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an elaborate social media campaign at launch, except for the local street cafés, known as warungs,” he explains. Tis might mean inviting local influencers or vloggers to press conferences and launch events. Influencers charge based on their number of followers, with micro influencers – boasting 10,000 to 50,000 followers – demanding a fee of $150- $500, varying based on the deliverables: feed post, story, reel and how many days it stays up. “For many operators it makes sense
to go with several micro influencers rather than one macro influencer,” adds D’Harcour. Ben Gregoire FCSI, principal
of Levels in Malaysia, reports good experiences working with micro influencers. “Teir content tends to feel more genuine, and their followers often engage more actively. It aligns well with the growing trend of diners trusting peer recommendations and authentic reviews over polished advertisements,” he says. He says that in his local market
and across Asia, social media has become the key platform for marketing within the bar, restaurant, and hotel
sectors, with Instagram the most popular platform for English-speaking audiences while Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu) is preferred by many Chinese communities. He helps hotel clients develop their F&B marketing strategies, create content, and manage their social media accounts. “Tere is a strong belief that hotels must treat their venues as freestanding bars and restaurants that happen to be within a hotel rather than traditional hotel restaurants,” he explains. “Tis shift requires a dedicated social media strategy, strong visual content, and a distinct tone of voice.”
EXPOSURE AND CONTROL Philippines-based FCSI Associate Jespher Millano, director of año Restaurant and Bar Consulting, says social media today tends to be where a target market first understands a restaurant or bar’s offerings, story, and culture, essentially shaping how the brand’s identity is perceived. “Influencer collaborations can
jumpstart a restaurant’s visibility, especially when the influencers’ audience aligns with the brand’s target market,” he says. “However, it’s important that these influencers are credible and genuinely understand the dining experience, so that the partnership feels authentic and not forced.” Millano believes restaurants need to define their own social media strategy and, based on this, approach influencers – now known as key opinion leaders or KOLs – in a marketing strategy. Mutual respect is crucial. “Constructive criticism should ideally be shared privately with management rather than posted publicly,” he adds. Te risks associated with
opening yourself up to social media coverage don’t have to be as extreme as it was in the case of Xibei – and it is important
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MEDIA IN THE CONSULTANT TOOLBOX For FCSI Associate Jespher Millano, Instagram is his main marketing
platform. “Most of my clients are independent restaurateurs and entrepreneurs looking to develop new restaurant or bar concepts. I post my client’s photos there along with holiday announcements, just to communicate that we are an active part of the community. We also share reels that are part of restaurant and dining culture, or operation tips and F&B trends, all while reflecting my company’s values and standards.”
to note that while Yonghao might not have visited as an influencer, social media gave him the platform to share his views. A common risk to look out for is
misrepresentation. “We sometimes find ourselves unable to repost or feature influencer-generated content because it simply doesn’t fit the venue’s image or communication style,” says Gregoire. “Maintaining brand consistency is key, and operators need to balance exposure with control over how their venues are portrayed online.” As for managing the process of
marketing via social media channels, D’Harcour offers words of advice. “Controlling the message, the image aesthetics, the style and the content is paramount in order to be able to build a proper public relations campaign and reinforce the product branding,” he says. “Operators that don’t have a budget to hire a permanent marketing and PR employee will have to carefully select their influencer and work hand in hand with him/her to ensure the audience is relevant to their product segmentation and positioning.”
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