Top Tips For Marketing Your Pub In 2019

Whether just starting out in your new venture, or you’re in the full swing of pub life, a new year is the perfect time to set some goals to help grow your trading and profitability. Here are some top marketing tips to try out in 2019 to seek out some new opportunities for your business.
 

Evaluate Your Current Marketing Channels

 
It’s time to step back and evaluate your presence across all your online channels. It’s important to know exactly how much work you put in, what performance you get in return, and how they benefit your business and customers. If you market through a variety of channels, it may be time to refocus and concentrate on the ones that perform the best. Stretching your activity can leave your content and presence thin, and ultimately ineffective. Remember trying to achieve everything can be damaging.
 
Creating a plan for your top performing channels is a great way to achieve consistency and assist in providing engaging content for customers. Having a laser focus will help you reduce the time you spend in less effective places and give you more time to concentrate on the ones that matter.
 
Word of mouth is still the best publicity with INVESP reporting that people are 90% more likely to trust and buy from a brand recommended by a friend. It’s an effective way to grow, so establish and build relationships with your customers. Positive connections will result in your reach increasing as customers share their experiences.
 

 

Focus On Your Customer

 
For any pub, customers are at the core of the business, so understanding who they are and how you can meet their needs is essential. Familiarising yourself with their demographics, characteristics and preferences will help you target the right audience more specifically and successfully. Using this information in your marketing efforts can help to grow a more loyal and receptive base. Engaging and talking with your customers should always be a top priority. It’s a great way to find out what’s important to them and their reasons for choosing your pub before another.
 
Create an environment that feels like a community where your customers can feel valued and more open to sharing their feedback. Provide products and offers that are attractive and consistent with your customer base and you’ll see your business grow. At each stage of your marketing, ask yourself ‘does this meet my customers’ needs?
 

 

Promoting Your Pub’s Events

 
Regular events not only gain loyal customers but also increase popularity as a go-to destination for a great night out. You’ll be competing with other pubs, so offer something unique. Make your events attractive and fun, and if you’re charging, keep them affordable so that you’re likely to get a good turnout. With any event, it’s good to keep in mind your flexibility, adaptability and authentic approach so that your customers know what they’ll be getting, and you’ll know you’re prepared for any eventuality.
 
Live sports and music may be regular nights at your pub so adding something new will capture fresh interest. Why not incorporate a drinks tasting night to promote new additions and explore new trends? At traditional games nights, from quizzes to snooker, pool or darts, try adding extra features to make it stand out. Make it a night to attend regularly by creating a friendly league competition. It’s a technique that can build relationships with customers and you could even offer a small prize for the winner to encourage more entries. Why not provide supper to increase your trading opportunity on a midweek night.
 
Introduce a wall feature to display all your upcoming events. Your customers will see what’s on in the coming weeks and, most importantly, they can plan their visits. It’s a great way to increase your returning visitors.
 

Your Pub’s Website

 
A website can be an excellent tool to showcase your pub to an audience that is increasingly moving online. Potential customers are looking for helpful information such as opening times, your address, parking details and menus to help them make their decision about visiting.
 
Use high-quality images to engage visitors and attract them to your pub. When it comes to the actual design of your website, make it user-friendly with all the relevant information easy to find and understand. Make the process of editing your website simple for yourself as well so that you’re able to make changes quickly.
 

 

Using Instagram To Market Your Pub

 
It’s one of the fastest growing social platforms, and with its constant development, Instagram is the current online place to be. Alongside static images and videos, the addition of ‘Instagram Stories’ can offer an authentic glimpse into your brand. Create engaging content to appeal to your target market. Research has shown that the 18-35 demographic is more likely to avoid places that don’t have a strong presence on Instagram, so utilise the numerous in-built tools to catch people’s attention.
 
Keep your content varied and avoid too many promotional and sales messages. Instagram Stories is at its best when you show personality in its short snapshot format. Show your followers behind the scenes of a band warming up, or a story about how to make a signature drink. Make it unique and personal to your pub to increase engagement and affinity with your business.
 

 

Staff Training and How They Upsell

 
Staff can be integral in how you market your pub, so delivering excellent customer service will add value to the experience and reward your business. Having a confident and knowledgeable team who can talk about products and offers with your customers is an excellent way to reassure them that your pub is the place to be. Train your staff regularly and keep them up-to-date with changes and trends in the industry so they can provide an expert, yet personal touch to their service.
 
A great way to market your pub is with a premium approach. A great team and how they use upselling with customers is one way to achieve this. It’s a great way to push your premium options and add small revenue increases to your drink orders. Know the products to premiumise; popular choices are a good place to start, as customers are more likely to try something new. This is a great technique to use with both old and new customers and gives you more opportunities to market your extensive drinks range.
 
Trying to stand out in the pub industry can be a challenge, and with competition continuing to grow, being able to market your pub in a variety of ways is essential. With any of these tips, you’ll be able to increase your pub’s visibility, set yourself apart, and maintain your staying power.
 
If you’re interested in running your own pub, take a look at our current vacancies and get in touch.