Keep in mind that social media is first and foremost a social experience. “It is not just about posting interesting information, but also about engaging with your visitors,” says Melissa Forziat, owner of Melissa Forziat Events. “Creating content that encourages your audience to share opinions or comments—and being available to reply quickly to capitalize on relationship-building in the moment—can go a long way in priming your social media audience to walk into your establishment.”

You can’t expect people to visit your social sites if they don’t know they exist. “The social profiles for the restaurant should be available not just on the menu, but on the table or within sight of the table so guests can see it during their meal,” says Tony Bodoh, president and c.e.o. of Tony Bodoh International.

“We place our social account handles and relevant hashtags on menus, menu boards, sidewalk signs, and special menus,” says Britnie Morris, social media manager, The Restaurant Group. “We’re also considering placing this information on boxes and getting it printed on napkins.”

Take into consideration the times you’re posting on social media. “Your restaurant opens at 5 p.m. every day for dinner, but your social media posts go out every day around 11 a.m. Is this the optimal time for people to be intrigued about dinner? Probably not,” says Max Cron, creative strategy director at Online Optimism. “Most people use Instagram in or around 5 p.m. EST, which also happens to be right around when people are starting to make dinner decisions. Simply changing the time of posts to align with when your target market is using the network can make a huge difference in interaction and engagement.”

Everyone has a camera on their phone nowadays. Even if you can’t bring in a professional videographer, you can still share interesting video content with your guests. “One of our restaurant clients, Doris Metropolitan, took advantage of video content to profile its restaurant dining area, private dining room and courtyard dining area,” says Mallory Whitfield, content analyst at FSC Interactive. “The video reached 4,700 people and had more than 1,800 views. It was simple, informative and accurately represented the brand's voice. Most importantly, it got people talking about their experiences at Doris.”

Forziat says that restaurants are at an advantage when it comes to video. “Every day, beautiful plated meals are being produced on site and there are multiple staff members on hand to give tours and inside looks into behind-the-scenes operations,” she says. “Bringing a high-quality camera on site for one day can generate marketing material for months.”

“In 2016 you can't afford not to have a video strategy,” says Kelly Gentile, social and PR strategist at Brokaw Inc. “Last year we saw Twitter launch video autoplay, Facebook/Instagram/Pinterest give marketers the option to buy video ads, and the rise of live streaming video via Facebook, Meerkat and Periscope. Video play buttons are officially the #1 call to action.”

Video is one of the most effective social media practices at Fort Worth, TX-based Riscky's Barbeque, according to Brenna Jefferies, social media coordinator at Pavlov Advertising. “The majority of the videos shared via social media star Riscky's pit master and owner, Joe Riscky, who gives Riscky's fans a meat cooking tutorial,” says Jefferies. “With educational cooking videos recently becoming an attention grabber on Facebook, Riscky's adding their well-known pit master generates even more engagement.”

It’s easy to ignore a customer complaint on social media, but it’s usually in your best interest to tackle it head on. “Answering complaints increases customer advocacy and provides an opportunity to turn a customer around and improve a situation, and acknowledging a complaint provides an opportunity to learn about your business, the perception of your business and your customers in a new way, says Gentile.

Save time and money by focusing efforts on your local customer, using hashtags that are localized and social media advertising that allows you to pinpoint zip codes around your restaurant. “Location isn't everything; location-based marketing is,” says Gentile. “According to eMarketer, only 27 percent of restaurants in the U.S. use location-based marketing, but 71 percent of consumers say they'd be receptive to location-based marketing.”

In addition to keeping your feeds and cover images current, make sure all of your information is correct and you’re using the tools available to you. “Enable check-ins and reviews; People love to show good things to their friends and nothing is easier than letting people check in and review your place,” says digital marketing specialist Pamela Wagner. “Make sure that your address and operating times are updated on Facebook as well.”

You know that every social media post needs a visual component, but are you using your best photos and optimizing them for the most impact? “Half of getting someone in the door is showing them your personality and the unique vibe you have to offer, and nothing does that better than photography,” says Nick Brennan, founder and c.e.o. of Watch Social Media. “Free services such as Pablo by Buffer can help you get extra use out of those images by allowing you to upload your photos and optimize them for platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.”

When developing a hashtag, it is vital to remember that it can be used across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You’ll want something that’s shareable and easy to search. “Posts can be used to create an Insta-menu,” says Desiree Webb, social media manager at Vox Solid. “For example, #PizzaForteMenu can be used for customers to post their own photos of their food, then when new guests what to see what’s on the menu, they can see which menu items are available.”

There’s always a holiday related to food or a national food day happening at some point, so use it to your advantage. “Our client Criollo Restaurant took advantage of #NationalGumboDay by enticing followers with a mouth-watering image of their popular seafood gumbo and gained nearly 100 photo likes on Instagram,” says Whitfield. Chicago's Zoom Pizza Factory Instagrammed heart-shaped pies in honor of Valentine's Day.

Geoffrey Zakarian (pictured) might not necessarily invite the public into his kitchen, but you know everyone likes to know what happens behind closed doors, so share some of the magic of your restaurant with guests on social media. “Post pictures of staff events, interactions, accomplishments, awards and chef photos that can help customers ‘get to know the staff’ and offer them another reason to visit,” says Webb. “Your staff knows the menu and brand best, so let them show their favorite things about your brand, such as favorite wine pairing with the ribeye, favorite dessert, favorite table in the restaurant, etc. Post photos of what happens behind the scenes, special restaurant features and how-to cooking videos.”

Your biggest fans and local food bloggers can have a huge impact on your social media pages, so reach out to them. “Offers shared by trusted influencers convert at rates 3-10 times higher than offers sent by brands themselves,” says Gentile. “Test moving the conversation away from brand-to-consumer to peer-to-peer, and develop an influencer strategy for big (highly paid bloggers) or small (current fans). You have brand advocates on your restaurant's social media platforms already; embrace them. You'll have an authentic, trusted brand army before you know it.”

“Try inviting a few influencers in your area to a free dinner at the restaurant, asking them to live tweet the experience, or take a few Instagram photos and leave a review on Yelp,” suggests Cron. “This can be one of the most effective forms of using social media because it’s as close to word of mouth recommendation as possible.”

Have you ever wondered what happens to all the photos you see your guests snapping? Sam Williamson, who handles social for Tony Macaroni in Glasgow, decided to harness it. “We wanted our social media to reflect the restaurant experiences that our customers were having, so we decided to focus on the photos that our customers were taking every day in our restaurants,” says Williamson. “The Wordpress plugin Instagram Feed has helped us to connect with our customers in a way we never imagined possible. Any Instagram photo that uses a hashtag related to one of our restaurants is shared through our website, with an individual feed for each location. Not only are we getting a steady stream of quality images to use for our website, but we're also giving our customers the chance to appear on our website with their meal. It's a win-win scenario, and the plugin has helped to develop our social media presence immensely.”