I really enjoy getting the chance to sit down and chat with our customers about their business and how they have achieved success, especially in social media. I also enjoy a good burger, so when I got the chance to spend the morning at Relish Gourmet Burgers, I was thrilled. Relish is a small business that has seen rapid growth since opening the doors to their first location in 2010, in the past year they have opened an additional three locations and have four more planned for 2012. They quickly won the hearts of their customers with engaging, energetic staff, fantastic specialty burgers, and the ability to innovate.

Co-founders, Rivers Corbett and Chef Ray Henry shared with me some of the ways they have used social media to share the energy of their restaurant over social channels like Twitter (you can find Relish on Twitter – @RelishUs). Using social media they have been able to create a community of not just customers but fans and friends.

Check back next week, as we will be posting a video of our conversation with the team at Relish. Thanks again to Rivers and Chef Ray for hosting us and sharing their story.

Do you have stories of how small businesses are using social media to help grow their business? Have you had a great experience with a small business connecting with customers through social channels? Please share!

Sarah Carver is Public Relations Manager at Radian6. She is always inspired by great customer stories. Find her on Twitter at sarahcarver12.

Tags: restaurant, Social Media, social media marketing, Social Media Monitoring, social media strategy