Wednesday 10 December 2014

Food trucks use social media as marketing engine

Entrepreneurs are bringing their unique food experiences to streets in London and beyond--with social media as the marketing engine for attracting customers. 

At left, a food truck with eye-catching flair: Engine's 1950s fire engine, serving American-style hot dogs and grilled sandwiches. Using social media like Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest helps Engine stay in touch with customers, alert them to new products and publicise new locations.

Another example: Rainbo (offering gyoza and more), which markets its weekend and festival outings with blogs like 'van life' and combines street food with social responsibility (its cause: ending child labour).

Now some food trucks have a membership organisation (KERB) to promote their services and encourage entrepreneurial newbies. KERB is savvy about social media, using Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook and more to feature its members and build excitement about gourmet street food.