Service industry businesses need to be on their A-game all the time because of social media outlets

The last two days have been filled with digital marketing ideas at the Local Media Association Digitial Agency Summit in Chicago. After a day full of great ideas, I decided to get out and get my fill of great Chicago food.

I ended up at Five Roses Pub in Rosemont, where they were really full. But their manager, John, found a table and squeezed me in. They were full, but John found a way to serve the customer. Now John has no idea that I've been fully submerged in social media ideas the previous 48 hours, and that I  use Foursquare and leave the ocassional review.

Bringing this back to social media, it got me thinking about restaurants and in fact any service industry. In the movies, the employees would all go crazy when a food critic from the local newspaper showed up to do a review at the restaurant. On the big screen, they all knew the critic and would fawn all over him / her to make sure they had the very best experience possible.

With the advent of social media, we're all critics. We have access to a number of communication channels to convey good and bad news. My trip to Five Roses Pub can easily be reviewed on my cell phone through Foursquare, Yelp, Facebook, Twitter, this blog and so many more.

Restaurants have to be on their A-game everyday, not just when the local food critic shows up for the review. The review is happening all the time your doors are open. Marketers have to work with service industry customers to get them engaged with these audiences; responding to the good and bad posts. After all, 83% of U.S. consumers consult the web for research before visiting a brick and mortar store.