The marketing and promotion of a hospitality venue looks very different today compared to 20 years ago. The wave of social media platforms that are now a daily staple in our lives has armed venues with a suite of new tools which have changed the game when it comes to interacting with customers and building a reputation. Despite this, most venues aren’t using these new tools correctly, and hospitality venues are struggling more than ever to get people through the door.
This article will explore the reasons why so many hospitality venues are struggling and what they should be doing to promote their venue in 2024.
Reasons Why Hospitality Venues Are In Decline
Changing Behaviours Of Younger Age Groups
Research suggests that younger generations drink less alcohol than older demographics. While this health-driven change may be great for gyms, it’s not great for hospitality venues that rely on sales of beer, wine, and spirits.
Digital Competition
Video games, food delivery platforms and streaming services, amongst other services, have all made our lives easier. To the point where we can now socialise with friends, eat restaurant-standard food and watch just-released movies without even leaving our homes. While this has made many people’s lives far easier, it’s made it harder for hospitality venues that rely on getting customers out the door to enjoy their live offerings.
Rising Costs Of Living
It’s becoming increasingly difficult for venues to compete with cheaper offerings, especially at a time when there is so much talk about rising costs of living. House prices have risen by as much as 119% in the UK. Similarly, the price of a pint has risen by over 41%, making it increasingly difficult for customers to support hospitality venues.
4 Tips For Promoting A Hospitality Venue In 2024
Understand Your Audience
It could be argued that it has never been more important to understand your audience in business. With the wealth of options that are available to consumers, both online and offline, it’s imperative that your business chooses a certain segment of the market. There’s an old saying that if you’re speaking to everyone, you’re speaking to no one. So before you get to work on creating your marketing material, first determine who it is you’re speaking to.
If you’re an existing venue, have a look at who your most loyal customers are. What age are they, where do they live, how much do they earn and how much are they prepared to pay for your products/service?
Use Data
One of the biggest advantages of starting a business in the 21st century is the wealth of data that is available. In 2024, there is no reason to be guessing. Google Analytics for example will give you information about the location of your website’s users, the device they use and how long they spend on your website. Once you’ve gathered such data, you can feed this into your decision making and strategy.
Digital marketing channels
As touched upon earlier, social media has become a goldmine for businesses today. But many old-school businesses such as pubs and bars haven’t been able to harness the power of socials. Firstly, there’s no excuse for your business not to be on all forms of social media. This is a common mistake made far too often by businesses who don’t believe they can benefit from new, up-and-coming platforms.
However, different channels do need different approaches, and how you split your time and effort depends on your business, your audience, and your objectives. Here’s a breakdown of the different social media channels and how they can be used for different hospitality businesses.
Facebook has the largest number of users of all social media platforms. A Facebook page for your venue can act as a digital shopfront, providing information and updates to potential customers. It also allows your business to be tagged when users ask their network for recommendations.
The other, arguably more lucrative side of Facebook, is Facebook ads. Running a Facebook ad campaign can allow businesses to target users by specific demographics such as age and interests. This is particularly useful for new venues that are trying to spread the word of their opening in an attempt to pry customers away from their favourite spots.
Instagram is a great choice if you can sell your venue through imagery. Your venue might be themed based on a TV series or film. Or maybe it proudly offers the biggest burger in your city. These are both examples of selling points that can be photographed and turned into captivating Instagram content.
Another way in which it’s becoming more common for businesses to use Instagram is through influencer marketing. This is when users with large followings are paid or invited to review a venue. For example, Daragh Curran (@daraghcurran__ on Instagram) has become known as the Guinness Guru and travels around pubs reviewing their Guinness.
TikTok
Whilst only founded in 2016, TikTok has revolutionised the way brands and businesses use social media. The short-form video platform rewards content rather than following, serving content to users that they will find interesting based on previous behaviour on the app.
The plus for businesses is that they can create a TikTok account and, from day one, see returns if they are able to create good content. This is particularly useful if you consider yourself an entertainment venue as TikTok is the perfect platform to showcase this. For example, teasing performances from a live jazz band or a magician can be a great way to give people a taste of what your venue offers.
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
Not everyone is on social media, but you’ll be hard pressed to find a person that doesn’t use the internet at all. You won’t be able to catch through your social strategy, this is where SEO comes into play. SEO is the process of making your website more visible on search engines in order to match what users are searching for.
For venues, local SEO is the most important part of your SEO strategy. If you’re working with a budget, try reaching out to a digital marketing agency to assist you with this; there are some great agencies that can help with SEO in Manchester and London.
If you already have existing knowledge of websites and SEO, try targeting location-specific keywords, optimise your Google My Business page and create articles around topics that are important to your local area.
When it comes to marketing, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. While the tips above should give you a solid starting point when it comes to promoting your venue, consider how they should be tailored to the specific needs of your business objectives.