You already know advertising could bring in more customers. What you don't have is time to test every channel, or a clear sense of which ones fit a restaurant your size.
The list of options keeps growing: Google ads, Instagram ads, influencers, direct mail, loyalty programs, email marketing, digital billboards. Some of it makes sense for a national chain with a media budget. Most of it, you can run yourself for little or no money. Sorting one from the other is the hard part.
If you're on DoorDash Marketplace, you've handled the discovery piece. People find you, order, and come back through the app. But your advertising probably stops there, and the customers you meet on Marketplace never hear from you directly.
Below, 20 restaurant advertising ideas organized into three groups: digital, in-restaurant, and offline. Jump to the section that fits your goals, your budget, and the hours you can spare this month. You don't need all 20. You need the three to five that suit your restaurant.
TL;DR
Restaurant advertising spans three categories: digital, in-restaurant, and offline.
Plenty of the strongest tactics cost little or nothing, so a small budget is no barrier.
If you do one thing first, claim and optimize your Google Business Profile (your free listing on Google Search and Maps); it takes under an hour.
Digital ideas like Google ads, paid social, and email marketing are the cheapest to start and the easiest to track.
In-restaurant ideas turn the foot traffic you already have into free advertising through signage, packaging, and a loyalty program.
Offline ideas like direct mail and community events reach nearby diners who never see you online.
What is restaurant advertising?
Restaurant advertising is any paid or organic effort to put your restaurant in front of people who might order from you or walk through your door. It covers digital channels like Google ads and Instagram, physical touchpoints like signage and packaging, and community efforts like local events and direct mail.
The goal isn't to run all of it. A restaurant with two locations and no marketing team can't post daily, manage paid ads, mail coupons, and sponsor a festival at the same time. The goal is to pick the three to five tactics that match your size, your audience, and the time you have.
Diners now check social proof before they choose. According to Nation's Restaurant News, 73% of millennials and Gen Z say social media influences where they eat. So online reviews, word-of-mouth, and the photos guests post about you pull as much weight as any ad you pay for.
Digital advertising ideas
Digital advertising costs the least and returns the clearest results. You can run these tactics from your phone, and you can track what each one earns you. When someone clicks a Google ad and orders, you can trace the sale straight back to the ad.
1. Claim and optimize your Google Business Profile (GBP)
Your Google Business Profile is the free listing that shows your restaurant on Google Search and Google Maps: your hours, photos, reviews, and a link to order. For a lot of diners, it's the first thing they see about you, well before they reach your website.
Search your restaurant name on Google, look for the "Own this business?" prompt, and follow the steps to verify. Once you're in, fill everything out:
Confirm your address, phone number, and hours, and update hours for holidays.
Pick the most specific category that fits ("Mexican restaurant," not just "restaurant").
Add real photos of your food, dining room, and storefront.
Link to your online menu and ordering page.
Turn on messaging so guests can reach you.
Picture two taco spots on the same block. One has current hours, 40 photos, and replies to reviews. The other shows a gray placeholder, no menu, and vague hours. A hungry person deciding in ten seconds picks the first, even if the second makes a better al pastor.
2. Run local Google search ads
A Google search ad is the result that appears at the top of the page with a small "Sponsored" label. When someone nearby searches "best tacos near me" or "late-night pizza delivery," you can pay to sit above the organic results. These are pay-per-click ads, or PPC, so you only pay when someone clicks through to you.
The value is in the intent. A person doom-scrolling Instagram doesn’t have the same dining intention as the person typing "tacos near me" at 8 p.m.
You don't need a big budget to start:
Set a tight geographic radius, three to five miles around your restaurant, so you're not paying for clicks from across the state.
Cap your daily spend at an amount you're comfortable losing while you learn, say $10 to $20.
Point the ad at your online menu or ordering page, not your homepage, so the click leads straight to an order.
Write the ad around one clear offer or dish rather than a generic "great food, great service."
Run it for two weeks, check which searches brought in orders, and adjust from there. A small, well-targeted campaign teaches you what your customers search for, A small, well-targeted campaign teaches you what your customers search for before you scale up.
3. Grow your social media presence and engagement
Regular posts on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok remind past diners to return. Create a marketing plan with a rhythm you can keep, two or three good posts a week, rather than a daily rush you abandon after a month.
Reply to comments, answer questions in your DMs, and respond when someone tags you. A restaurant that talks back looks alive and trustworthy. One that posts into silence gives a browsing diner nothing to connect with.
The platforms reward activity too. A complete profile, a steady posting rhythm, and a verified business account all help your posts reach more people. Incomplete or dormant profiles lose visibility before a single diner sees them.
Every comment you answer and every photo a customer shares builds word-of-mouth, the oldest and most trusted form of restaurant advertising. Social media spreads it faster and wider.
4. Try paid social ads on facebook and instagram
Google search ads catch people already looking for food. Facebook and Instagram ads work the other way: you reach diners before they think to search, based on who they are and where they live.
You can put your ad in front of people within three miles who follow similar cuisines, competing chains, or local food pages, instead of paying to reach a whole city. This is particularly beneficial for small restaurants.
Lead with your strongest visual: a short clip of a dish coming together, or one sharp photo. Pair it with a single offer and a clear call to action, the button or line that tells people what to do next, like "Order Now" or "See the Menu."
5. Partner with local food influencers
You don't need a celebrity. A local food influencer with 5,000 engaged followers in your city drives more orders than a national name with a million scattered fans. Their audience trusts them, and that trust transfers to you.
Look for food bloggers and creators who already post about restaurants in your area. Check that their followers are local and that people actually comment, not just like.
Most partnerships start with a free meal in exchange for an honest post. Keep your first outreach short and specific:
Hi [name], I love your posts on [neighborhood] spots. I run [restaurant] on [street], and I'd love to host you and a guest for dinner, on us. No strings, but if you enjoy it and want to share it with your followers, I'd be grateful.
Say a creator your followers trust posts about your food. Their whole audience sees it. That's user-generated content, or UGC (photos, videos, and posts made by real customers and creators rather than your own marketing team), and it reads as a recommendation, not an ad.
6. Build a website that converts visitors into orders
Your restaurant website is the one channel you own outright. Social platforms change their rules and delivery apps take a cut, but your site answers to you.
Keep your restaurant website simple and fast with:
Menus with current prices, no PDF to download
Easy-to-scan hours and location
One clear path to order, with "Order Now" button in an obvious place
Strip out anything that slows a hungry visitor down: autoplay video, a buried menu, an order button three clicks deep.
Your site also feeds your local SEO, or local search engine optimization: how well you rank when someone nearby searches for food like yours. A few signals tell Google you're a real, current business it can rank:
Clean page structure and fast load times
An accurate, consistent address
A linked online menu
A strong Google Business Profile and a strong site work together here.
Building a site like this once meant hiring a developer. With DoorDash's Branded Website, your site is built from the menu and photos already live on your Marketplace listing. It can go live in under a day, and reflect your brand instead of a generic template. Website optimization can increase web sales by up to 30% (based on internal DoorDash data from Jan 2022 through Dec 2023).
7. Use email marketing to bring customers back
For bringing past customers back, email outperforms both social and paid ads. A social post reaches only a fraction of your followers, and an ad charges you for every click. An email lands directly with someone who already ordered from you, which makes it the cheapest way to earn a second, fifth, or twentieth visit.
Collect addresses at every natural moment: online checkout, a sign-up card by the register, a prompt on your website. Then keep the emails short and useful. A new menu item, a slow-Tuesday offer, a holiday special. Nobody opens a newsletter that reads like a press release, so write the way you'd talk to a regular.
You don't have to send these by hand. With DoorDash's Automated Email Marketing, a welcome note or a win-back offer goes out on its own once you set it up. Automated email marketing boosts order frequency by an average of 15% among new and returning customers (based on internal DoorDash data from March 2024 through March 2025).
8. Manage and respond to online reviews
A strong set of recent reviews often tips a hesitant diner your way. Someone weighing two similar spots scans the latest ratings, sees which owner replies, and reads how they handle a complaint before deciding where to order.
Reply to the positive ones with a quick, personal thank-you. For a critical review, stay measured, acknowledge what went wrong, and move the fix to a private channel:
Thanks for letting us know, [name]. A dry burrito isn't the experience we want you to have. Email me at [address] and your next meal is on me. [Owner], [Restaurant]
A calm, thoughtful reply shows future customers how you treat people. It can also bring an unhappy guest back, and their updated review lifts your rating. On Yelp, a one-star increase can raise a restaurant's revenue by 5 to 9%, according to a Harvard Business School study.
Reviews pile up across Yelp, Google, and TripAdvisor, and keeping pace with all of them takes real time. DoorDash's Guest Experience Management asks happy customers for reviews automatically, collects feedback in one place, and drafts AI-assisted replies, so the work doesn't fall entirely on you.
In-restaurant advertising ideas
The people already walking past or sitting in your dining room are the cheapest audience you have. These tactics turn your storefront, your tables, and your packaging into successful advertising without an ad budget.
9. Maximize your signage and storefront
Restaurant choice is often a snap decision. Someone walks down the block with no plan, sees a clear sign and a menu in the window, and steps in. Legible signage puts you in the running for an unplanned visit.
Check the basics from across the street:
Can you read the restaurant name from a moving car or the far sidewalk?
Is the sign lit at night, when a lot of dinner decisions happen?
Is a current menu posted where someone can read it without opening the door?
A bright, readable storefront with a visible menu pulls in walk-ins who weren't hungry until they saw you.
10. Advertise specials with window and sidewalk displays
Fixed signage tells people who you are. Changeable displays tell them why to come in today. A chalkboard, a window cling, or a screen lets you push a fresh reason and swap it out in minutes: a Taco Tuesday deal, a new dish, a happy-hour window.
Give each display one message and some personality. "Taco Tuesday, $2 each" is clear enough. A line with wit goes further: "Soup so good you'll cancel your plans."
Got a screen in the window? Digital signage lets you rotate specials, hours, or a short clip without reprinting anything. A looping shot of a fresh pour or a sizzling plate catches eyes that a static sign would miss.
11. Use tabletop signs and menu inserts
Seated guests are a captive audience: relaxed, mid-meal, and open to a small prompt like add dessert, follow you on Instagram, or join the email list. Instead of asking directly, let a table tent or menu insert do the talking.
Style it to your room, according to the color and style, and send a clear message: "Skip the line next time, order online" with a QR code. A refined dining room needs a lighter touch, and a small note on the last menu page or on the check presenter may suit an upscale restaurant better.
12. Create a loyalty program that keeps guests coming back
Winning a new customer costs far more than bringing back one who already likes you. A loyalty program gives that returning guest a reason to choose you again.
Keep the structure simple. Points per dollar, a punch-card-style reward, or a free item after a set number of visits. The mechanics don't need to be clever; they need to be clear enough that a guest knows exactly what they're working toward.
Most programs only count in-store visits and ignore the same customer's online orders. DoorDash's Cross-Channel Loyalty lets diners earn on both, whether they order at the counter, on your website, or through the app.
13. Design an instagrammable space
Give guests something photo-worthy so they’ll advertise you for free. A striking mural, a neon quote people want to share, a wall of greenery: whatever it is, when a customer posts it, their whole circle sees it.
You don't need a renovation. A single accent wall in a bold color, a hand-painted sign, or good lighting for photos can be enough. Pick one spot, make it distinct, and guests will find it.
Post your handle where guests can see it. Add "@yourrestaurant" to the menu or the wall so guests can tag you.
14. Brand your takeout packaging
Every to-go order leaves your restaurant and travels through the neighborhood: down the sidewalk, into an office, onto a coffee table where guests and roommates see it..
Brand your packaging. You don't need custom-printed boxes; instead, slap a logo sticker on the bag or a stamp on the cup. Add a small insert while you're at it: a card with your handle, a first-order discount code, or a QR link to order direct next time. The packaging travels regardless. You're deciding whether it carries your name.
15. Send direct mail to your neighborhood
Direct mail reaches people your social posts and ads miss. A postcard to nearby homes introduces your restaurant to neighbors who've never heard of you, especially useful right after opening.
Keep the piece simple and the offer clear. One strong photo, your address, and a first-visit deal like "20% off your first order" is enticing. Mail it to those that live in your immediate vicinity so it’s easy for potential diners to visit.
16. Partner with local businesses and organizations
A nearby business with a shared customer base makes a natural partner. A gym, a bookstore, a hair salon, an office building: their regulars could easily become yours, and a simple cross-promotion introduces you to each other's crowds at no cost.
Set up something both sides gain from. Leave a stack of your menus at the gym's front desk, and keep their flyers by your register. Offer their members 10% off, and ask them to match it for your diners. A yoga studio could hand out your smoothie coupons after class in exchange for the same.
17. Participate in food festivals and community events
Local festivals and street fairs draw crowds already out looking to try something new. A plate from your booth gives someone their first real taste of your cooking,
Events also double as low-stakes menu tests. Bring one or two dishes you're considering for the permanent menu and watch how the crowd responds before you commit. If people line up twice for your birria, you have your answer.
18. Try print ads in local publications
Some diners will never see your digital ads. Older and lifelong-local readers trust the community newspaper or the neighborhood magazine, and a well-placed ad there builds credibility with them that a Facebook post can't.
Match the spend to the return. A full-page ad in a metro daily runs into the thousands and scatters across a whole city. A small ad in a church bulletin, a school newsletter, or a neighborhood magazine costs a fraction and reaches readers who live close enough to become regulars.
19. Get listed and advertise on food delivery apps
Many diners find you for the first time on a delivery app. They scroll, spot your restaurant on DoorDash Marketplace, and place an order without ever passing your door.
Give them a reason to come back on your own terms. Pair your Marketplace listing with commission-free Online Ordering, and their next order can run through your own site at no commission to you. Adding Online Ordering can increase sales by up to 8% of your current Marketplace sales (based on internal DoorDash data from Jan 2025 through May 2025).
20. Run a referral or fishbowl giveaway promotion
The classic business-card fishbowl still works: set out a bowl, let diners drop a card for a weekly free-meal drawing, and collect a stack of email addresses and phone numbers to reach later. The prize costs you one meal; the contact list keeps paying off.
A referral offer rewards the same loyalty from a different angle. Hand regulars a "bring a friend, you both get a free appetizer" card so your happiest customers have a reason to spread the word.
Limit entries to one per visit. Each return trip earns another chance to win, so the giveaway pulls guests back instead of collecting one-time sign-ups.
How to choose the right advertising mix for your restaurant
Twenty ideas, and you have time for maybe five. Ask yourself three questions:
What's your budget this month? Free tactics first: Google Business Profile, organic social, review responses. Add paid ones like Google ads or direct mail once you see what the free work returns.
How much time can you spare? A busy solo operator picks two low-maintenance tactics and runs them well. A slower season leaves room to test a festival booth or an influencer partnership.
New customers or repeat ones? For discovery, lean on search ads, paid social, and food bloggers. For repeat business, lean on email marketing, a loyalty program, and your own online ordering.
A brand-new restaurant needs people through the door, so it starts with a claimed Google Business Profile, a conversion-ready restaurant website, and a small local Google ads budget, then adds direct mail to nearby homes.
An established restaurant with steady traffic can focus on keeping customers instead of finding them: email marketing, a loyalty program, and review management, with the occasional limited-time offer to pull regulars back in.
Pick a handful, run them for a season, and drop whatever doesn't bring diners in.
Common mistakes to avoid when advertising your restaurant
Even solid tactics fail when you run them the wrong way. Watch for these four.
Spreading the budget too thin. Fifty dollars split across Google ads, Instagram ads, direct mail, and a festival booth leaves each one underfunded. Put your money behind one or two channels, learn what they return, and expand from there.
Ignoring reviews. A page of unanswered complaints tells a prospective diner you've checked out. Reply to the good and the bad within a few days, while the feedback is fresh.
Treating advertising as one-and-done. A single burst of posts or one mailer fades quickly. To stay top of mind, advertise on a steady schedule, month after month.
Not tracking what works. Without a way to see which channel drives orders, you're spending blind. Ask new customers how they heard about you, use a different offer code per channel, and check which one fills tables.
Turn advertising into repeat business
You're already getting discovered on DoorDash Marketplace. The next step is turning those first-time orders into loyal regulars, without piling on five more marketing tools to manage.
DoorDash Direct puts commission-free Online Ordering, Automated Email Marketing, and Cross-Channel Loyalty in one connected system, built on the same technology behind Marketplace. The payoff:
Online Ordering can increase sales by up to 8% of your current Marketplace sales.*
Automated Email Marketing boosts order frequency by an average of 15%.*
*Based on internal DoorDash data from Jan 2025 through May 2025.
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