The Big Idea

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Give 'em a tweet back!

Wildfire Restaurants has a full-time Social Media Director who tweets people who check into their restaurant via FourSquare, to thank them for coming.
Driving traffic from traffic

Hard Knox Pizza uses Facebook to promote their bumper sticker promo. Customers come in for a free bumper sticker, put it on their cars and take a picture with their cell phones. Showing the photo to servers during their next visit awards a free specialty drink.
Do your own PR

Create your own media list by doing a little homework. Study the newspapers, regional magazines, community newsletters and radio and TV stations to target the reporter, editor, writer or producer who covers restaurants, menu trends, real estate, business or design.
Vegetarian options

Replace meat or cheese with nuts in your salads to give them a protein boost vegetarian customers will appreciate.
Keeping up with the locavores

Make a "Local List" of all your locally sourced meat and produce. Post it on the wall or keep it at the hostess' station so your staff can promote it and address any customer questions.
Add tea for extra profit

Did you know one pound of tea leaves can brew up to 205 glasses of iced tea? At an average cost of 3 cents/10-oz glass, it's apparent that gross profits on iced tea sales quickly add up. And it has the benefit of a healthful image.
Staff-written reviews

Complacent staff needs to become motivated to deliver better service. Challenge them to write reviews of restaurants they visit, highlighting their service experience.
Chefs who blog

According to HubSpot, small businesses that blog get 55% more site traffic. Start a blog to showcase your culinary creations to would-be diners. It's an inexpensive and easy-to-update marketing tool.
Smart poultry sourcing

Even as we inch out of the recession, the demand for poultry will remain strong as diners hold onto their cost-shaving habits. To ensure consistency and quality of your poultry offerings, deal directly with a poultry company and let them suggest a supplier.
Entertain the kids, engage the parents

Looking to attract more families? Partner with a gaming company to develop an in-house trivia or other family-oriented game for them to play while visiting.
A jarring presentation

Desserts served in a jar are portable, eye-catching and customers can re-use the container at home.
Partnering with purveyors

Consumers notice when fresh, local produce is on the menu. Locating purveyors with greenhouses will keep it available to your business year-round.