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All case studies Hospitality · Independent café

An independent café tripled its weekend bookings

An independent coffee shop in Sheffield was busy on weekdays but quiet at weekends — the opposite of what they needed. We built a consistent Instagram presence, launched local search ads targeting "brunch near me" intent, and fixed their Google Maps listing. Weekend covers tripled in 60 days.

Sample engagement. This illustrates the work we deliver. For current real-client references, ask us on a call.
3.2×
monthly Instagram follower growth
+187%
weekend covers vs prior 3-month avg
24h
from kickoff to first published post
The starting point

Empty tables, full Saturday queues — at the chain across the street

A 14-seat independent café in Sheffield, doing strong weekday trade from local office workers but virtually empty at weekends. The chain coffee shop 200 metres away had Saturday queues out the door. Same product, better location, but invisible online.

Their Instagram had 340 followers and posts every 2–3 weeks. Their Google Business Profile had no photos, no menu, and three reviews from 2022. Their website was a static one-pager with no booking flow.

What we did

The 60-day plan

Social-first, with a small SEA campaign targeting weekend-intent searches running alongside.

Day 1
Kickoff call. Captured their menu, vibe, top sellers, the owner's background, and what made them different from the chain.
Day 2
First Instagram post live (a behind-the-bar shot of their signature Ethiopian roast). 8 hours later, 14 new followers.
Day 3–7
Built a 30-day content plan: 4 posts/week, mix of behind-the-bar, customer moments, menu highlights, weekend specials. All photographed by us on-site in a single afternoon.
Day 5
Google Business Profile rebuilt: 40 photos uploaded, full menu, accurate hours, weekly post automation.
Day 8
Small £8/day Google Ads campaign launched targeting "brunch Sheffield", "best coffee near me", "Sunday brunch Sheffield" within a 3-mile radius.
Day 12
First weekend with measurable lift — 23 walk-ins identified as "found us on Instagram" or "found us on Google" via friendly counter questions.
Day 14–30
A/B tested post formats: short Reels of espresso pours outperformed static photos 4:1 on reach. Pivoted content mix accordingly.
Day 30–60
Built a simple online booking flow for weekend tables (saved staff time managing walk-in queues). Email list grew to 240 contacts via in-store sign-ups for weekly menu drops.
What worked

Why weekends turned around

  • Reels of espresso pulls and milk pours got 4× the reach of static menu shots — leaned into them hard
  • The "Sunday brunch" SEA campaign hit £0.94 CPC because there was no big-chain competition for that exact phrase
  • Google Business Profile photo uploads alone drove a 60% lift in "directions clicks" in week 2
  • A weekly "what's on the menu this weekend" email drove 18% of weekend bookings by month 2
  • Owner-on-camera Reels (the owner talking about beans) outperformed staged content — authenticity won
"
We were watching the chain across the road have queues out the door on Saturdays and feeling like we'd never crack it. Two months in, our weekends are our best days. The owner-on-camera stuff felt mad at first but it's what worked.
Sample client · Owner, 14-seat independent café · Sheffield

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