The kiosk's marketing department: AI ads for street food and small vendors

Street food is Kenya's most democratic restaurant. The smokie pasua stand outside the matatu stage, the mutura grill on a Friday night, the mama selling samosas from a cool box at the office gate and the mahindi choma vendor by the roadside all serve people who rarely plan their meals in advance.

That is exactly why a phone matters to these businesses. The decision happens in the minute before someone walks past, and more and more people spend that minute looking at their phones.

What a vendor's ad needs to say

Three things, nothing else:

1. Where you are: "Opposite Kencom stage", "Outside Gate B", "Next to the Shell in Ruaka"
2. What is fresh right now: hot samosas at 4 p.m., a new batch of chapati
3. How to order ahead: a WhatsApp number for office deliveries or pre-orders

Price is optional. Location never is.

Speak the customer's language

Street food is sold in the language of the street. In Tari Studio, set the language of speech and on-screen words to Kiswahili, English as Kenyans speak it, or the Kiswahili-English mix that most Nairobi customers actually use. Write your own lines if you like: "Samosa moto moto, karibu!" Brand names, prices and phone numbers stay exactly as you typed them. Ads in the languages your customers speak.

Keep it real

A vendor's strength is authenticity. An over-polished advert can look like a chain, which is not what people want from their favourite kiosk. The Studio's AK1 model leans towards documentary realism: natural daylight, candid people and real streets. Attach a photo of your stand and your actual food, and the video will look like your corner of town.

A video a week is enough

You do not need daily content. One short clip a week posted to WhatsApp Status, plus a pinned post on a local Facebook group or TikTok, keeps you on the minds of people nearby. Ask regulars to save your number; that alone makes your Status a free billboard.

Office orders are the hidden market

Many vendors grow by delivering to offices, salons, garages and schools nearby at fixed times. A clip that says "Order by 11, delivered by 12:30 to buildings on Moi Avenue" can turn a stand into a small catering business. When you publish from the Studio, add a tracked WhatsApp link to see which posts bring orders.

What it costs

Every Tari Studio quote shows the credits before you generate, and a failed generation is refunded automatically. Credits never expire, so a vendor can top up a small amount by M-Pesa and make one clip a week. See today's prices.

A word on hygiene

Customers care more than ever about how food is handled. If your stand has a clean apron, gloves or a covered display, show it. It is a selling point, and it costs nothing to film.

Make your stand's first video.