Publik House 202

Supporting Your “Local”

Ever had that image in your head, the perfect spot where you would hang out, removed from the everyday worries of your work; a place where you can unwind, jabber with friends.
We are, of course, talking about that great Anglo-Irish institution, that homey public house around the corner, or in your neighborhood; your “local.” With the many challenges slowly killing this beloved institution, from smoking bans to drinking and driving controversies, to just plain hard times—with the economy being what it is, you’d sure love to have a drink or two to commiserate with your friends except, you might not be able to afford it. To compete, many public houses or pubs for short have turned to serving food to attract new patrons as well a keep their loyal following interested. With an interesting, palatable, and affordable menu, serving food at a pub may be the way to go. Other than being a place to hang out and have a few rounds with friends, your local pub is a great place to gather the community. An easygoing, casual, and friendly atmosphere where people can come together to find and share commonality with their neighbors is just priceless. But, as nice as it is, and as rare as a sense of community is in a business establishment, in the end, it is a business and needs to generate a profit. The hard times are turning quite a few of these public houses into things of the past, closed, torn down, or converted into private housing. Check if your local pub is doing okay or if it’s in danger of disappearing from your neighborhood. Perhaps you can take some steps to prevent it from happening. Like other institutions who have had to find other means of generating an income to survive, the public house can take the same path and discover a way toward a winning plan to financial stability. So, how does one go about it? Turning your local pub into a marketing haven aside from being a meeting place for the neighborhood is a great way to start the funds rolling in. As long as the marketing aspect remains a secondary concern or is executed in such a way that does not change the essence and character of the public house, its patrons are very likely to support it.Finding a good marketing tie-up is key. An occasional sponsored event wouldn’t hurt either. A product or event that the neighborhood has shown an interest in before would be a great candidate for such. And that’s only during prime time. During the pub’s non-peak hours, the possible tie-ups are even wider. Opening the pub as a venue for other, or perhaps even, non-traditional activities or events would introduce the scene to a totally new audience and demographic. Holding a club meeting for treasure metal detectors fans, or a pet-families get-together for people with disabled pets who are on carts for dogs, a product launch or demo of derma rollers for men and women, or a mini-health expo featuring anti-snoring mouth guards. The products and events combination is endless. And the income that can be generated from hair accessories for women will come not only from the products or events hosting such affairs but the new blood that will get to know the pub, new faces that can enjoy the friendly pub scene and perhaps bring in new customers as well. Adding a simple but good and affordable menu, venturing into marketing events that will benefit both the pub and the community, these are a couple of ways to help save and preserve this institution.