Restaurant Marketing Workshop

Disposable cameras and raw reactions: Why 'imperfect' social media content is winning in 2026

Marketing leaders from Via 313, ATL Wing Spot, and Hook + Ladder explain how multi-unit restaurant brands can drive sustained foot traffic in 2026 by balancing AI-driven search optimization with raw, "old-school" authenticity.

Image: Willie Lawless/ Connect Media

May 1, 2026 by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

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In the fast-paced world of restaurant dining, social media in 2026 has evolved from a simple "feed of food" into a high-stakes engine for Generative Experience Optimization (GEO) and community-driven storytelling. As we prepare for the upcoming Restaurant Marketing Workshop in Boston, June 2-3, the focus is shifting away from generic viral attempts toward "always-on" systems that capture and convert momentum into sustained foot traffic.

For many brands, the strategy isn't just about high-def imagery; it's about leveraging AI search performance, mastering the "no-click" search landscape, and turning real-time guest feedback into a brand's most persuasive content.

The "Social Media Mastery for Multi-Unit Brands — Q&A Panel" will give restaurant marketing leaders the chance to hear from experts in the field. Presenters include: Caleb Clark, co-founder of session sponsor Hook + Ladder Digital, Jessie Galioto-Grebe, marketing director for pizza chain Via 313, Wally Daftanai, co-founder of ATL Wing Spot and Stacey Kane, chief marketing officer of multiple brands.

We asked the panelists several questions about social media in email interviews.

Q: With multi-unit brands, there's often a tension between corporate brand standards and the need for local authenticity. How do you empower individual locations to post their own content without it looking like the "Wild West"?

Daftanai: We want every piece of media/content to be authentic and showcase what our brand really is. The same way too much control can make a brand feel too rigid and unauthentic, too much freedom on can also make it run astray from what it's supposed to deliver. So, while we don't allow individual stores/operators to post their own content, we love getting them involved. By keeping content centralized but shooting at different locations, featuring real customer reactions and showcasing our brand personalities, you still receive that same fun and fresh "vibe" without the corporate feel and without things looking like the Wild West.

Q: Employee-Generated Content (EGC) is huge right now. How do you incentivize busy restaurant staff to pick up a phone and film a 10-second 'behind-the-scenes' clip without it feeling like a chore?

Galioto-Grebe: Via 313 marketing recently went old school and gave our restaurants disposable cameras! We supplied them with photo ideas and are awarding prizes to the best photo and best camera roll. It gives us some fun throwback content that matches our brand aesthetic and helps us get the whole team involved. We tested this at one of our legacy locations and the team was so excited (even if they did need to teach some of the younger team members how to use the flash!).

Q: We're seeing a massive shift toward raw, unpolished, short-form video. For a large brand, how do you get comfortable with "imperfect" content, and what's one example of a "lo-fi" post and how can it outperform a high-budget campaign?

Daftanai: The biggest mindset shift comes from realizing the reason lo-fi and short-form video works. People trust people, not ads or organized commercials.

I recently launched the "Your Local Wing Spot" campaign to target exactly that. We reach out to real fans and customers of our brand to ask them to provide a raw unfiltered reaction to them eating or trying new products. No lighting, no script, just pure reactions. These types of videos can perform a $10,000 campaign. And let's be honest, everyone's tired of seeing a guy in his car eating off a tray or an influencer showing off a restaurant and saying every single item tastes good (no shade to anybody out there).

For larger brands, the opportunity lies in real emotion and reaction, not in paying an influencer for a "review" and calling it raw content. Keep it real and keep it authentic!

Q: Responding to reviews and comments across 20, 50 or 100 locations is a mountain of work. Do you recommend centralizing that engagement at the home office, or should it stay with the local managers who actually know the guests?

Galioto-Grebe: We centralize our guest reviews and comments. We want the responses and information to be consistent across the brand. If the reviews or the feedback is restaurant-specific, we direct the comment to the GM and have the team address it with the guest directly. This helps balance the personal touch with locations specifically, while also keeping a consistent brand tone and voice for initial communication with guests.

There's still time to register for the Restaurant Marketing Workshop in Boston. Click HERE to register.

About Mandy Wolf Detwiler

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Mandy Wolf Detwiler is the Pizzamarketplace.com and QSRweb.com editor for Connect Media. An award-winning journalist, Mandy brings more than 20 years’ experience covering food, people and places. Mandy has been featured on the Food Network and has won numerous awards for her coverage of the restaurant industry. She has an insatiable appetite for learning, and, yes, she can tell you where to find the best pizza slices in the country.

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