What's the 411? Food Social.

While Vancouver’s reputation as a culinary capital for West Coast cuisine is deserved, One would find it a very difficult challenge  to find true, authentic Mexican food anywhere within the 604/778 area code.

So I was pleasantly surprised to find he following on my Tweetdeck feed:

La Taqueria is a small, unassuming traditional Mexican taco restaurant. They do not serve the “Tex-mex” hard tacos that you would find in places like Taco Bell or Taco Time. They focus on soft tacos, with ingredients sourced from local farms and suppliers. Not only is their food absolutely amazing, but their application of Social Media serves as a great example of what to do to manage your online presence, even with a small workforce of just a few employees.

After monitoring their feed for the the past few months, I’ve noticed the following:

1) Their posts are frequent – La Taqueria makes an effort to post content several times per day. In particular, they focus on daily specials and current in-store promotions. One example is their Horchata Tuesday tweet – one free Horchata with the purchase of four tacos. By being consistent in these tweets each week, loyal fans of La Taqueria are reminded (and do remember), for example, to drop by on a Tuesday for the free drink.

2) There is a person behind the Twitter feed that encourages two way conversation:

Despite the restaurant’s small size, La Tacquiera ensures someone is monitoring the Twitter feed for any news or comments from their readers. In this example above, the restaurant poster is retweeting both a positive review and is thanking a customer for their business. By doing this, the restaurant is establishing a stronger relationship with their customers.

3) Customers spread the word on their own accord – People who love the food make a strong effort to let others know via Twitter and other social media – The food is actually very, very good – and people are so enthusiastic to share this with others via Social Media. A quick scan of their Tweetdeck feed for the past week shows that at least 40% of the posted tweets are generated by the customers themselves. By providing customers with this outlet for recommendations (and from time to time, suggestions), La Tacquiera has had very little need to purchase traditional advertising.

One interesting thing to note: According to the employee I spoke with, they don’t do any other type of advertising – and rely on word of mouth spread out through social media to increase sales.

So what’s the 411?

La Taquiera’s simple, social media strategy of consistent tweets, encouragement of two-way conversation and strong word of mouth have brought much success. In fact, business has been so good that  La Taquiera has  expanded to a second location in just one year.

• Twitter ID: @lataqueriaYVR
• Website: http://lataqueria.ca
• Locations: 322 W. Hastings and 2549 Cambie
• Definite must eat: The Al Pastor taco: pork marinated in achiote chilli and pineapple

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