Meet Our Heroes
Cove Surf and Turf isn’t your average seafood spot. Tucked into the heart of New Bedford, Massachusetts, this chef-owned restaurant has built a loyal following on the back of fresh, homemade recipes and that rare combination of cozy atmosphere and seriously good food. Whether you’re grabbing a table for date night or ordering takeout after a long day, Cove delivers the kind of experience that keeps people coming back.
Owner Jesse DeSouza didn’t just open a restaurant. He built a neighborhood staple. The kind of place where regulars know the staff by name, where the seafood is sourced fresh, and where every dish reflects the care of a chef who actually gives a damn about what leaves the kitchen.
But in a competitive market crowded with seafood spots like Gene’s Famous Seafood, Cape Quality, and Kyler’s Catch, standing out takes more than great food. It takes visibility. It takes strategy. And it takes a marketing partner who understands how to turn clicks into customers and ad spend into real revenue.
That’s where Digital Time Savers came in.
Their Goals
Jesse had been running paid ads for years, mostly on Google, and the results were solid. Digital Time Savers had actually been managing those campaigns, and we’d built a strong foundation together. But Jesse knew there was more potential waiting to be unlocked.
He wanted to take things to the next level. Not just maintain current sales, but drive year-over-year growth. He wanted to fill more tables, generate more online orders, and make sure Cove Surf and Turf stayed top-of-mind in a seven-mile radius packed with competitors.
His objectives were clear:
- Generate sales that meet or exceed current performance and drive consistent year-over-year growth
- Maximize visibility across multiple platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Google, and YouTube
- Drive both dine-in reservations and online orders through a unified digital strategy
- Build brand recognition in the local market and become the go-to choice for seafood lovers in New Bedford
Jesse wasn’t looking for vanity metrics. He wanted measurable results. More butts in seats. More orders coming through the door. More revenue, plain and simple.
The Challenge
Cove had been advertising, but the efforts were fragmented. Facebook and Instagram were running product-focused ads with online ordering links. Google was capturing search traffic and remarketing to past customers. YouTube was in the mix, along with scattered efforts on Pinterest and TikTok.
The problem? It was all over the place.
There was no cohesive strategy tying these platforms together. The messaging wasn’t consistent. The creative wasn’t optimized. And while some campaigns were performing, others were bleeding budget without delivering meaningful returns.
Jesse was also dealing with the classic challenge every local restaurant faces: a hyper-competitive market with limited radius targeting. In a seven-mile bubble around New Bedford, Cove was competing with a dozen other seafood spots, all fighting for the same diners. Yelp searches alone showed pages of alternatives, and every one of them was hungry for market share.
On top of that, Jesse’s ad spend was capped at $3,000 per month. That’s not a lot when you’re trying to dominate across four major platforms, especially in a saturated market. Every dollar had to work harder. Every campaign had to be laser-focused.
The challenge was clear: take a fragmented, multi-platform advertising effort and turn it into a streamlined, revenue-driving machine. Do it on a tight budget. And do it in a way that didn’t just maintain current sales, but actively grew them.
Our Process
We’d already proven we could deliver results for Cove on Google. Now it was time to expand that success across every platform and build a unified strategy that turned scattered efforts into a well-oiled growth engine.
Here’s how we did it.
Phase One: Audit, Analyze, and Strategize
Before we touched a single ad, we went deep. We audited every existing campaign across Facebook, Instagram, Google, and YouTube. We looked at what was working, what wasn’t, and where the budget was being wasted.
We also dug into the customer data. Who was ordering online? Who was making reservations? What kind of content was resonating on social? What search terms were driving the most conversions on Google?
Then we mapped the customer journey. We identified the key touchpoints where Cove could intercept potential diners and guide them toward either booking a table or placing an order online.
From there, we built a comprehensive strategy that tied everything together:
- Facebook and Instagram would focus on brand awareness, product showcases, and driving online orders through visually compelling creative
- Google would continue capturing high-intent search traffic and remarketing to past customers, but with tighter targeting and improved ad copy
- YouTube would be used for storytelling and brand-building, showing the chef, the food, and the vibe that makes Cove special
Every platform had a role. Every campaign had a purpose. And every dollar had a job to do.
Phase Two: Creative That Actually Converts
One of the biggest issues we found? The creative wasn’t doing the food justice. Jesse’s menu was chef-driven, fresh, and homemade. But the ads looked generic. They didn’t convey the warmth, the quality, or the experience that made Cove different.
We overhauled the creative strategy. We shot mouth-watering product imagery that made you want to order immediately. We wrote ad copy that emphasized the chef-owned story, the fresh ingredients, and the cozy, friendly atmosphere. We highlighted the convenience of online ordering and the rewarding loyalty platform Jesse had built.
On YouTube, we created short-form video content that gave potential customers a behind-the-scenes look at the kitchen, the team, and the passion that goes into every dish. It wasn’t just about the food. It was about the story.
Phase Three: Precision Targeting and Budget Allocation
With a $3,000 monthly budget, we couldn’t afford to waste a dime. So we got surgical with the targeting.
On Facebook and Instagram, we focused on a seven-mile radius around New Bedford, targeting frequent diners, foodies, and people who had previously engaged with local seafood content. We also built custom audiences based on website visitors, past customers, and lookalikes modeled after Cove’s best buyers.
On Google, we refined the keyword strategy to focus on high-intent searches like “seafood restaurant near me,” “New Bedford takeout,” and “fresh seafood delivery.” We also ramped up remarketing efforts to stay top-of-mind with people who had visited the site but hadn’t yet converted.
We allocated budget dynamically, shifting dollars toward whichever platform was delivering the best performance on any given week. If Facebook was crushing it, we fed it more. If Google was converting like crazy, we doubled down. The goal was agility and efficiency.
Phase Four: Online Ordering as the Revenue Driver
One of Jesse’s smartest moves was building a rewarding online ordering platform. It was a huge differentiator, but it wasn’t being leveraged enough in the ads.
We made online ordering the centerpiece of the Facebook and Instagram campaigns. We showcased the ease of ordering, the loyalty rewards, and the speed of delivery. We ran limited-time offers and seasonal promotions to create urgency.
We also optimized the landing pages to reduce friction and increase conversions. Faster load times. Clearer CTAs. Mobile-first design. Every step of the funnel was tightened.
Phase Five: Ongoing Optimization and Scaling
We didn’t set it and forget it. Every week, we analyzed performance, tested new creative, and refined targeting. We A/B tested ad copy, images, and offers. We monitored competitor activity and adjusted accordingly.
As we started seeing consistent results, we gradually scaled the budget in the highest-performing areas. We also introduced seasonal campaigns around holidays, special events, and peak dining periods to maximize revenue during high-demand windows.
Results
The transformation was undeniable.
Within the first 90 days of the new unified strategy, Cove Surf and Turf saw a 38% increase in online orders compared to the previous quarter. Dine-in reservations jumped by 27%, with Friday and Saturday nights consistently booking out days in advance.
On Facebook and Instagram, the revamped creative and precision targeting drove a 4.2x return on ad spend, with cost per online order dropping by 31%. Engagement rates on social content increased by over 50%, building momentum and brand recognition in the local market.
Google continued to be a powerhouse, maintaining its strong performance while we optimized for even better efficiency. Remarketing campaigns alone generated a 5.8x ROAS, bringing back previous customers and turning one-time visitors into regulars.
YouTube storytelling content brought in a new audience segment that hadn’t been tapped before, contributing to a 22% increase in brand awareness within the seven-mile target radius, as measured by branded search volume and direct traffic to the website.
Overall, Cove Surf and Turf achieved year-over-year revenue growth of 34%, blowing past Jesse’s original goal of simply meeting current sales. The restaurant became a dominant local player, consistently outperforming competitors in both online and offline channels.
More importantly, Jesse now had a scalable, repeatable system that could continue driving growth without the chaos of scattered campaigns. Every platform was working in harmony. Every dollar was accountable. And every week brought new customers through the door.
Cove Surf and Turf didn’t just survive in a competitive market. They thrived. And they did it with a partner who understood that great food deserves great marketing.
