12 Things Your Venue Should Post About on Social Media During the Holidays

This holiday season is a great chance for your venue to recoup some of the revenue that’s been lost to the drop in business due to the coronavirus in 2020. Customers have been going out of their way to celebrate the holidays by spending money at restaurants this year. According to Upserve, popular holidays like Mother’s Day and Cinco de Mayo saw a spike in sales up to 306% for both in-house and online orders. Take advantage of this enthusiasm by sharing everything your venue has to offer for the holidays in your marketing, especially on social media. We’ve got 12 examples of topics you can post about on your social profiles to drive more business during these last few months of the year.

1. Gift cards

If your business sells gift cards, this is a no-brainer for the holidays. Gift cards are a popular purchase for the holidays, especially gift cards from hospitality businesses that give the recipient a special experience.  This video on Jasper’s Facebook page is a fun and creative way to promote gift cards for the 4Top Hospitality group in Tennessee. Chef Deb Paquette spreads the word about gift cards, dancing her way through the video in five different Christmas costumes, and shares a few words at the end on how to purchase the cards online.

2. Holiday catering

Interest in catering for the holidays has grown this year because it’s a safe and stress-free option to host small gatherings at home. Whiskey Cake Baybrook in Texas gives their followers all of the info they need in this Facebook post: a full list of catering options, contact information, and photos.

3. Holiday dine-in options

If your venue is open on the day of a holiday, let your followers know. You might be just the option they’re looking for to have an easy celebration involving no cooking or cleaning. A Fish Called Avalon in Miami created an image that promotes their Christmas Day dinner, the menu, the price, and contact information for reservations.

4. Pickup and delivery

Pandemic lockdown restrictions are often changing from city to city and state to state, so your customers may not know if your restaurant is open. Make sure to post your pickup and delivery options frequently to alert your followers. The Poseidon Del Mar in Southern California posted a recent change in business status with an Instagram post of their QR code sign, plus hours, and information on placing an order.

5. Private dining spaces

Some customers are looking for a way to safely celebrate with friends and family, and your clean, socially-distanced event spaces are a perfect fit for these parties. Ocean Prime in Boston shared a photo of one of their private dining rooms on Instagram as a reminder that their venue is clean, safe, and can hold smaller gatherings of 10 people.

6. Holiday decor

Your team spent hours digging out the decorations, hanging the lights, and putting festive touches all over your venue. Show it off! The Nantucket Hotel & Resort’s nautical Christmas tree definitely stands out, and their Instagram photo is a great excuse to give followers a taste of their venue during the holidays and to remind them of all of their seasonal offers.

7. Winter-friendly outdoor space

The pandemic has prompted venues to come up with creative ways for customers to enjoy dining and stay warm while socially distanced outside. Be vocal about your winter-friendly space online! City Vineyard in New York City posted an Instagram of their rooftop that has everything you need to enjoy the outdoors this season: heated igloos, warm beverages, and a spectacular view of Manhattan. 

8. Meal kits

Many people have turned to restaurant meal kits as an easy and fun alternative to cooking at home. Promote your meal kits for holiday gatherings or any weeknight during the season that customers want a break. This Instagram video from Quality Crab and Oyster Bah in Chicago will definitely encourage sales. It shows just how easy it is to make their Seafood Boil Kit at home.

9. Virtual classes and events

Virtual wine, beer, or spirits tastings; cooking classes; trivia nights; and other experiences have been a big hit with customers who want to enjoy something new without leaving their house. Offer your virtual events as a way to celebrate the holidays safely. Philadelphia-based 2nd Story Brewing Company is hosting three virtual beer tastings during the holiday season, and they’ve shared all the details in this Facebook post.

10. Comfort food

Wintertime is a good time to indulge in comfort foods at your favorite restaurant, or from your comfy couch. Posting a photo of your customers’ favorite menu items can influence them to grab dinner from you on a cold winter night. This eye-catching Instagram post from The Smith is full of delicious dishes available at all of their locations. 

11. Promotion via influencers and media

Your business may have a large following on social media, but it’s nowhere near as big as the audiences of your local media outlets, food or lifestyle bloggers, or influencers. Reach out to them and pitch them on your holiday offerings to see if they’ll share them with their audiences. Event expert Rayane Abi Abboud of Left Bank Brasserie recently appeared on a local San Francisco news station to share her advice on how the restaurant can help customers plan the perfect virtual event.

12. New Year’s Eve

It’s not an exaggeration to say that everyone will be very excited to say goodbye to 2020 and ring in the new year. Whether you have in-person events or can offer food or virtual experiences to your customers, give them all the options to help them celebrate New Year’s Eve. Clique Las Vegas is ready to help their customers start their planning with this throwback New Year’s Eve post. The caption lists the highlights and directs followers to click their bio link to get more details.

Make these offers easy to purchase with TripleseatDirect

Tripleseat’s newest feature, TripleseatDirect, allows restaurants, venues, and hotels to provide an easy way for customers to select and complete the booking and payment process for any of the catering, private dining, meal kit, pickup, and delivery orders you are offering this holiday season. If your venue isn’t currently using TripleseatDirect to book in-house events and catering orders, there’s no better time than the present. There is no additional fee associated with TripleseaatDirect. You must be a Tripleseat customer and have online payments set up with one of our online payment partners: Clover Connect or Stripe. For help setting up your TripleseatDirect feature, reach out to our support team. You’ll be on your way to generating holiday revenue with TripleseatDirect in no time.