How to Build a Restaurant Marketing Plan

Practical strategies for restaurants building awareness, better experiences, stronger relationships and repeat business.

Marketing · Communication · Customer Experience · Operations · Community · Growth

Most restaurants don’t have a marketing plan.

They have a posting schedule.

There’s a Instagram calendar, a few monthly post, and a camera roll full of food photos ready to publish. That’s activity—but it’s not a strategy.

A real plan defines who you’re trying to reach, what you want them to do, how you’ll communicate with them, and how you will measure whether it’s working.

A posting schedule tells you what goes live on Tuesday.

If you’ve ever felt busy on social media but unsure whether any of it is actually helping your restaurant grow, this is for you.

What Is a Restaurant Marketing Plan?

A restaurant marketing plan is a clear, written approach that connects your brand promise, communication channels, programs, community relationships and measurement so that every effort supports the same business goals.

It doesn’t need to be complicated.

It does need to exist somewhere you can return to, use and improve.

A strong plan should answer five basic questions:

1. Who are we trying to reach?

2. What do we want customers to know?

3. What do we want them to do?

4. Where are we going to communicate with them and build community?

5. How will we know whether the plan is working?

How This Connects to the Restaurant Growth Playbook

The marketing plan is one part of a larger system.

The StraitLeap Restaurant Growth Playbook brings marketing and communication together with customer and culinary experience, operations, staffing, community engagement, retention and growth.

The goal isn't to give restaurant owners another list of things to do.

It's to help them understand how the pieces connect.

Start where you are:

Restaurant Growth Workbook — $25
A guided workbook with questions, exercises and checkpoints to help you begin developing your strategy.

Restaurant Growth Playbook — $175
The complete step-by-step framework with the StraitLeap Restaurant Toolbox.

Restaurant Growth Advisory — $350
The playbook plus two consulting/advisory sessions with StraitLeap.

Common Questions

Do I need a large budget to market my restaurant?

No. Start by strengthening the systems you already have. Accurate information, consistent communication, customer feedback, community relationships and word of mouth can all be developed before increasing your advertising budget.

Is social media enough to market a restaurant?

No. Social media is one important channel within a larger marketing and communication strategy.

How often should I update my marketing plan?

Review your key numbers and activities monthly. Conduct a larger review seasonally or whenever something significant changes in your business.

What's the difference between marketing and communication?

Marketing is what you're trying to accomplish. Communication is how you communicate that goal to the people you want to reach.

A strong restaurant strategy needs both.

What should I work on first?

Start with your brand promise, your primary audience and the customer journey. Then identify one specific business goal and build your communication and programming around it.

About StraitLeap

StraitLeap is a Bronx-based community storytelling, marketing and communications platform helping local businesses and organizations build awareness, strengthen relationships and connect their work to the communities they serve.

Through StraitConnect, StraitLeap into Conversation, StraitStreams, StraitFlows, social storytelling and strategic consulting, StraitLeap creates opportunities for businesses to communicate with their audiences and participate in the communities around them.

Local stories. Local relationships. Shared growth.

This article is part of The Restaurant Growth Series, a StraitLeap resource for restaurant owners and operators building stronger marketing, communication, customer experience, community relationships and repeat business.