Restaurants Use SEM and Social Media Marketing to Win Big!

Popular restaurant chain Bob Evans Farms has embraced the power of Social Media Marketing. Now, not only can you go to your local Bob Evans to eat, but you can follow what is happening with the chain both through Twitter and on Facebook. In the article Stephanie Busack, Digital Marketing Manager for Bob Evans Restaurants explains why she uses internet marketing and the benefits that she sees from it. Social media marketing allows Bob Evans to engage in a two way conversation with their customers, instead of traditional marketing which only allows for a one way, business to customer communication. It also allows for the company to hear directly from the customers what their thoughts and feelings are about the company’s brand, products and services, instead of monitoring third party sources of information. Stephanie feels that using social media such as Facebook allows her to market directly to people that are interested in what she has to sell – they have already declared themselves as “fans” of Bob Evans. This is a ‘no-cost’ method of marketing since all Stephanie has to do is click on “send message to fans”, type in the message and instantly market to fans – which currently number at over 3,000. Additionally, every time someone new becomes a fan of Bob Evans, this information shows up on the fan’s Facebook page for all their friends to see – a no-cost, no-effort marketing bonus. In addition, Stephanie can see the demographics of the restaurants’ fans and target her messages appropriately. Stephanie is most excited about being able to use Twitter for its big potential to promote products or deals at the lowest reach cost. As well she speaks about being able to use micro sites for contests as part of her internet marketing to introduce Bob Evans to new targeted demographic groups. These are people they wouldn’t necessary visit the main Bob Evans website, but willing visit the micro sites to enter the contests, often daily, to increase their chances to win. Each visit is a chance to market to them. Bob Evans use of social media is an excellent example of how large and small businesses can be on an even playing field in the world of internet marketing.