Restaurants are becoming online brands attracting fans to boost guest engagement, community, and loyalty. Your Instagram and Facebook followers are, of course, part of your most loyal fanbase. You can now capitalise on this sentiment and add a Reserve button to your profile.
What does the integration do?
The Instagram & Facebook Reserve integration will add a Reserve button to both your Instagram as well as your Facebook profile. Guests will be able to make a reservation via your Instagram or Facebook profile. The button serves as a perfect call to action, converting followers and profile visits into guests.
How to activate the Instagram & Facebook Reserve integration
There are two ways to activate the integration, within Facebook or within Formitable.
Checklist before you start:
Make sure you are the administrator of your Facebook and Instagram accounts.
Make sure to add an appealing description and cover photo. These are shown to the guest when they book via Instagram or Facebook. You can add and/or adjust this via Settings > Restaurant.
Do you have one Instagram account for multiple of your restaurants? You can then still use the Instagram & Facebook Reserve integration! You do need a Multi Venue Group in Formitable, so that guests can select one of your locations from the Multi Venue widget after clicking the Reserve button. Read here how to create a Multi Venue Group.
First option: Activate the integration in Facebook
Instagram is controlled by Facebook. To enable the integration you need a Facebook business manager account. Make sure your Instagram account is linked to your Facebook business manager. Otherwise you will not be able to set up the integration. You need the login details of the Facebook account you use to manage your restaurant on Facebook. This also activates the integration for Instagram.
Go to your restaurant's Facebook page. Make sure you are logged in with your admin account.
Click on Business Suite > Business Apps on the left:
Next, click on Formitable under Reservations: Increase reservations for your restaurant:
Follow the steps in the pop-up that appeared. This only works when you're logged in in Formitable as well:
💡 If no pop-up appears, make sure your browser allows pop-ups. Read more about it for Safari or Chrome. Or make sure your pop-up blocker accepts the pop-up.
If you connected your Instagram account to Facebook, both reservation buttons should be visible now.
How to create a Multi Venue Group
When you own and manage multiple restaurants under one brand name, you don't always have a separate Instagram account for each location. Thanks to a Multi Venue Group you can then still use the Instagram & Facebook Reserve integration. Follow the steps described below to set this up:
Create a restaurant group under Groups. Read this article to learn step by step how to create such a restaurant group.
Fill in all information under Group Settings. This will be displayed on the Instagram Reserve page of your group.
Go to the Instagram & Facebook Reserve App settings and fill in the Multi Venue group ID.
Guests can now pick their preferred restaurant location from the Multi Venue widget, after clicking the Reserve button on Instagram.
Second option: activate the integration in Formitable
Before you start, make sure to connect your Instagram account to your Facebook Business Manager. You need the login credentials for the Facebook account you use to manage your business on Facebook. This will activate the integration on Instagram as well.
To set up the integration, install the Instagram & Facebook Reserve App in Formitable.
Go to Apps
Scroll down to the Instagram & Facebook Reserve App
Open the App and click on Install
A popup will appear, asking you to agree that Facebook Business will be able to view information about your restaurant. Click Install again.
💡 If no pop-up appears, make sure your browser allows pop-ups. Read more about it for Safari or Chrome. Or make sure your pop-up blocker accepts the pop-up.
A new popup will appear. Login to your Facebook Business account.
Once you're logged in, click on Continue
Click on Continue again
Now click on Next
Formitable will now be linked to Facebook. This might take a moment. Once it's set, you can click on Done.
The Reserve button will automatically be added to your Instagram profile and your Facebook profile.
How to remove the Reserve button from your profile
Simply deinstall the Instagram & Facebook Reserve App in Formitable, and the button will be removed from your profile.
Need help?
Need help implementing Instagram & Facebook Reserve? Contact Facebook here.
For Topic, select 'Selecting and connecting assets'.
For Tell Us More, select 'Business Manager permissions/setup'
Now ask your question.
Or contact Formitable support via support@formitable.com.
What's next?
Notify Me: receive email notifications when guests place (last-minute) reservations, order takeaway, write reviews, send your messages, or cancel their booking.
Use Promotion Codes to offer your guests custom discounts and giveaways