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10 Most 'Liked' Fast-Food Chains on Facebook for 2012 By The Daily Meal | Shine Food(03/29/12)
There is a growing trend among the big players in the fast-food industry these days - coming out with an outrageous product and then hoping that it strikes viral gold online. Take for example Taco Bell's Doritos Locos Tacos and McDonald's Austrian McRibster.
The impact of social media has become extremely important for these fast-food brands, so much so that if you look at how the chains stack up popularity-wise, by last count of the likes on their Facebook pages at least, Subway (11,626,974) still has work to do before it overtakes Starbucks (29,299,522) and the Golden Arches (18,155,580) despite having more locations worldwide than either brand.
When it comes to the popularity rankings of popular fast-food joints, there might be some surprises. Would anyone have thought that Arby's wouldn't have even come close to cracking the top 20 most popular fast-food chains on Facebook? And despite all its cult-like proponents, Five Guys didn't make the cut, either.
Where did Chipotle land? Dairy Queen? Which chicken chain dominated - Kentucky Fried Chicken or Chick-fil-A? Which pizza chain was more popular - Domino's, Pizza Hut, or Papa John's? Who were the top three most popular fast-food chains?
Burger King: 4,689,909 Current Likes (+356%)
At last count, having it your way has garnered Burger King at least 4,689,909 'likes' on Facebook.
Likes as of April, 2011: 1,028,243
Locations worldwide: Over 12,300 locations in 76 countries
Chick-fil-AChick-fil-A9. Chick-fil-A: 4,976,154 Current Likes (+27%)
Despite the flurry of controversy that Chick-fil-A has faced over the past year, they still managed to pull in a whopping 4,976,154 likes on Facebook at last count.
Likes as of April, 2011: 3,931,888
Locations worldwide: over 1,500
Domino's Pizza: 5,946,771 Current Likes (+148%)
It's a significant jump up from Chick-fil-A to Domino's when it comes to likes on Facebook - 5,946,771 people like this pizza chain.
Likes as of April, 2011: 2,402,240
Locations worldwide: over 9,000 locations in 60 countries
Dunkin' Donuts: 6,041,776 Current Likes
The second coffee-based chain to land on this list, Dunkin' Donuts has 6,041,776 likes on Facebook.
Locations worldwide: 9,760 locations in 30 countries
Buffalo Wild Wings: 6,925,386 Current Likes (+52%)
Buffalo Wild Wings comes in at number six on this list with 6,925,386 likes on Facebook.
Likes as of April, 2011: 4,542,508
Locations worldwide: over 800
Pizza Hut: 7,068,482 Current Likes (+119%)
At last count, Pizza Hut scored 7,068,482 likes on Facebook, putting it at number five on this list of the most popular chains.
Likes as of April, 2011: 3,231,540
Locations worldwide: 12,800 locations in 90 countries
Taco Bell: 8,420,419 Current Likes (+36%)
Taco Bell comes in fourth with 8,420,419 likes on Facebook, nearly 20 million less likes than the top-ranking chain on this list.
Likes as of April, 2011: 6,170,475
Locations worldwide: 5,896
Subway: 11,626,974 Current Likes (+186%)
As noted before, Subway has more locations than any other fast-food chain in the world - even McDonald's. But on this list, the 11,626,974 likes it has on Facebook puts it two spots back from Starbucks and just behind McDonald's.
Likes as of April, 2011: 4,059,970
Locations worldwide: 36,426 locations in 99 countries
McDonald's: 18,155,580 Current Likes (+132%)
McDonald's is holding it down at number two with 18,155,580 likes on Facebook.
Likes as of April, 2011: 7,813,854
Locations worldwide: over 33,000 locations in 19 countries
Starbucks: 29,299,522 Current Likes (+36%)
Starbucks is the clear winner on this list with 29,299,522 likes on Facebook.
Likes as of May, 2011: 21,596,340
Locations worldwide: over 17,000 locations in 55 countries
| Easter Brunch at Salty’s on the Columbia(03/17/12)
PORTLAND, OR – March 14, 2012 – Make the fabulous journey around our Easter Weekend buffet tables and experience a culinary adventure. Salty’s Easter Brunch is an array of the best Northwest seafood and iconic brunch favorites. Enjoy items from the regular Sunday Brunch Buffet Menu along with these special items just for Easter: Smoked Columbia River sturgeon, lamb, and pork loin. There will be gift bags for the kiddos! Join Salty’s on Easter Sunday, April 8th, from 8am-8pm. Easter Brunch will also be available from 10am-1pm on Saturday, April 7th.
Classic Brunch
Made-To-Order Omelets; Fresh Waffles; Bacon; Kielbasa Sausage; Breakfast Potatoes; Scrambled Eggs; Fruit Crêpes; House-Made Biscuits & Gravy; Eggs Benedict; Beef Hash; Smoked Salmon Quiche; Stuffed French Toast
Café American
Vanilla Honey-Glazed Ham; Hand-Carved Garlic-Roasted Prime Rib; Artisan Bread; Pasta Salad
From The Sea
Chilled Peel & Eat Prawns; Blackened Salmon with Sweet & Sour; Clam Cioppino; Dungeness Crab; Shrimp Ceviche; Fresh Oysters on the Half Shell; Salt-Crusted King Salmon; Salmon Lox; Salty’s Seafood Chowder
From The Farm
Hand-Tossed Caesar Salad; Baby Green Salad with Sliced Grapes, Apple Cider Vinaigrette; Local & Imported Cheeses; Crudités & Melon Platters; Strawberry Spinach Salad
Pastries & Yummy Desserts
Four-Foot Cascading Chocolate Fountain with Lady Finger Cookies, Strawberries, Pineapple & Marshmallows; Seasonal Tarts; Brownies; Caramel Almond Bars; Blueberry Muffins; Bread Pudding & Cobblers; Croissants; Apple Dumplings; Danishes; Cheesecake; Bread Sticks; German Chocolate Cake; Blueberry Coffee Cake; Chocolate Chip Cookies
Easter Pricing: Adult Brunch $49.99
Adult Champagne Brunch $54.99
Children 12 and under $1.50 per year of age!
Easter weekend reservations must be made by phone at 503.288.4444.
About Salty’s Seafood Grills:
Salty’s Seafood Grills are Seattle and Portland’s “Premier Seafood Restaurants”™ offering extensive menus featuring fresh Northwest seafood, USDA prime aged charbroiled steaks, local produce, and delicious house-made desserts. Located on prime waterfront beaches, Salty’s Restaurants give you unrivaled views in both Seattle, Washington and Portland, Oregon. Recently, the readers of Seattle.Citysearch.com and Portland.Citysearch.com voted Salty’s the Best Brunch and Best Waterfront Restaurant in Seattle and Best Seafood Restaurant in Portland. Our Bar-Cafés feature live entertainment on select evenings where you can enjoy cocktails, Northwest seafood appetizers, and smaller meals. Our outdoor decks are open in season for al fresco dining, and our private dining rooms are the best in Seattle and Portland for catered meetings, private parties or wedding receptions – with specialized services, we do everything for you. For additional information and reservations, please visit www.saltys.com. Follow us on Twitter at SaltysPortland and friend us on Facebook at SaltysPortland. | Restaurant Marketing Press Releases(02/29/12)
Restaurant Press Releases
There is no doubt that restaurant press releases are the most cost effective promotion for your restaurant. Providing that your releases are news worthy, the chances are you’ll be picked up by a local new publication and promoted. In the past I’ve great success when sending restaurant press releases, which in turn have spun off into other areas and opportunities for me. Like most things for them to succeed, you’ll need to do some preparation and research before sending out your first restaurant press release. I certainly don’t profess to be a restaurant publicist as sorts but I’d like to share my secrets and strategy when sending restaurant press releases to help you succeed in your restaurant business.
Why a Restaurant Press Release?
Simply because it’s a cost effective exercise that gains promotion for your restaurant with little, if any financial costs. I’ll go into the costs a bit further on, but on a whole they can next to nothing. Apart from gaining promotion in local magazines and newspapers, they can often provide subtle gains for example they provide more links to your restaurant website contributing to higher positioning in search engines.
Setting up a media portal
Before you even draft your restaurant press release, you’ll need to consider developing a media portal specifically for the media and press to have access to information which will help them draft your story. The media portal URL needs to be something easy like www.restaurantname.com/media and should contain the following elements;
List of press releases (both current and previous releases
List of scanned articles previously written about your restaurant
Photo gallery of press quality photos
Ability for media to register for updates
Your contact details including mobile and email address
When you’ve got the media portal developed, I’d recommend hiring a professional photographer for the day who can photograph your restaurant, staff, food and wine to create a photography portfolio for the media. Media outlets that don’t need to send out their own photographer for story, maybe more inclined to include you in a last minute story. Be sure to make each of the photos are digital, are at least 21cm wide and at 300 dpi or greater. The photographs need to be digital and be a combination of lifestyle and promotional shots and ideally you’ll want the following photographs;
outside or exterior of the restaurant
inside the restaurant or any alfresco dining areas
a table setting
the bar and cellar if appropriate
cocktails if relevant
portraits of the chef in the restaurant and some in the kitchen
the owner and chef or the manager and chef
action shots of the chefs in the kitchen
at least a dozen different food shots which portray the restaurant
Distribution of your restaurant press releases
Once you’ve setup your media portal and photo gallery you need to establish where you’ll distribute your restaurant press releases. I’d start by developing a list of 100 media outlets and freelance journalists that you’d like to send your releases to, be sure you have a combination of local, state and national publications. It’s hard to get coverage in the major publications, whereas it’s much easier to get coverage in the local publications. Don’t forget to include websites in your list as some restaurant sites like Zagats and Citysearch have considerable readership and are always looking for news worthy content. Once you’ve got your list, start by contacting them personally and asking if they want to receive your press releases. This is a time consuming process, but very necessary as you are able to get the correct email address as well as their express permission to email to them. In my experience they either say yes or they don’t write about them and refer you to a colleague of theirs.
Press Release Websites
Many food journalists and restaurant writers subscribe to news services for a source of story leads and there quiet a number of these on the internet which are both free and paid which you can use. Compared to sending it directly to local and domestic journalists, you may not get any extra diners in the restaurant specifically using press release websites, but it does help lift your rankings in the search engines by providing new links to your website.
Definitely make sure that you submit your release to Food4Media which is a dedicated network of food writers, restaurant reviewers and journalists. As soon as you submit your restaurant press release it’s automatically syndicated to people that actually want to receive them. There are some great journalists registered in this service right around the world. Currently the Food4Media service is free.
One of the largest press release services on the internet is PRWEB. It publishes hundreds of press releases per day on all matter of topics. Apart from publishing it on their website, they also syndicate to thousands of niche websites that republish the press releases. I’ve found my restaurant press releases in the past republished on hotel sites and restaurant sites all over the world. This is a great way to acquire hundreds of links to your website very quickly. The price of submitting a press release costs approx US$130.
Aimed at restaurant franchises or publicly listed restaurant groups, the Warren Buffet owned Business Wire service allows you to send restaurant press releases to specific journalists and media outlets throughout the world. Prices start at around US$300 per release depending on where and how you are sending it. Sending your restaurant press release via their wire service to just a state is much cheaper than having them fax or email it out to major news outlets. I’ve seen my releases end up on Google News, Yahoo News as well as major newspapers I’d never think I could get into. Business Wire is not cheap but it is considered a professional and reliable wire service.
Ideas for your Restaurant Press Release
Endeavour to develop a strategy of writing a restaurant press release once a month i.e. 12 per year, this ensures you have something to focus on each month and something to promote. This will ensure that you don’t bombard journalists with your releases. Here are some ideas to keep things fresh;
Appointment of a new Head Chef or Executive Chef
Guest chefs or celebrity chef dinners
Charity dinner event
Wine dinners with winemakers
Beer dinners with brewers
Introduction of a organic or vegetarian menus
Nominations to winning restaurant awards
Involvement in food festivals or food events
Partnerships with art galleries or artists
Christmas Dinner Menus
How to format your restaurant press releases
So your restaurant press release doesn’t get immediately binned when it hits a journalist’s desk its best to prepare the release so it’s professionally looking with the following elements.
Have a catchy title - get them excited to read more
Write about 500 - 800 words maximum - don’t right a long story.
Concentrate on the facts.
Be sure to include 2 - 3 quotes relevant to the release
Include the URL to your restaurant’s website
Make sure you provide the link to the media portal
Your contact details including mobile number and email
If you are faxing your release be sure to have it on your restaurant letter head
The key to success
A few days after you’ve sent your restaurant press release, call a dozen of the journalists where you really want some exposure. Ask them if they got the release and if it was something they’d likely run. Then offer them to come and experience the restaurant, journalists are much more inclined to write about you after they’ve experienced your restaurant. Over time you’ll find which journalists are keen to write about you and which aren’t.
See more at: BenjaminChristie.com | |
