Top Tips for World Cup Promotion and Marketing Strategies for Pubs and Bars
Fresh off the back of England’s historic win over Germany at Wembley in the UEFA Women’s EURO Tournament last year, the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is sure to generate some buzz this year to see if the Lionesses can repeat their championship success.
Last year survey data from YouGov revealed that 30% of British adults stated they would watch at least some of the EUROs tournament – and of these, 4% stated that they would be watching the games in hospitality venues. Based on these figures, economic forecasters Cebr estimated that around £124 million was spent in hospitality venues while watching last summer’s tournament. And while this year’s FIFA World Cup is being co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand rather than by a home nation, and some of the match times are a little on the early side (!), the Women’s World Cup is an opportunity that pub and bar operators mustn’t miss.
In this article, we’ll look at some of the ways pubs and bars can boost their bookings ahead of England’s first match against Haiti on Saturday 22nd July.
1. Promote your pub’s best features
Our friends at DesignMyNight conducted a survey ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar to find out what consumers look for in a venue to watch football in. The survey asked participants what was important to them when choosing a venue for watching the World Cup, 51% said it was the atmosphere, 13% said how big the screen is and 30% said where the screen is.
The survey results demonstrate that your amenities are going to be an important factor in customers choosing your venue. If you would like to make sure you attract guests to your venue during the Women’s World Cup, now is the time to think about the upgrades you might want to install. Whether you will invest in a larger indoor screen or more screens to maximise seating with a good view or whether you will invest in improving your outdoor space ahead of the tournament.
You could run a ticketed event that allows you to sell tickets with a guaranteed view of a screen which could help persuade guests to choose your venue and offer an opportunity to bundle a seat with a food and drink package – generating pre-event sales so you can plan accordingly.
A listing of your venue or event on a marketing platform like DesignMyNight.com is a great way to promote the features of your venue. Your venue page on the DesignMyNight website which attracts over 3.8 million monthly users, allows you to edit your page whenever you like so you can include the most up-to-date information about your venue and the features and amenities available. Your venue will appear in searches on the website by users meaning potential guests are more likely to find you and partnering with DesignMyNight can also mean getting your venue featured in local event and venue listings and articles related to the World Cup.
2. Draw in the crowds with your creative World Cup-themed events and offers
When it comes to event ideas for your pub or bar, the Women’s World Cup offers an opportunity to get creative with your menu, run themed activities, and build some enticing food and drink offers to get the football crowds through your doors.
Football-themed quiz nights are a great way to draw the right crowd to you and another way to promote your venue ahead of and during the Women’s World Cup.
Get creative with your menu with themed cocktails and menus related to the teams playing, you could bundle these together so people can pre-order when booking, generating sales before your guests have even walked through the door.
You might want to think about a match-day snack menu as well, with finger foods like mozzarella dippers or nachos that are easy to share with friends while watching the game.
For the match itself, utilising an order and pay-at-table system can keep the food and drink flowing without disturbing your guests’ enjoyment of the game. Make sure you have table menus promoting the snack and drink bundles available and clear instructions on how to order at the table. Our order and pay at table system is an easy-to-use solution that requires a simple QR code scan for your customers to order quickly and easily and utilising order and pay at table tech can also help reduce the queues at the bar.
England matches are likely to generate the most interest, so put the most planning into these matches – with any luck, the Lionesses will stay in the tournament for a long time, offering plenty of promotion opportunities.
Check out our article on how you can use ChatGPT to help you design themed menus and offers for events.
3. Let your existing customers know what you've got planned
Kick off your Women’s World Cup marketing strategy by telling your existing customers what you’re doing for the games – from upgraded screens and new viewing areas to food and drink packages and selling tickets. A CRM software system can help you run targeted email campaigns to your customer base to tell them about what you’re doing for the Women’s World Cup, and you can make sure you target the right customers based on their previous interest in sporting event communications.
The Women’s World Cup offers an opportunity to have some fun with your email communications, you can use funny football puns in your subject lines, as well as increase engagement by personalising messaging using the customer’s name and using relevant football imagery or images that show off your venue.
Celebrate World Cup success!
Thinking about your World Cup offering now will ensure you come out a winner this year.
You can find out more about managing bookings and increasing revenue opportunities in the lead-up to the tournament in our free downloadable guide from last year’s winter event - Don’t Get Caught Offside During the World Cup – How to drive footfall, increase revenue and maximise bookingsfeaturing our top five tips for pub and bar operators.
Or take a look at our free Bank Holiday Planning Guide for more tips on promoting your hospitality venue this summer - Bank Holiday Planning for Pubs, Bars and Restaurants
Or take a look at our software for hospitality operators.
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