Pub promotion ideas: 35 ways to fill your pub on quiet nights and big days

Short answer: The best pub promotion ideas give people a reason to come on a specific night. Run a weekly food night, a quiz, and live music or sport. Plan around the UK calendar, from the Six Nations to Christmas. Keep regulars in touch with a WhatsApp list. And promote food, events and atmosphere, not cheap drink, because the licensing rules on drinks promotions are strict.

Below are 35 pub marketing ideas for UK pubs and bars, grouped by goal, plus a 2027 calendar, ready-to-send messages and the rules.

Written for UK pubs, bars and inns. Updated October 2026.

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Fill the quiet nights (Monday to Thursday)

Weekends often look after themselves. These pub promotion ideas target the slow nights.

1. Give every night a name. Monday pie night, Tuesday quiz, Wednesday steak night, Thursday curry club. People remember "it's steak night" better than "we do food".

2. Run a weekly quiz. Free to enter, teams of up to six, a bar tab or meat raffle prize. Start at 8pm sharp and keep it under two hours.

3. Start a steak night. A steak, chips and peas deal at a fixed price. Add a drink upgrade that's responsible (one drink, not unlimited).

4. Do a curry, pie or burger club. A rotating dish each week gives regulars a reason to come back and try the next one.

5. Host clubs and societies. Book clubs, knitting groups, running clubs and walking groups. Give them a regular corner and they'll bring friends.

6. Launch a pub league. Darts, pool, dominoes or crib. Leagues bring teams in every week, for the whole season.

7. Try a games night. Board games, cards or a retro console in the corner. It brings in younger groups on a quiet evening.

8. Hold a "meet the brewer" night. Invite a local brewery to talk and pour tasters. Sell tickets with a food pairing.

9. Offer a lunchtime menu for workers and retirees. A quick two-course lunch at a fair price, ready in 15 minutes.

Food that brings people in

10. Make your Sunday roast famous. Big Yorkshires, proper gravy, a vegetarian option and a booking system. Post a photo every Saturday.

11. Take orders from the table. A QR code on each table lets people order food and another round without queuing at the bar. Print table QR cards, and see our pub ordering system page.

12. Sell takeaway from the kitchen. Fish and chips, pies or Sunday roast to collect. It earns from people who'd never come in on a school night.

13. Add a kids' menu and a family deal. Families come early, eat well and leave before the evening crowd.

14. Put your menu on Google. People search "pub food near me". Add your menu, food photos and a booking link to your Google profile.

15. Check your margins first. Use the drinks GP calculator before you set any food-and-drink deal price.

Events and entertainment

16. Book live music on a regular slot. "Acoustic Fridays" or "open mic Thursday". Regular is easier to promote than random.

17. Show the big games. Rugby, football, cricket and darts all fill pubs. Post fixtures a week ahead and take table bookings for big matches. You'll need a commercial subscription to show live sport (see the rules below).

18. Run a beer or cider festival. A long weekend with guest casks, food and music. Partner with local brewers.

19. Host a comedy or film night. Local comedians often play for a small fee and a bar tab.

20. Celebrate odd days. National days give you something fresh to post: a pie week, a pickle night, a cheese and wine evening.

21. Hire out the function room. Birthdays, wakes, christenings, club meetings. Make a simple page with prices, capacity and a menu.

Community and loyalty

22. Be the community hub. Coffee mornings, a parcel drop, a village noticeboard. Pubs that serve their community get loyal regulars.

23. Welcome dogs (with water bowls and treats). Dog walkers come in all year round. Post it on Google and social.

24. Sponsor a local team. Your name on the kit, and a team meal after matches.

25. Run a charity night. A quiz or raffle for a local cause. The charity will help promote it.

26. Start a loyalty card for food or coffee. "Your 10th Sunday roast is half price." Keep rewards on food rather than alcohol.

27. Build a WhatsApp list. Ask regulars if they'd like a weekly "what's on" message. Get permission and offer an opt-out.

28. Collect reviews. Ask every guest to leave a Google review. Never offer a drink in return.

Make more money from what you already have

These answer the question owners ask most: what are some pub ideas to make money?

29. Sell gift vouchers, especially before Christmas, Mother's Day and Father's Day.

30. Offer pre-booked packages: "Match day for 6: a table, sharing platters and a jug of soft drinks."

31. Rent the room by day: meetings, classes or co-working with Wi-Fi and coffee.

32. Open earlier for breakfast or coffee if you're near a station, a school or a dog-walking spot.

33. Add rooms or a campsite pitch if you have space (check planning permission first).

34. Run a deli shelf or farm-shop corner with local cheese, chutney and bottled beer to take home.

35. Speed up service. Faster service on busy nights means more rounds and fewer walk-outs. Table ordering and a clear menu help most.

UK pub calendar: November 2026 to December 2027

Six Nations dates and kick-off times are from the published 2027 fixture list; Rugby World Cup dates are from the tournament's own site. Bank holidays are from GOV.UK.

Ready-to-send WhatsApp messages

Only send to customers who opted in, and include an opt-out.

Weekly "what's on":

Big match:

Quiet night nudge:

Read our guide to UK GDPR and PECR for WhatsApp marketing before you start.

Worked example: what a quiz night is worth

An illustration, not a forecast. Use your own numbers.

If a Tuesday used to take £250, the quiz adds about £390 a week before costs of sales and staff.

The rules for pub promotions

This isn't legal advice, but it covers the common traps.

• No irresponsible drinks promotions. In England and Wales, the mandatory licensing conditions ban promotions such as unlimited drinks for a fixed price, drinking games and rewards for drinking a lot quickly. You must also offer free tap water and smaller measures. Breaching these conditions is an offence.
• Scotland is stricter. On licensed premises, offers such as "buy one, get one free" on alcohol are banned, and a drink's price must stay the same for at least 72 hours, changing only at the start of licensed hours.
• Live and recorded music. In England and Wales, amplified live music and recorded music between 8am and 11pm for audiences of up to 500 generally don't need entertainment licensing on alcohol-licensed premises. You still need TheMusicLicence from PPL PRS to play music in public.
• Showing live sport. Use a commercial (business) subscription to show live sport to customers, and check the terms with Sky Business or TNT Sports for Business before you screen anything.
• Ads and social posts. Don't aim alcohol promotions at under-18s or suggest drinking leads to social success. These are CAP Code rules.
• Marketing messages. You need consent or the soft opt-in under PECR, and an opt-out in every message.
• Prices. Menu and drink prices must include VAT. Card surcharges on consumer cards are banned.

How Menuthere helps pubs

• Table QR ordering so customers can order food and drinks from their seat (QR codes on the Free plan). Drinks can print at the bar and food in the kitchen, on separate printers.
• Table booking for Sunday roasts and big matches (Lite and above: US$17 a month, 7-day free trial; you add a card, but nothing is charged until it ends).
• Takeaway and collection ordering from your kitchen, with 0% commission.
• Pre-orders for Sunday roasts and match days (Lite and above).
• WhatsApp broadcasts for your weekly "what's on" from your own number (Pro).
• Loyalty points on orders placed through your Menuthere page, which customers see and spend later (Pro, US$39 a month).
• Your menu on Google: push your menu to your Google Business Profile from the dashboard (Lite and above).
• Your own pub app, with push notifications for quiz nights and match days, on the Branded App plan (US$99 a month, store fees included).
• Allergens and calories on every dish, on every plan including Free. Guests see them when they open a dish.

Menuthere has no built-in age check, so staff still check ID when they bring drinks to the table.

See our pub ordering system and EPOS for pubs pages. For wider ideas across pubs, cafés and B&Bs, read our hospitality marketing guide. Need post words? Try our pub Instagram captions.

Put a QR code on every table and take orders without the bar queue.

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