Top 14 social media tools restaurants use to succeed

Restaurant owners and managers have an evolving list of responsibilities. From actually running the restaurant to advertising and social media marketing, it’s not easy to stay on top of everything.

Fortunately, there’s Superb’s Guest Experience Management (GXM) platform for all your restaurant management software needs. And there are plenty of social media tools on the market to help you promote your business and drive brand awareness.

We’ll outline 14 of the best social media tools restaurants are using to succeed in today’s digital world. From content creation to scheduling, these tools improve results and build your brand’s online presence.

14 of the best social media tools for restaurants, pubs and bars

Your guests are on social media – along with 60% of the world’s population – so if you want your restaurant to reach the maximum number of people, you have to be on social media, too.

What if you could ask today’s successful online SoMe managers what their favourite social media tools are? The ones that make the desert-island, never-leave-home-without list. We did that for you. Check out the ones that made the cut below.

1. Canva

Website: https://www.canva.com

Pricing: Free (Pro version starts at $12.99/month)

Canva is a graphic design website that you can use to make everything from social media images to newsletters.

The website has dozens of ready-made templates – from YouTube thumbnails to Instagram stories and TikTok videos – so there’s no need to start from scratch and worry about dimensions when switching between Facebook and Instagram.

Canva uses a simple drag-and-drop interface and even has a massive library of over 60 million stock photos, free to use with the Pro version.

2. Adobe Spark

Website: https://www.adobe.com/products/spark.html

Pricing: Starting at $9.99/month

Adobe Spark makes it easy to create social graphics, web pages and short videos. For restaurants, it’s a great way to create engaging videos by overlaying text and adding voice and background music. It turns any video into something worth sharing.

Its web and mobile-based platform means you can work on social media posts on the go – even during an event at your restaurant. And it’ll export the final creative in the right shape and size for each social media platform.

3. GoDaddy

Website: https://uk.godaddy.com/studio

Pricing: Free (Premium starts at $6.99/month)

GoDaddy Studio is a graphic design tool that lets you make professional designs in minutes – from photo editing to animation. It works similarly to photoshop and lets you remove the background or specific elements from an image.

For restaurants, this SoMe tool can help with the following: branded videos for social media and your website, Instagram/Facebook posts and covers, Google ads, event announcements, business cards and even logo design.

4. PicMonkey

Website: https://www.picmonkey.com/

Pricing: Free trial (Plans start at $7.99/month)

PicMonkey is similar to Cava, but boasts a photo editor that “packs a wallop”. And it goes beyond just cropping an image – this tool can resize, sharpen, adjust colours, and change exposure to get the most out of every image.

And it has a background eraser that’s easy to use… even for beginners.

5.Unfold

Website: https://unfold.com

Pricing: Free trial (Plans start at $7.99/month)

Unfold is an iOS and Android app that helps restaurants create beautiful templates for Instagram stories. But it’s not just for IG. You can use it to curate Stories for Facebook and Snapchat, too.

It's a free app with hundreds of templates and is great for helping you stay on-brand and maximise the amount of engagement from your followers.

6.VSCO

Website: https://vsco.co

Pricing: Free (Paid version available)

VSCO is a popular photo editing and sharing app for both IOS and Android users. It has incredible filters and editing features and allows users to share pictures with other members on the platform. Maybe it’s not the target audience for your restaurant… but the editing tools are worth looking into.

The free version gives access to basic editing tools and a selection of filters, while the premium version has more advanced editing features, extra filters and access to photography tutorials and tips.

7. Lightroom

Website: https://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop-lightroom.html

Pricing: Free trial (Plans start at $9.99/month)

Adobe's Lightroom is available for both mobile and desktop. It’s a tool that helps organise and edit your photos. Since social media is all about images – especially important for restaurants, bars and bistros – your social media should serve delicious images that make your guests want to come back.

Colour correction tools, sliders, filters and more make this tool both user-friendly and multi-purposed. Think beyond just social media and design elements for your restaurant’s newsletter, too.  

8. Jitter  

Website: https://jitter.video/

Pricing: Free (Pro version for $9/month)

Jitter is a “design tool for motion”. Use it to animate everything from single letters to whole lines of text. The free version has all the elements you need to make logos, social media graphics, blog illustrations, email signatures and more. Think of using it to promote a unique experience at your restaurant or promote gift cards during the holidays.

And exporting is easy with both GIF and video formats available.

9. Later

Website: https://later.com/

Pricing: Free (Plans start at $15/month)

Later was made for social media marketing. It lets you plan and schedule your Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and even Pinterest posts. With its simple-to-use calendar, you can map out your posts and get an idea of what your feed will look like – great for keeping everything on-brand.  

And the best part is that you can track the performance of posts with analytics. That will help you find the best time of day to post and the best hashtags.

The link-in-bio feature is also pretty handy and is great for directing guests to your reservation link or how to sign up for an upcoming event or buy gift cards.

10. Facebook creator studio

Website: https://business.facebook.com/creatorstudio/home

Pricing: Free

If your restaurant has a Facebook page, then you already have access to the Creator Studio. It brings all the tools you need to post, manage and track the performance of your content – both on Facebook and Instagram.  

Think of it as an all-in-one shop for social media marketing. And since it’s connected to your Facebook page, it’s simple and effective to use.

11. Repost

Website: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/repost-for-instagram/id1120744554

Pricing: Free (In-app purchases available)

As a restaurant, you'll want and need to repost user-generated content (UGC).

You want to because it saves tons of time in content creation. And you need to because it strengthens your brand and inspires more guests to post… and that exposes your business to a whole new audience.

Repost is a mobile app that does just what the name says – reposts content from another profile to yours.

There are other apps out there that do the same, but this one lets you remove any tags or watermarks from the post and automatically copies the original caption (so you don't have to remember it).

12. Preview

Website: https://thepreviewapp.com/

Pricing: Free (Plans start at $6.67/month)

Preview is similar to Later and lets you plan your posts, Reels, IGTVs and Instagram Stories. It also has tools to help you find the best hashtags and caption ideas and gives you access to analytics.

This social media tool also boasts that it is “officially approved by Instagram”. If it’s good enough for the Gram, then it’s worth checking out.

13. Threads

Website: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/threads-from-instagram/id1473867767

Pricing: Free

Threads is an app by Instagram that lets you keep all your DMs (direct messages) in one app.

This makes it easier to reply and is great if your audience asks questions and makes reservation inquiries through mobile apps.

14. Linktree

Website: https://linktr.ee/

Pricing: Free (Pro from $6/month)

Linktree lets you create a personalised page with all of the important links you want to share with your audience – your website, reservations, gift cards, next event or even another social post. If it’s online, this tool lets you link to it.
It works on all social platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Twitch, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Great social network tools help you turn content into something worth sharing… but you have to have content to start with.

Need some inspiration? Check out 10 easy content ideas that you can use to promote your restaurant, bistro or bar here.  

The restaurant social media starter pack

We’ve shown you 14 of the most popular social media tools for restaurants… but do you really need all 14?

Here are our top 4 choices for a basic starter pack that all restaurants, bistros and bars need to maximise social media engagement.

1. Schedule in advance with Facebook Creator Studio – This is the only way to get free scheduling for your social media posts. There are other tools, but this one comes with your Facebook business page, and it works great.
2. Always show a link with Linktree – Linktree is a must because it lets you put a link in your social media bios. You want your guests to find your website, reservations, etc. The only way to do that is if you show them the way.
3. Make every post stand out with Lightroom and Canva – Visuals. Visuals. Visuals. Use Lightroom and Canva to make everything you post look its best.
4. Stay on-brand with Preview – We added Preview to the list because coherence is important for your brand. This tool gives you an overview of your grid so you can keep every post on-brand.

You Asked – We Answered

In the restaurant industry, what makes for a good social media tool?

Running a restaurant, bistro, cafe or bar is not for the faint-hearted. It takes a lot of time and dedication to the guest experience.

That’s where social media tools come in (aka social network tools) – the right ones help you save time without sacrificing results. Choose tools that automate a process – like posting to your Instagram or Facebook without you having to manually do it every time.

Social media tools don’t have to cost a fortune or be super complicated. Many high-quality tools are even free. And make sure that you select ones that your entire team can use. This way, you’ll never get stuck without content.

It’s also important that your social media tools create brand awareness. That’s the ultimate goal of your social media. Make sure that the tool you use doesn’t stick its logo on every image or some other branded message when you post. You want your restaurant to shine… not the tool.

‍

Is social media marketing really that important for restaurants?

Yes, it is important. Social media helps grow your restaurant’s visibility and brand awareness without requiring a bank loan to get it done.

While not as effective at generating revenue as email marketing, your SoMe is where you connect with guests and build relationships. These relationships matter – the future of your restaurant’s success depends on them.