine what level of involvement make practical and financial sense. If for some reason you find no Twitter presence in your community you will at least have established your area isn’t ready.

Either way, you’ll know where you stand. Information, however brief and riddled with “LOL”s, is power.

Follow Barry on Twitter right here: @thebarblogger

Let’s me begin this article by holding my hands up and saying that many might consider an article like this a self-serving conflict of interest, considering I provide social media management services to clients. However, having listened to amazing stories of pitches and promises made to restaurant and bar owners, I thought the least I could do was show you how to evaluate ANY proposal you get related to Facebook, Twitter, Social Networking or Campaign Management. That way, I stay somewhat impartial here!

Most bar and restaurant owners have come to the realization that they need to take advantage of social media, but they don’t know where to begin. Of course, there is no substitute for a well qualified person within your business to manage your social media accounts. That being said, it is not always feasible for yourself or one of your employees to put in the required time and effort needed to get results.

Although it would be best if we could fix our own taps, sometimes we need to call a plumber. This is the case for many bars and restaurants with social media. The problem is, it seems as though everyone is calling themselves a “social media expert” lately. How do you ensure that you are hiring a qualified and trustworthy individual to manage your online presence? Well you can start by looking out for the red flags below.

No mention of measuring or monetizing

It is easy to get caught up in the social media hype and feel as though your company is missing out by not participating. However, it is important to establish exactly how social media can benefit your business before you hire someone to manage your accounts.

It doesn’t matter how many fans or followers you have online if none of them are actually spending money at your bar or restaurant.

Fan numbers increasing can be a partial measurement but it’s an incomplete measure, especially considering you can buy fans in bulk online. It’s about the engagement and revenue generated at the end of the day.

A real “social media expert” will have a system in place for measuring results of social media campaigns, and ultimately increasing revenue. This should include measuring any increase in your online following and relating it to the number of customers coming through your door.

They attempt to tie you into a contract

Social media is constantly changing. “Social media experts” have no control over any platform. Furthermore, social media is not effective for every business. You should not be expected to commit to a lengthy contract, especially if you are not convinced that social media is right for your bar or restaurant. Can you imagine being locked into paying for something 6 months after you’ve realized it is not working?

They have no track record in the bar/restaurant industry

A true “social media expert” will be able to provide examples of clients who have implemented their strategies and had success. Although their ideas may sound great, it is important to hear that they have experience actually implementing them with positive results. Can they show you a case study or two? Are they happy for you to contact their past or existing clients? If not, why not?

The hospitality industry is also a very different beast to selling mortgages or sunshine holidays. So what does your “expert” know about the bar and restaurant industry? Do their suggestions matched your existing operation and systems? If not, you might be paying for something that doesn’t meet your most basic of requirements. In fact, the wrong strategy could end up adding to your workload, not increasing business.

They keep taking about Myspace or other ineffective uses of time/money

The second a “social media expert” tries to sell you on Myspace or Bebo or an as yet unheard of Social Network–run! The same goes for trying to sell you on tons of customized tabs on Facebook, or anyone trying to sell you on something outside of Facebook, Facebook Places, Twitter and Foursquare as your main platforms. There is no harm in considering other platforms, but these four are the most important to focus on (right now – as we mentioned, things change)

No online following of their own

Anyone can sign up for a Facebook or Twitter account. Just because someone knows how to post photos and interact with their friends, this does not mean they are capable of creating strategies around these platforms that will be effective for a business. Before hiring a “social media expert”, take some time to see the type of content they are currently posting from their own accounts. How engaged are their own customers? Do they have their own online following? It’s easy to talk the talk, but are they practicing what they preach?

Do a search for their name/business name on Twitter and Google. Check to see if anyone responds to their own Facebook Posts and whether their Twitter feed includes actual replies to other humans or just an automated stream of links. If the “expert’ hasn’t been able to build their own business or following using social media, then what chance have they of doing it for your business?
In summary, no different to any other service you seek out and pay for, check to see what the return on investment might be for you. Outsourcing your social networking may not be the best solution for your business. In many cases, you or your management/staff will have the skills to carry out many of the tasks once you have setup a strategy and established your goals.

If you do want some help setting up a strategy or just want a no-obligation chat to see what opportunities your business has using social media, then click on this link and schedule a call with us anytime. We don’t bite and we’ll give you some ideas to get you started immediately!

Date & Time: Wednesday April 13th @ 3 PM EST

Bar & Restaurant owners no longer have a choice as to whether to use social media tools or not. The question now is how well do you do it. Your customers use social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare & Yelp more than they pick up a magazine, newspaper or listen to the radio. This brings huge opportunities to a business owner but also it’s own set of challenges.

With this in mind, we have developed a free webinar to steer you through the online world and address the following topics in detail for you, giving you an actionable plan to take away and implement. This will be presented by Barry Chandler and is based on successful strategies used with his clients over the past number of months.

By the end of the webinar, you will know:

1. The four steps to creating any successful social media campaign.
2. What EVERY Facebook page should include.
3. What makes or breaks a content strategy.
4. Why certain brands have a huge fan base and how you can copy their success.
5. How to measure the Return In Investment from your Social Media activities (this could be the most important part of the entire presentation)

How to create a social media strategy for your bar/restaurant: Registration Link

Topics that will be discussed and expanded on:

• Goal setting
• How to grow your customer base using social networks
• How to engage your customers and involve them even when they’re not in your bar
• Which social media platforms to focus on
• How to customize those platforms
• How to create an effective content strategy that will engage your customers
• Appealing to your audience
• Incorporating your current marketing calendar
• Sharing local events
• Taking advantage of newsworthy topics
• Posting effective photos and videos
• Scheduling posts in advance
• Measurement and monetization

Have a look at what some of our past attendees had to say:

Excellent seminar.  5-stars – Elian Habayeb

Barry – superb presentation . You have touched on so much in such a short period of time. – Paul Beaver

Seminar was great!  Sparked a lot of great ideas, especially liked the info about Foursquare.  Thank you. – Alison Weigman

Hi Barry, excellent presentation. Thank you – Damien O’Regan

Very good …quite amazing info…a def revolution – Mike Deakin

Absolutely brilliant presentation, opened my eyes to the whole social media marketing tool – Martin Lawrence

Great stuff – i’ve tried some of your tips while we’ve been online. Just by saying Good Afternoon on our facebook, we’ve had 9 likes – Scott Lee

Superb webinar, really useful info on FB and Twitter – Andrew Jones

I think this was a great help to my business – Kris Lord

Great webinar thanks Barry. Foursquare info was very useful – never even heard of it before! – Rob Kirby

Thanks very much, Barry. Very interesting. Great for my own knowledge – Marie O’Halloran

thank you for my first webinar ,fantastic – Gearoid Casey

I couldnt have asked for a better seminar. I am setting up a marketing department for my families hotel and this will be of great help to us. thank you so much. – Laura Degiorgio

Really interesting.  Excellent. – Corinne O’Donnell

Excellent content all round and nice presentation quality  – Alex Guevera

Really good stuff Barry – Cant help but think this will help anyone who is bright enough to get involved – I will for sure – John Cunningham

Really useful information on foursquare..need to follow up on this… first presentation I have seen on this.. way ahead of the game.. Thank you Barry – TJ Mulcahy

Hi Barry, this was very useful insight and an in-depth analysis into Social Media.  – Sunny Aurora

You have raised a few simple things that I hadn’t thought about and taken for granted – its been worthwhile being here. Thanks Barry – Mthulisi Nyathi

Excellent pointers and insight to how to use social media.  Great that the event was live. – Kerry Morgan

Excellent overview Barry, well done – Colm Mitchell

This is a free online event designed to give you actionable ideas that are easy to implement.

Click here to secure your place now: Registration Link

Date & Time: Wednesday April 13th @ 3 PM EST
Registration Link

This event will last approximately an hour and a half and Barry will stay online to answer as many questions as you might have to help your business for as long as is needed.

Cheers!