Episode 65: Local Marketing With Facebook & Instagram With Bruce Irving

On this episode, Bella spends time with Bruce Irving from SmartPizzaMarketing.com. Bruce Irving is the marketing visionary behind SmartPizzaMarketing.com and host of the weekly Smart Pizza Marketing podcast. On his podcasts, he interviews the leading minds of the pizza restaurant industry. You can listen to his Smart Pizza Marketing podcast at www.smartpizzamarketing.com. In addition, Bruce speaks at conferences about how to better use social media in your restaurant or small business. Listen in as they dissect several tips to maximize local marketing on different social media channels such as Facebook & Instagram. They discuss important topics such as: Tips for micromarketing What's better - Instagram or Facebook? How FAST does FB advertising impact businesses? Pros & Cons of digital marketing vs. face-to-face Biggest mistakes marketers make on Instagram & Facebook How important is VIDEO on social media? What are your top tips for micro marketing? Subscribe To The Show: Transcript: This is episode 65 of Bella in Your Business. Welcome to Bella in Your Business, where Bella will discuss anything and everything about your pet sitting business to help you land on target. So get ready, Bella's got your chute. Let's jump. Welcome to Bella in Your Business. This is Bella Vasta with Jump Consulting, and today I have a special treat for you. I have Bruce Irving with me, and guys, I was listening to another podcast, the Social Media Marketing Podcast, which you know I love, and Bruce was on it. Bruce, I remember I was meal prepping, listening to you. I was so excited because I was like, this man is talking about the pet industry. You guys are in for a treat today because Bruce actually helps pizzerias or pizza restaurants all around the country do exactly what we're looking to do, which is to saturate the markets. Bruce is the visionary behind smartpizzamarketing.com and the host of another podcast, which you should totally go check out, called Smart Pizza Marketing Podcast. On his podcast, he interviews the leading minds in the pizza industry, but you guys can learn so much from this. It's global lessons. You can listen to Smart Pizza Marketing Podcast at smartpizzamarketing.com. Bruce is also a speaker, and he teaches us how to use social media better in our restaurant or small businesses. Bella: Thanks so much for having me, Belle. I'm excited to be here today. Bruce: I know it's crazy. I was in the pizza industry my whole life, and I always tell stories on our podcast of how people got into the pizza industry specifically because it's always a unique story. Either their parents owned it, or they went to school for something else, or they thought it would be fun to open a pizzeria—and it's not that much fun, they come to find out. I was the same way. I started off in high school working for a local pizzeria here that’s a well-known brand. I loved it. I wasn’t great at school or testing, so I knew business had to be my way out. Pizza is just what I grew up with and what I knew. That’s how I got started in the business. As I grew older and built businesses in the pizza industry, people would ask what we were doing for marketing. We had a successful restaurant, and that turned into the podcast. Now that’s turned into our agency where we help pizzerias and restaurants use today’s marketing to grow their local business. Bella: I love it. It’s so organic, and I can totally relate. When someone comes to you, they’re probably looking to get more clients, right? What are they doing wrong that you turn around and fix? Bruce: The problem with the restaurants and pizzerias we deal with is they’re busy. Times change quickly, especially over the last five to eight years—way quicker than you think. They may have a successful business that’s grown organically over 10–20 years, but the things they were doing aren’t working today. Direct mail is expensive—it works, but you need a large budget. So we teach operators to use the marketing that’s working today: Facebook advertising, Instagram advertising, collecting emails, and being consistent. We also teach them how to talk on those platforms. What you say on Facebook is different from what you say on Snapchat or email. On the podcast, we talk about what’s working and share data from our agency so others can do the same. Bella: Let’s talk about the differences between Instagram and Facebook. Bruce: Instagram’s great for branding. The feed is for high-quality photos or short videos, while Stories is perfect for behind-the-scenes content—showing your staff, your daily work, what it’s like in your kitchen. A lot of people are afraid of video, so if you use Instagram Stories to tell your story, you’ll stand out. Nine out of ten people we talk to are afraid of video. If you can be that one who’s not—or who gets comfortable—you’ll be the person who stands out in your market. Bella: That’s so good. For pet sitters and dog walkers, they could record a 15-second clip at every house, introduce the new dog, and show a “day in the life.” Not just the cute stuff—even the messy moments. You could make a story out of that. Bruce: Exactly. Facebook’s data is powerful. If you’re a dog walker, you can target people in your zip code who own dogs, have jobs, and make enough to afford a walker. You could run ads like “Too busy to walk your dog? Check out this free guide.” You can also upload your email list, retarget visitors, and exclude your current followers to reach new people. Facebook’s the best advertising platform right now. Bella: Speaking of retargeting—how does that work? Bruce: You can upload your email list to Facebook and target those people, or install a Facebook pixel on your site. That lets you retarget visitors, even by specific pages. If someone views your contact page but doesn’t reach out, you can show them ads later. You can also target friends of followers or exclude certain groups. You don’t need to spend much to test what works. Bella: That’s huge. I like how you said Facebook should be treated like a database. Bruce: Yes, exactly. And now we’re doing Facebook chatbots, too. Bella: Chatbots? Tell us about that. Bruce: A chatbot automates your Messenger communication. For example, we’ll post, “Want 20% off this weekend? Type yes below.” When people comment “yes,” they get an automated message in Messenger that says, “Hi, this is Jamie from XYZ Pizza. Can I send your coupon here?” When they reply “yes,” it sends the coupon and subscribes them to your Messenger list. From there, you can send future updates directly to Messenger with 80–95% open rates. Bella: That’s incredible. For pet sitters, they could use it for a “Top 5 Foods for a Healthy Dog” offer—people message you, and you send it through Messenger. It feels more personal. Bruce: Exactly. Use tools like ManyChat—it’s free or $10/month for automation. Keep it conversational and not spammy. Do it now, because like email in 2003, it’s new and effective—but it won’t stay that way forever. Bella: I totally agree. Text marketing feels too intimate, but Messenger is the perfect middle ground. Bruce: Yes, it’s personal but not invasive. Bella: Tell me a story of how your strategies turned things around for a client. Bruce: One client was spending $1,200/month on direct mail, which was 80–90% of his marketing budget. I told him to try Facebook and Instagram instead. He cut back on direct mail, implemented ads, started email marketing, and his business has grown 10–20% monthly since 2016. Another client hired us to do it for them because they didn’t have the time. You either have resources or time—you need one or the other. Bella: That’s so true. And about platforms—you mentioned Snapchat works in college towns, but maybe not everywhere. Bruce: Exactly. Snapchat works great in college towns, but maybe not in Iowa. Facebook and Instagram dominate—700 million users on Instagram, 2 billion on Facebook. If it’s not working for you, it’s because of a bad strategy or lack of consistency. The algorithms change—Instagram now prioritizes engagement over post frequency. Focus on high-quality content and interaction. Bella: I love that. Social media doesn’t cost much to test. You can run small experiments, track what works, and adjust. Bruce: Exactly. Be consistent and take action. If you really want it, you’ll make time. You can sleep an hour less if needed. We live in an amazing time with more opportunities than ever. Decide, commit, and be consistent—the results will come. Bella: That’s powerful. I just got chills. You’re so right—it all comes down to consistency. Thank you so much, Bruce. Everyone, go check out Smart Pizza Marketing Podcast and smartpizzamarketing.com. Don’t forget to subscribe to Bella in Your Business on iTunes or Stitcher. And remember to always keep jumping. Thanks for jumping with Bella in Your Business. For more information, free articles, and more, go to jumpconsulting.net. And remember, Bella’s got your chute.