7 Social Media Mistakes Restaurants Make (And How to Fix Them)

Feb 24

Social media is one of the most powerful tools for restaurant marketing, but only if it’s done right. Too often, restaurant owners post inconsistently, ignore engagement, or miss key branding opportunities—costing them potential customers and revenue.

If your social media isn’t driving traffic to your restaurant, it’s not working as hard as it should be. Here are seven common mistakes and what they might be costing your business.

1. Inconsistent Branding

💰 The Cost: Confusing potential customers, weakening brand recognition, and losing repeat business.

Your restaurant’s branding should be instantly recognizable across all platforms. That means using the same logo, colors, fonts, and voice across Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. If your brand looks different in every post, potential diners won’t remember you—and worse, they may assume your business lacks professionalism.

✅ Fix It: Set brand guidelines for social media, including logo use, color palette, and messaging style. The Social Pass ensures every post is 100% on-brand, so your restaurant builds recognition and trust.

2. Ignoring Engagement

💰 The Cost: Missed customer relationships, fewer repeat diners, and lower rankings in social media algorithms.

Social media isn’t just for broadcasting—it’s for conversations. When restaurants ignore comments, DMs, and reviews, they send a message that they don’t care about their customers. Worse, engagement signals to social media algorithms that your content is valuable. If you’re not engaging, your posts are less likely to be seen.

✅ Fix It: Set a schedule to respond to comments and messages daily. If you don’t have time, Our Social Media Management Service includes engagement strategies to keep your restaurant responsive and top-of-mind.

3. Posting Low-Quality Images & Videos

💰 The Cost: Losing potential diners before they ever walk through your doors.

Social media is a visual platform, and bad photography can hurt your business. Dark, blurry, or unappetizing food shots will make people scroll right past you—or worse, think your food isn’t worth trying.

✅ Fix It: Invest in quality photography or at least learn basic lighting and angles. Social Media Management with Treebird includes monthly photoshoots ensuring your food looks as good online as it does in person.

4. Over-Promoting Without Personality

💰 The Cost: Decreased engagement and follower loss.

If every post is “$2 off margaritas tonight!” or “Try our new burger special,” people will tune out. Social media is about storytelling—customers want to see behind-the-scenes moments, chef spotlights, and guest experiences.

✅ Fix It: Follow the 80/20 rule—80% engaging content (stories, customer highlights, behind-the-scenes), 20% promotions. The Social Pass balances storytelling and promos so your content keeps people engaged.

5. Ignoring Trends (or Chasing Every Trend)

💰 The Cost: Looking outdated or inauthentic.

Restaurants that ignore social media trends—like Reels, trending audio, or viral challenges—can feel out of touch. But on the flip side, constantly chasing trends without a clear brand strategy can make you look scattered or desperate.

✅ Fix It: Only participate in trends that fit your brand’s personality. The Social Pass helps you stay current without losing your brand identity.

6. No Content Strategy

💰 The Cost: Wasted time, missed opportunities, and inconsistent posting.

If you’re posting whenever you remember—or worse, going weeks without posting—you’re losing traction. A random approach means fewer people see your content, and you miss key marketing moments like holidays, events, and seasonal promotions.

✅ Fix It: Plan content at least a month in advance and schedule posts. Social Media Management gives you a strategic content calendar so you never have to guess what to post next.

7. Not Leveraging User-Generated Content (UGC)

💰 The Cost: Missing out on free marketing.

Your customers are already taking photos and tagging your restaurant—why not use that content? Ignoring UGC means missing out on authentic, real-world marketing that builds credibility and social proof.

✅ Fix It: Share customer posts (with credit), create branded hashtags, and encourage guests to tag you. Social Media Management helps curate and repurpose UGC so you always have fresh content.

Is Your Restaurant Making These Social Media Mistakes?

If any of these sound familiar, don’t stress—we’ve got you. The Social Pass makes it easy to create consistent, high-quality, and on-brand content that actually works.

🚀 Get social media off your plate and start attracting more diners. Learn more about The Social Pass and Social Media Management by Getting Started today.

Jaci Lund

Jaci Lund partner, creative director, designer Jaci’s quick wit and native intelligence comes across as soon as you meet her—and carries over to her design, where she fuses fun and sophistication in just the right doses. With a dual focus on creating original branding for new concepts and revitalizing the look and feel of even the most-established brands, Jaci approaches each project with a fresh and thoughtful perspective. While she recognizes the relevance of current trends, she’s hyper-conscious of the fine line that separates “trend” from “fad,” and tends toward more timeless and classic looks for her clients. Before founding Treebird, Jaci was instrumental in growing the design department at Atlanta’s The Reynolds Group, Inc. Through a five-year tenure that saw her quickly ascend to senior designer and then become the company’s first creative director, Jaci worked on design and branding projects with visionaries, entrepreneurs, and business leaders whom she admires greatly and whose own passion elevates her sense of what’s possible through new design, branding, and communication. Jaci has won nine ADDY Awards (and counting) for her design and branding work and has twice been featured in the national design blog “Art of the Menu.” She holds a B.A. in communications from Michigan State University and completed the graphic design program at The Creative Circus, where she also teaches a quarterly course called “Introduction to Creative Thinking.” To see Jaci's previous work please visit jacilund.com.

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