The dissertation deepens the theoretical provisions and develops practical rec-ommendations regarding the use of social and communication technologies in the process of forming the image of a public catering enterprise in Ukraine. There are considered and summarized the theoretical and methodological principles of the im-age research of the catering sector as a complex and multifaceted phenomenon, a constructed image, which represents a set of company characteristics that reproduce the results of its socio-economic activity.
The source base of the research was defined, elaborated and systematized; ad-vertising campaigns and marketing communications were analyzed as means of im-age formation in the field of public catering in Ukraine; the peculiarities of image formation of catering establishments as a type of applied social communication tech-nologies (parameters, strategies and trends) are considered; it is proven that the repu-tation of the institution is directly related to how this image is reproduced in the minds of social groups, which arises under the influence of the value system of the individual or the audience, the social environment.
It is proposed to implement a set of activities aimed at forming a positive im-age (studying the needs of the target audience and offering consumers goods and services that meet their needs and expectations; conveying information to the target audience through all channels of marketing communications; holding events that emphasize the social and environmental responsibility of the enterprise etc.), which confirmed the status of marketing communications and marketing communication policy in the restaurant industry as a direction of applied social and communication technologies.
It is substantiated that the key role in creating an image model of a catering en-terprise in Ukraine is played by brand communications as a complex of applied communication technologies using the Internet, advertising, PR and marketing, aimed simultaneously at the formation of corporate style, trademark and company identification. It is emphasized that these factors in the minds of consumers are transformed into a single image of the brand, which affects the loyalty and commitment of visitors, as well as the competitiveness of the enterprise.
At the same time, it is especially emphasized that the basis of brand communi-cation as an applied socio-communicative technology, aimed at forming a positive and favorable image of public catering enterprises, is the stimulation of everyday life with the help of various tools (PR activities, communications at points of sale, direct marketing, sponsorship, etc.), which imposes appropriate obligations on management, company operators and marketers from the point of view of ensuring effective communication.
Along with the creation of a client base and the establishment of effective communication with clients and staff, a number of important recommendations on the formation of communication strategies from the point of view of creating a positive image are offered. Recommendations have been elaborated for the development and improvement of the quality of services of restaurant enterprises, as author’s socio-communicative means of complex advertising, which can be guidelines in practical activities for managers and operators of restaurant enterprises.
In the Conclusions, the author proposed the concept of using social and com-munication technologies in the process of implementing the image model of Ukrainian restaurant enterprises, which is defined in the dissertation as a set of measures aimed at forming a positive and favorable image of the specified enterprise based on brand communication as a set of applied communication technologies using Internet, advertising, PR and marketing, aimed at forming a corporate style, trademark and company identification. There is emphasized the need for taking the foreign experience for the formation of image strategies of public catering enterprises in Ukraine, where marketing communications and marketing communication policy of such enterprises play an important role as a direction of applied social and communication technologies.
Keywords: applied social and communication technologies, image, catering, brand communications, positive/negative image, marketing communications, com-munication strategies, advertising campaigns.
