Here at Catalyst Marketers, we like to turn the everyday business into what we call a New Social Business. To us, a New Social Business is one that uses social tools like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Ning, Blogs, E-mail and others to reach customers and prospects, build relationships with them based on mutual trust, and ultimately drive sales growth.
As we interact with business owners in our local communities of Doylestown, Chalfont, North Wales, and others, we come across businesses that don’t require our assistance because they have already created a social business. When we do meet these innovative business owners, we like hear their story.
Here’s a sample of the questions we ask:
- What online tools are you currently using?
- What are your goals for each online tool?
- How are you measuring your goals?
- Have these online tools benefited your business? If so, how?
For today’s post, we actually wanted to extend our reach past the Philadelphia area in order to find a social business to profile, so we used our own social tools and found Tomasso Trattoria Restaurant, located in Southborough, Massachusetts.
Tomasso Trattoria is owned and operated by Tom Prince and his wife Mary. I want to say thank you to Tom for participating in this Catalyst Marketers Social Business Profile.
Boston Area Social Business
Tomasso Trattoria is getting ready to celebrate their five year anniversary next month. That’s quite a feat for any small business. Congratulations Tom! As Tom built his restaurant, he used his previous work experience, along with a network of his peers, to help him with his marketing initiatives. Shout out to Bob Cargill of @CargillCreative. Tom’s latest strategy for driving more business to Tomasso Trattoria, while at the same time building stronger relationships with existing customers, involves two heavy-hitting social media sites, Facebook & Twitter.
Tom jumped into social media marketing back in February 2009. His goals were to:
- Attract prospects
- Build relationships with customers (current & potential)
- Communicate promotions & nightly specials
He has been using both Twitter and Facebook to accomplish those goals. Now you can find Tomasso Trattoria on Twitter and Tomasso Trattoria on Facebook.
Tom uses the Tomasso Trattoria Twitter page for immediate communication, such as a limited supply specials, fixed-priced menu alerts, and to promote different events and special causes. Soon Tomasso Trattoria will be offering special price discounts to twitter followers, so be sure to keep track of the latest tweets from Tomasso Trattoria.
Tom attributes Tomasso Trattoria’s 2009 Best of Boston award to Twitter. He says that the social tool has helped extend his reach, and apparently, the big boys in Boston are paying attention. Great job Tom!
Facebook has provided Tomasso Trattoria with an environment to interact on a deeper level with customers and prospects. Fans of the Tomasso Trattoria Facebook page receive more detailed information about the menu, specials, events, and recipes. He can put more context around these topics than what he’s able to do through Twitter.
Through the Tomasso Trattoria Facebook page, Tom can learn what customers think of his restaurant, the food, the service and much more. He can build momentum for an event he’s hosting at Tomasso Trattoria. Tom can even run special promotions directly to his Facebook fans. Facebook gives Tomasso Trattoria access to more people than ever before, it allows Tom to share information with and receive information from, customers, and it ultimately drives new and existing customers into his restaurant. All in all, I’d say Tom’s already well on his way to accomplishing his social media goals he and I discussed last week.
Just as an FYI – Tom has also created the Tomasso Trattoria e-newsletter, which keeps his customers informed on new exquisite food and wine selections and any upcoming special events. Sign up if you’re interested. And for those looking for a great Italian restaurant in the Boston area, you should check Tomasso Trattoria, as they make everything from scratch, while using only the freshest LOCAL ingredients for every dish.
Oh yeah, Tom operates a small store, Panzano Market, where you can buy many of the foods used to make his delicious dishes at Tomasso Trattoria.
If you think your business has what it takes to be featured on our blog as a New Social Business, then leave a comment on this post, or email Catalyst Marketers.
Social Business Profile: Tomasso Trattoria Restaurant…
This article spotlights restaurant located just outside of Boston who has used social media marketing to drive past the competition, create brand awareness from big players like Best of Boston, and ultimately build relationships with customers while dr…