Uber website mashable.com recently published a blog post all about the best practices for restaurants on Facebook.

More than ever, it’s integral that a brand understand how to use Facebook to successfully reach the more than 700 million people who utilize Facebook every day. Food consultants constantly weigh the options on how to best tap into this market.

Facebook has countless restaurants, hospitality and food & beverage companies all jockeying for exposure and attention on the site.  The goal, however, is to make sure your brand uses Facebook to your best advantage to make sure you are a step above the rest.   Some top strategies include:

Be Trustworthy … Facebook recently changed their privacy settlings policy and brands are no longer allowed to hide comments; rather, they want users to be able to share content and have open dialogues.  Big problem? No Problem!  Guests don’t expect perfection every time, but they do want to know you care and are listening.  Make openness part of your restaurant business plans. Don’t be afraid of negative comments. Instead use the comments to engage in a public dialogue with your fans/friends/consumers to show them that you are committed to improvement.

Be Seen … show-off a little! It’s okay, really. Food consultants suggest a multimodal approach to branding. Since a picture’s worth a thousand words, showcase images: from your delicious-looking appetizers to your devilish desserts, to the dining room at fun, full-capacity, or upload videos of chefs’ creations, list/define a few of your enticing ingredients, highlight great pr/press, display your iPhone app … Get creative and get out there.

Be Consistent … Food consultants agree that branding is what sets you apart. Use your mission statements, ideologies and overall brand aesthetic as tools to guide you in your Facebook persona.   Make sure that anyone posting or responding is aligned with your brand mentality: It’s important to bring personality to the brand, not necessarily promote the people who work there.