The Harrison Group 2024 Social Media Year In Review: Restaurants
In 2024, The Harrison Group’s restaurant social media strategy focused on visibility, relevance, and connection—making sure each concept was clearly understood, actively engaged with, and top of mind for both locals and visitors. This case study highlights how tailored promotions, community involvement, and experience-driven content fueled major growth across all restaurant accounts.
2024 Objectives
Increase brand awareness for what each restaurant uniquely offers
Promote current specials, menus, and locations in a timely, engaging way
Grow restaurant audiences across platforms
Engage both local diners and visiting guests through relevant, shareable content
Each piece of content was designed to reflect the personality of the restaurant while tying into the broader Ocean City lifestyle.
Top Restaurant Promotions of the Year
Strategic, experience-led promotions played a major role in driving awareness and engagement throughout the year.
The most impactful activation was the White Marlin Open Live Event at The Wedge, which transformed a local tradition into a global moment. During the week-long event, the restaurant’s live webcam generated 83,500 views, marking the highest week of web traffic ever recorded, with viewers tuning in from nine different countries. The exposure resulted in a 32% net audience growth, proving the power of real-time, location-driven content tied to a marquee event.
Negroni Week offered an opportunity to blend content creation with relationship building. Through this promotion, the team produced cocktail-focused content while establishing meaningful partnerships with local liquor representatives. The campaign strengthened industry connections while positioning participating restaurants as both creative and current within the beverage space.
At Marlin Moon, the Concert Mimosa Flight activation successfully connected food, entertainment, and shareability. The promotion drove increased breakfast sales, generated visually engaging content, and resonated strongly with a younger demographic—demonstrating how experiential offerings can directly support revenue while expanding audience reach.
The Jeep Week Ducks promotion proved that impactful campaigns don’t require large budgets. With minimal cost, this unified activation spanned multiple properties, encouraged guest participation, and aligned seamlessly with a town-sponsored event. Its success highlighted the value of community integration and cross-property collaboration.
2024 Performance Highlights
Across all restaurant social media accounts, performance metrics reflected significant year-over-year growth:
Total impressions: 6,322,115
Total engagements: 189,151 (up 135% year-over-year)
Total post link clicks: 5,471
Total audience: 48,912 (up 203% year-over-year)
Why It Worked
Several strategic pillars contributed to the success of restaurant social media efforts in 2024:
Clear brand positioning: Each restaurant’s offerings, vibe, and value proposition were consistently communicated.
Event-driven storytelling: Leveraging local and regional events created natural spikes in attention and engagement.
Experience-first content: Promotions focused on what guests could experience, not just what they could order.
Community connection: Aligning with town events and local partners reinforced authenticity and relevance.
Restaurant social media thrives when it reflects real experiences and real places. In 2024, The Harrison Group’s restaurant strategy prioritized clarity, creativity, and community—resulting in substantial audience growth, stronger engagement, and increased visibility for each concept.