The Value OF Public Relations
A growing number of chefs, restaurants and food service companies are recognizing first-hand that the impact of favorable feature stories in the media has greater impact than print and broadcast advertisements.
You may have heard the saying, “Advertising you pay for, but public relations you pray for.” Though the adage is old, it is especially true today.
A carefully crafted public relations campaign will raise both media and consumer awareness of a restaurant, and the profile of a chef. Though you may not realize it, every restaurant and chef has a story to tell. The important part is making it known. The “buzz” about a restaurant and a chef begins and remains through the media. By cultivating positive relationships with the media and creating publicity via the media, restaurant operators and chefs enhance their chances for continued success.
An effective restaurant public relations campaign that generates favorable exposure through newspapers, magazines, TV stations, radio stations and the Internet has a wider reach than word-of-mouth alone. And the public lends more credibility to articles they read and stories they hear about your restaurant than advertisements they read and see.
So what exactly is public relations, and why is it the best route for restaurants to create positive awareness? People often confuse PR with advertising, but the two are dramatically different. Simply put, advertising places ads while PR places news. Both are designed to elevate consumers' interest in product or service. Both often use the same media – print, radio and television and the Internet. This is where the similarities end.
PR Builds Credibility
Public relations helps form a favorable public opinion through the “implied endorsement” of non-biased industry authorities (namely print and broadcast media members). Consider, which holds more weight - an advertisement about a new restaurant opening or a positive article written in editorial style about the hottest new restaurant in town?
Is Emeril Lagasse the most talented and innovative chef in the world today? Many in the culinary industry would argue he is not, but few would debate that he is perhaps the most recognizable name among chefs. His notoriety wasn’t created through word-of-mouth or advertising. It was cultivated through his consistent presence in the media.
The late entertainer Will Rogers once said, “All I know is just what I read in the papers.” PR generates news coverage, and news coverage builds credibility. People believe what they read in newspapers and magazines, what they hear on the radio and what they see on television. People are skeptical of what they see in an advertisement. It’s easy to toot your own horn. It’s more difficult to get someone to believe your claims through advertising alone.
PR Allows Personalization of Your Story
Because they are so costly, advertisements do not give you ample room to personalize the story of your restaurant. A public relations campaign does. By generating multiple story angles designed to reach different media outlets – such as business journals, food service and hospitality trade publications, daily and weekly newspapers, city and regional magazines, regional dining and entertainment publications, and major national magazines – you enhance the number of published and broadcast stories about your restaurant. And each of these stories educates the public of what you as a restaurant and you as a chef are all about.
Take, for example, a new Italian bistro which opened last May. Orlando, of which Winter Park is an upscale suburb, is one of the premier restaurant locations in the United States. Some of the nation’s finest and most renowned eateries call Orlando home. So ZaBella had a challenge when it opened its doors. A trendy Italian bistro offering gourmet pizza made by a pizzaiolo from Naples, Italy; and a diverse menu of entrees reflective of a New York City Italian restaurant, ZaBella has an interesting story to tell – and QMG made sure the media was aware.
Capitalizing on the numerous built-in story angles, we developed a public relations plan emphasizing story angles designed to reach consumer and trade media outlets. In the first month of ZaBella’s public relations campaign, the restaurant was featured in Restaurants & Institutions, Today’s Restaurant News and Plate Magazine. The most influential article was a favorable review from Orlando Sentinel restaurant critic Scott Joseph. After his piece appeared in the newspaper Weekend section on a Friday, ZaBella was booked solid that weekend and through the next week. Subsequent favorable reviews in Orlando Weekly, Orlando Leisure Magazine and the Orlando Business Journal kept the momentum going.
Each time a review appeared in the Orlando media about ZaBella , the restaurant was booked up to two weeks in advance with reservations. Scott Joseph called ZaBella “Orlando’s hottest new restaurant.” This article alone attracted guests even several months later. ZaBella remains one of Orlando’s most successful new restaurants. The place is packed for dinner, even on days that are slow at many restaurants. ZaBella credits QMG’s public relations campaign with generating the buzz that has helped it become one of the most popular dining spots in not just Orlando, but all of Central Florida.
PR Is Cost-Effective, Especially Compared To Advertising
Compare the cost of a direct mail campaign or a display ad in a publication with the cost of writing and distributing a press release. There is no comparison. The cost of hiring a restaurant public relations firm to produce press releases and get them placed in media outlets is a fraction of what you pay for advertisements. In addition, the articles the press release generates may be viewed by a larger audience since consumers tend to pay more attention to stories than advertisements.
It would be difficult to find an executive who would prefer seeing his company’s ads on TV instead of a news feature in Forbes or Fortune. The article builds credibility, positions the company as an industry leader and generates awareness without the costly inefficiencies of traditional advertising.
PR’s Life Span Is Longer Than Advertising
To the typical consumer, an ad is like a butterfly. Its life span is short-lived. This isn’t the case with PR. A well-placed story can reap benefits for an extended period. The fundamental PR strategy is to place a story in one publication and move it up the ladder to another magazine or newspaper, or transfer it to another medium such as radio or television.
Consumers often clip articles they read about a restaurant they would like to try or a destination they would like to visit. Also, a copy of the publication containing your article can be passed around, mailed or generally distributed to customers and other contacts. This is another way to “touch” customers and prospects; they typically like to be informed about special accomplishments and kept up-to-date on both you and your company.
If the newspaper or magazine is noteworthy in your area, you can cite “as seen in” on all printed advertising, e-mail signatures and point-of-purchase marketing. “As seen in Palm Beach Illustrated” or even “The Boston Globe” can give you tremendous credibility and set you apart from your competition in a significant way.
Don’t Serve As Your Own Public Relations Firm
Some people think they can write a press release, send it to the media and watch the publicity from published and broadcast stories pour in. If that was the case, then public relations firms wouldn’t exist. Effective PR is an art that involves writing well-crafted press releases with story angles that interest the media, not self-serving marketing verbiage. There is nothing more irritating to reporters than receiving poorly written press releases with no newsworthy angles.
This is why you should hire a restaurant public relations firm to design and implement your PR campaign. It allows you to focus on your core business. When choosing a restaurant public relations firm to coordinate your PR campaign – whether it be for the restaurant in general, for the chef, or for both – it is vital to hire an agency that knows the industry inside and out, does not require long-term contracts and has staff members who have worked as journalists since they will think like reporters and editors.
To find such a firm, you can conduct a search on the Internet, ask for referrals and look for companies that are generating favorable press for their clients. Chances are great that the restaurant companies you read about in trade publications are being supported by an effective restaurant public relations firm.
It’s also extremely important to make sure the firm you’re considering has a genuine interest in your business, background and future potential. If they can’t get excited about what you do, it will be harder for them to get the media excited enough to write about you.
Remember, the goal of a public relations campaign for a restaurant or a chef is to create and maintain a buzz about you, build your credibility, position you in the marketplace and save you money over traditional advertising. There are lots of media outlets within your reach if you have a well-crafted plan, and the right restaurant public relations firm to execute it.
Chef2Chef News Desk