New insight into the way in which diners choose where to eat suggests that, much like high street shopping, many consumers do their research online before heading ‘in-store’ (so to speak). At Google’s first UK digital marketing event for restaurants attendees were told that 31% of all restaurant sales are driven by online research and that 28% of customers use their mobiles to scout out somewhere for a meal less than an hour before dining.

A speech delivered by Andy King, of digital media agency Adtrak, at the Main Menu event in Google’s London HQ stressed the importance of restaurateurs showcasing their businesses properly online with professional photos and responding to both good and bad reviews.

Meanwhile Google’s Charlotte Sutton informed attendees that restaurants must give customers the information they are looking for online. She said 37% of diners use only online sources, 50% used both online and offline, 3% just offline, though 11% did no research at all.

Video content was advocated as a way to drive web traffic while Alex Macdonald, of restaurant payment app Velocity, further impressed the central role of mobile phones in dining decisions.