Social media ideas for cafes and coffee shops

Post ideas for a cafe week

A weekly pattern takes the thinking out of posting. Instead of staring at a blank screen at 7am, you fill a slot you already know. Copy this week and change it to fit your opening days.

• Monday: this week's counter. Show the bakes, soups or specials coming up. A carousel works well, with one item per photo. Instagram lets you share up to 20 photos and videos in a single post.
• Tuesday: meet the team. One person, one photo, one line: their name, how long they've been with you and what they drink on their break.
• Wednesday: before the doors open. The first tray out of the oven, a delivery from your roaster, the chalkboard being written.
• Thursday: a local tip. Something on nearby this weekend, a new shop down the road or a walk that ends at your door.
• Friday: the weekend special. Tease Saturday's new bake, or remind people you do weekend brunch.
• Saturday: the buzz. A quick Story of the room when it's full, or "tables free now" when it isn't.
• Sunday: slow Sunday. Papers, dogs, long brunches and the last slice of the week.

Stories or feed posts?

Use Stories for anything that's only true today: the soup of the day, the last three cinnamon buns, a window table that's just come free. Instagram Stories disappear after 24 hours unless you add them to Highlights on your profile. Highlights are a good home for the things people check again and again, such as your menu, opening hours, where to park and whether dogs are welcome.

Save feed posts for things worth finding later: a new menu, a seasonal drink or a proper introduction to someone on your team.

Cafe Facebook post ideas

Facebook suits practical updates that people might pass on to a friend:

• Bank holiday and Christmas opening hours, posted a few days ahead.
• Events such as a book club, open mic, knit night or a pop-up with a local maker, set up as Facebook events so people can find and share them.
• Thank-you posts after a charity bake sale or a local fundraiser.
• The longer story: why you opened, where your beans come from, how your house blend came together.

Cafe Instagram post ideas

Instagram is more visual, so let photos and short videos do the work. These coffee shop Instagram ideas take a minute each:

• Close-ups: latte art, a cake cut open, steam rising from a pot of tea.
• Short videos: milk being steamed, a slice being cut, the counter filling up before opening.
• Your space: the window seat, the plants, the light at 3pm.
• Questions in Stories. Instagram's poll, quiz and questions stickers make it easy to ask "which cake should come back next week?" and then act on the answer. If a sticker is missing, update the app; Instagram says not every sticker is available to everyone.

Cafe promotion ideas that don't need a discount

Good marketing ideas for a cafe don't have to mean money off:

• A seasonal drink launch. Add a countdown sticker to your Stories the week before it arrives.
• Loyalty card nudges. If you run a stamp card, try: "Two stamps from a free one? Consider this your sign."
• Quiet hours. Tell laptop regulars when you have plugs and space, and when you'd rather keep tables free for lunch.
• Name the new bake. Ask for suggestions with a questions sticker and share the favourites.
• Pre-orders for big days. Mother's Day cakes or Christmas mince pies, but only if the kitchen can keep up.

Showing your coffee, cakes and people

Most cafe content ideas come back to three things: what you serve, how you make it and who makes it.

Your coffee

• Show the process, not just the cup: the grind, the shot running, the milk going in.
• Shoot flat whites and cappuccinos from above so the latte art shows, and iced drinks from the side so the layers show.
• Shoot by the window. Soft daylight flatters coffee far more than overhead spotlights.
• If you know the story of your beans, tell it: the roaster, the farm, why you chose them. Keep it factual.

For more on light, angles and quick styling, see our guide to taking food photos with your phone.

Your cakes and food

• Post the bake of the day as soon as it's on the counter, while people are still deciding where to go.
• Show the inside. A cake cut open or a toastie pulled apart says more than a perfect top.
• Post a "last slice" Story mid-afternoon. It's honest, and it gives people a reason to come now.
• If you describe something as vegan or gluten-free, check it matches what you tell customers at the counter. The Food Standards Agency's allergen guidance for food businesses says a free-from claim is a guarantee that the food suits everyone with that allergy or intolerance, so read its section on free-from, gluten-free and vegan claims first.

Your people

Your team is the one thing no other cafe can copy.

• Introduce each person once, then let them pop up in other posts.
• Ask what they'd order off the menu and post it as "[name]'s pick".
• Ask before you photograph anyone, staff included. Feature regulars only if they're happy to be in the post, and never post children without a parent's clear agreement.

Local community posts

Local posts show that you're part of the neighbourhood, not just somewhere to grab a latte.

• Supplier spotlights. Your roaster, baker, dairy or the farm that sells you eggs. Make it a Collab post on Instagram: you invite their account as a collaborator and, if they accept, the post appears on both profiles and is shared with both sets of followers. You can add up to five collaborators to a post.
• Neighbour shout-outs. The bookshop next door, the florist across the road, the school fair on Saturday.
• Local events. Market day, a charity run, a festival. Say what's on and whether you're opening early for it.
• Good causes. A community fridge, a pay-it-forward coffee board or a food bank collection point, if you run one.
• Your customers' posts. Instagram gathers Stories that mention your account in one place, called Stories about you, where you can reply to them or share them to your own Story. Say thank you when you do.
• Local groups. If you belong to local Facebook groups, read each group's rules on business posts before sharing anything.

Captions and hashtags

Captions that sound like you

A simple formula: what it is, why today, what to do next. Some examples to adapt:

• "Pear and ginger loaf, still warm. Two slices left by the till, so be quick."
• "New beans this week, from our friends at [roaster]. Think dark chocolate and cherries. On all day."
• "Rain's due at two. The hot chocolate will be ready when you are."
• "Meet [name], the reason Saturday mornings run on time. Ask them what they'd order."

Put the important bit first, write the way you talk at the counter, and end with one clear action: pop in, pre-order or vote in today's poll. For a longer list of lines, see our coffee captions and quotes.

Hashtags

• Instagram allows up to five hashtags on a post, so choose a few specific tags rather than generic ones.
• Pair your town or neighbourhood with what you sell, such as your town's name with coffee or brunch.
• Pick one tag for your cafe and use it on every post.
• Leave out tags that have nothing to do with the post.

Our guide to hashtags for cafes, pubs and restaurants covers what to use, what to skip and where to put them.