The Food Truck Phenomenon: Fueled by Social Media Buzz

With more jobs in the field of public relations, specialists must try even harder to differentiate their clients from others. This is true for the food and beverage genre as well. The biggest trend impacting food and beverage public relations is the exponential rise of social media. Mobile food trucks have emerged as a new industry that has taken full advantage of social media, establishing best practices that may be adopted by other industries. The rise of the food truck phenomenon parallels the rise of social media, and now "gourmet" food trucks have helped improve the reputation of the food truck industry as a whole. Social media outlets like Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare have led to innovations in promotion of clients through digital channels. With the advent of social media, public relations professionals are reaching new audiences through unique and exciting channels of communication. This study examines the origins of mobile eateries, the factors that have led to the rise of food trucks in the digital age, the new audiences food trucks are attracting and how the current wave of "gourmet" food trucks have helped improve the reputation of this entire dining genre.