Recipe for Success: Austin's Food Trucks use Social Media to Expand Business

By Rachael Sperling, public relations sophomore

Picture yourself sitting under a canopy of lights with French music playing in the background, enjoying a savory roasted-chicken and goat-cheese crepe with garlic aioli.

No, this is not the hottest new French restaurant in town; it's a food truck called Flip Happy Crepes, one of many similar mobile restaurants to have appeared in Austin recently.

MobileCravings.com, an interactive guide to the nation's most popular food trucks, lists 29 in Austin. In comparison, there are only eight listed for Houston and one for Arlington. Austin's newfound status as a Mecca for food carts may be the product of Austin's hunger for the eclectic and the demand for value during an economic downturn.

There's an element of Austin's do-it-yourself spirit involved, too. This couldn't be any more apparent than in the way food trucks are turning to social media to publicize their new enterprise in a personal and inexpensive way.

Twitter, Facebook, Digg, vSocial, Blogspot and WordPress are just a handful of the social media applications that are rapidly changing public relations. Companies use them to create online communities that allow customers to feel closer to their brand and give instant feedback about products and company decisions. There are 2,167 listings on the Citysearch Twitter and Facebook directory for Austin businesses, and according to the Austin Business Journal Entrepreneur, 78 percent of its registered companies have a Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter account.

Yet, it's not enough to simply have a Facebook page or Twitter account. Proper application of social media tools is essential. Austin food trucks are a great example of how effective social media can be with the right execution.

Of the 29 Austin food trucks on MobileCravings.com, 27 use Twitter and 12 use Facebook. This makes it easier for food review websites and bloggers to give readers more information by linking to food truck sites.

Eric Silverstein, owner and operator of The Peached Tortilla, understands the importance of social media strategy for the success of his business. Silverstein, who left his position as a lawyer to follow his passion for the food business, opened The Peached Tortilla in Austin in September 2010.

Silverstein's approach is to interact with Twitter followers who mention The Peached Tortilla in posts in order to better engage customers.

"Twitter is not as effective a social media outlet if all you do is post your location or post information about your product," he says.

He attempts to respond to every mention (a Twitter update that contains the @username in the tweet) to The Peached Tortilla.

"Without [social media], customers would not be able to peel back the curtain and see what and who is behind the food truck itself, " Silverstein says. "You absolutely need to talk to your customers and get a feel for whether or not they enjoyed their experience."

Twitter seems to be the preferred social media tool among food truck owners because Facebook pages require more maintenance and web pages can be expensive and difficult to set up.

Twitter only requires a name, profile photo, and regular stream of posts.

"You can change your locations more effectively...on Twitter, " Silverstein says. "More importantly, it allows you to announce if you are running late to a stop. Facebook is a somewhat effective medium...but the lag in response time dilutes the overall effectiveness."

Jodi Bart, managing supervisor at Fleishman-Hillard and active food blogger, also believes that social media are a relevant and necessary tool for highly mobile food trucks. Bart began blogging about her love of food and Austin restaurants in July 2008. Her blog, TastyTouring, was recently recognized as Austin Chronicle's 'Best of Austin' 2010: Best Local Food Blog.

Highly mobile Austin food trucks like The Peached Tortilla, Mmmpanadas and The Evil Wiener are perfect examples of those in need of social media accounts to make updates on location, while stationary trucks like Torchy's Tacos and The Sugar Shack could sustain business without them.

Public relations firms can be hired to run your social media, but both Bart and Silverstein think that small businesses are better off running their own social media.

"It's personal, it's their business, and no one else is as close to every aspect of the operation, " says Bart. "For social media efforts to be successful, the business owner needs to show a commitment to participation and interaction."

It is hard to say if food trucks will remain popular, or if the novelty of eating a taco in a trailer park will soon wear off. But Sara Lasseter, a current public relations student at the University of Texas at Austin and a self-proclaimed foodie, sees food trucks as more than a fad.

"I think that places like Austin that thrive on unique eating experiences will have food trailers around for a long time, " she says. "But other cities may not be able last as long."

It remains to be seen whether social media will play a role in the long-term sustainability of the food-truck business. But this much is clear: the food trucks that can be creative on the web as well as in the kitchen will have a much better chance of sticking around.