On the Menu

Regulars of the Mustard Seed, Boulevard Diner and other Charleston-area Dine With Sal restaurants can get ready to tweet, “like” and “check in.”

The popular restaurant group, which owns nine local restaurants, has engaged Step Ahead Inc., a local firm that specializes in social media marketing, to launch a social media campaign.

The campaign will include a Dine With Sal Facebook page, Twitter account and Foursquare profile. Foursquare is a smart phone application that lets users “check in” at different locations to win points and see where their friends are. Users who frequent a particular spot more than anyone else in a given week become the mayor, and users also have the opportunity to earn “badges” for various activities.

Locals can soon look for specials for those who “check in” on Foursquare and for “mayors” of the group’s restaurants.

“We’ve noticed our customers are becoming more active on their smart phones, ‘tweeting,’ checking in on Foursquare and other activities,” said Sal Parco, owner of Dine With Sal Restaurant Group. “We decided it’s time to reach out to them through tools they enjoy using and feel like this is a very powerful way to directly connect with our customers and encourage new and repeat visits. We’re really excited to see the response to this campaign.”

Dine With Sal restaurants include Mustard Seed, with locations in Summerville and Mount Pleasant and on James Island; Boulevard Diner on James Island and in Mount Pleasant; and Sette, Uno Mas, Long Point Grill and the Village Bakery in Mount Pleasant.

http://www.charlestonbusiness.com/news/34174-on-the-menu-for-may-11-2010