Restaurants adapting to the age of social media to get more people to dine in

By Jennifer Martinez, FOX 10
June 24, 2019
PHOENIX (FOX 10) -- When people look for restaurants to visit, some may use social media to help. 
Oftentimes, a picture of the aesthetics makes the restaurant a little more desirable to the eye. Now, restaurants have moved into the direction of free marketing to get more people to dine-in.
It's a trend that has been seen around the world, with people visiting a restaurant and soon enough, a photo pops up on Instagram, and maybe even Facebook and Twitter. 
"To people coming, take a picture with the mural, and have a little piece of the restaurant with them wherever they go, Instagram or Facebook," said artist Gennaro Garcia.
When social media first started picking up, photos ate the food first, in a sense, as people take photos of their food.
"I think everyone's timeline got full of food," said Forbes Shannon with Tempe Public Market. "We take a lot of care on how we plate our food, because people love to Instagram their food. So, the next renovation step, we want to make sure that the restaurant was beautiful as well."
Now, it's all about the ambiance. At Tempe Public Market, they are doing a total renovation of their space, which started with built-in marketing: murals and aesthetics, offering a place where people can take a photo.
"Everywhere they go in the restaurant, to have a place where they can take a picture," said Garcia.
"What we wanted to do was build a restaurant, an actual building that had different or unique places that you can see, 'oh hey, I've been there, I've seen that wall, mural, and by the way, the food was so good," said Shannon.
It's a marketing tool that has worked for many restaurants, including Brat Haus in Downtown Scottsdale. 
"In the restaurant industry, we have to do more than just provide good food and service, and we have to step in with the atmosphere," said Chad Black with Brat Haus.
Painting a ginormous mural has been a hit, with the restaurant getting tagged on social media.
"I've seen it tagged from Facebook to all over the world," said Black. "Introducing the dog and pet aspect -- we're pet-friendly -- dog birthday parties and the pet theme has really blown us and helped us."
"It's way more exciting and fun to walk into this beer garden, and see a really bright painting instead of a brick wall," said artist Geoffrey Gersten.
According to a study, more than 78% of business is attracted by social media. Depending on how often people post, what hashtags are used and how fast businesses reach out to customers that have asked questions, it's all about interaction.
So, whether a business is in the palm of the next customer's hand, one thing is for sure:
"It's built-in marketing," said Shannon. "Build a network of people that support your brand, and they reshare and repost it. That's how you can attract business organically from the ground up."
As for the Tempe Public Market, the renovations are all done, and it is now open to the public.