Dining out is going digital

A study by PeoplePerHour, an online marketplace for freelance services and employment, shows that 91 percent of businesses are connecting to consumers using social media. In 2011, that number was only 60 percent. 

As the restaurant industry evolves with technological advances, it’s become rare to see a company without a website, replete with menus, wine lists and general information. 

Black Restaurant Group, a collection of local restaurants from Jeff Black that are scattered around the city, recently opened Pearl Dive Oyster Palace and its upstairs bar counterpart, Black Jack, in September. 

Mallory Buford, partner with Black Restaurant Group, said the new restaurant, located near 14th and Q Street NW, has made the group more technologically savvy, and remains the most in-touch with guests on the Web out of all the group’s restaurants.

A Facebook study shows there were more than 100 million person-to-business connections every day at the end of 2011, which can include a “like,” a share or a comment. 

Elizabeth Diana, manager of advertising communications for Facebook, said that the figure represented an increase of 50 million over the previous year.

“What we’re seeing is that customers have raised their hand and said, ‘Hey we like you, we want to hear from you,” she said. “Now, businesses can get instant feedback.”

D.C.-area blogger Lisa Dawn Shapiro, who has been blogging about restaurants for five years at www.diningindc.net, noted that restaurants are dedicating portions of budgets and specific positions to manage social media advertising efforts.

“It used to be where businesses would not go on social networking sites, because they didn’t think they belong there,” she said. “Restaurants understand that to become known in the marketplace, they have to reach out in the way that people search for information — and now that’s the first place people go: the Internet.”

And establishments like Pearl Dive are seeing a return on their investment. Before it opened — or even had an official Web page — it had Facebook and Twitter profiles where the group posted hiring information and videos of construction to get people excited, Buford said. 

Now, when a rare shipment of oysters arrives at the restaurant, a notification pops up in followers’ Twitter and Facebook feeds. 

“We’ll have people come in the door saying, ‘Hey, do you have any of those left?’ And we know that they saw it from our Facebook page,” Buford said.

Clyde’s Restaurant Group, which consists of The Hamilton, Clyde’s, 1789 and the Old Ebbit Grill, have gotten in touch with the digital age in multiple ways.

The Hamilton, located in downtown D.C., offers free WiFi to diners. In their downstairs concert venue, Shapiro noted that servers take orders on hand-held computers that transmit the selections straight to the kitchen.

“Taking orders on paper is becoming obsolete,” she added.

The group also uses Facebook, Twitter and their Web pages to let followers know about specials and fresh shipments of seafood. 1789 in Georgetown directs diners to its website to take advantage of deals, such as an upcoming five-course experience for $50, according to Heather Freeman, media consultant and public relations professional with Heather Freeman Media & Public Relations.

The National Restaurant Association has jumped on board, studying the ways consumers react to online advertising and encouraging establishments to get involved. 

A spokeswoman for the trade association emphasized that although the hospitality industry will always thrive on face-to-face interaction, having a digital connection entices customers through convenience.

Diana, the Facebook employee, noted a study by Nielson that revealed that while 32 percent of adults follow a celebrity on the social network, 

53 percent follow a brand — whether it’s a big brand or a small restaurant in the District.

Social networks offer consumers instant access to the places they are interested in.

“The average attention span for a tech-savvy user is about .3 seconds. If they don’t find what they’re looking for at the moment they’re looking for it, you’ve lost them,” Shapiro said.