Restaurant marketing is local and it is constant. The people who will eat with you this week mostly live or work within a few kilometres, and they decide where to go on the day, often from whatever crossed their feed that afternoon. A place that posts every week, shows the food properly and tells people what is on stays in that decision. A place that posts when someone remembers does not. The kitchen is full, the owner is on the floor, and the Instagram account goes quiet for a month.
Hermoso runs your marketing on autopilot. It makes short videos and images from the photos you already take, schedules them to Instagram, TikTok and Facebook, and runs local ads on your own Meta account when you have something to push. You can use the web studio, or simply ask Claude or ChatGPT for "a Reel for Friday's live music night" through the Hermoso MCP.
What works for restaurants
- The dish, close up. Food sells on sight. A slow push into a plate, a little steam, light catching a glaze. Hermoso can turn a single still photo into a few seconds of gentle camera movement like that.
- The menu, one item at a time. A new special, the dish people come back for, the seasonal menu. One item per post does better than a photo of the whole printed menu.
- Offers and events. Happy hour, a set lunch, quiz night, a tasting menu, a holiday booking reminder. These are the posts that turn a follower into a table on a specific night, and they are the ones worth putting money behind.
- The people. The chef, the bartender, the regulars. Short behind-the-scenes clips make a place feel like somewhere you know.
Phone photos are enough
You do not need a food photographer to start. Take the photo on your phone in decent light, ideally near a window, and upload it. Hermoso keeps the dish as it is and builds around it: a clean background or a table setting, a short video with movement and music, a story-size version with the offer laid on top, a carousel of the new menu. The price and the dish name are added in post, so they are spelled correctly. If you want your logo or an end card on it, ask; by default it stays off, because organic food content usually looks better without one.
Keep the food honest. An ad that shows a different plate from the one that arrives is a fast way to collect bad reviews, which is why Hermoso builds around your photo of the dish rather than inventing one.
Local ads that reach people nearby
Most of your customers are close by, and ad platforms let you aim at exactly that. On Meta, Hermoso builds the campaign around your location with a radius you choose, so a lunch offer reaches the offices around you and a weekend brunch ad reaches the neighbourhoods people drive in from. Campaigns are created paused, so nothing spends until you have looked at it and switched it on. Google Ads works the same way for people searching for somewhere to eat near you.
Not sure what to run? Ad Spy shows the ads other restaurants and food brands are running in the public Meta ad library, with the longest-running ones first, which is a good sign of what actually brings people in.
A week on autopilot
- Once: paste your website or your Instagram handle. Hermoso builds a profile of the place: the name, the style of food, the colours and the way you talk.
- Each week: upload a few photos from the pass or the bar and say what is on. Hermoso drafts the posts and schedules them across Instagram, TikTok and Facebook at the times you choose.
- When there is something to push: a local ad for the event or the offer, built and left paused for you to approve.
- Afterwards: read back which posts earned views and saves on each channel, so next week starts from what worked.
About Google
For most restaurants, the Google Business Profile listing matters a lot. Posting to Google Business Profile from Hermoso is not available yet, so keep updating that one by hand for now. Google Ads campaigns aimed at nearby searches are available today.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make ads from photos taken on my phone?
Yes. Upload the phone photo and Hermoso builds the post or ad around the dish as it is: a cleaner background, a short video with movement and music, or a story with your offer on it. Better light gives better results, so shoot near a window if you can.
Can it post to Instagram and TikTok for me?
Yes. Connect your accounts and Hermoso schedules posts to Instagram, TikTok and Facebook, plus YouTube, Threads, X, LinkedIn and Pinterest if you use them. An automatic refill can keep a weekly queue going.
Can I target people near my restaurant?
Yes. Meta campaigns can be aimed at a radius around your address, and Google Ads campaigns can target nearby locations. Every campaign is created paused, so you review it before it spends.
Does it post to Google Business Profile?
Not yet. Google Business Profile posting is not available in Hermoso today, so keep that listing updated directly in Google for now.
Will my logo be stamped on every video?
No. Logos, captions and end cards are off unless you ask for them. Organic food posts usually look more natural without them, and you can turn them on for paid ads.
Is there a free plan?
Yes. The free plan comes with 250+ earnable free credits and needs no card. The exact cost of each render is shown in the app before it runs.
Related
Other local businesses: local services, real estate and small businesses. For the weekly posts, see the Instagram scheduler and TikTok scheduler.