← BeTeam for bars · Guide for bar and pub owners · 7 min read
How to get more customers into your bar, and turn them into regulars
Getting people through the door once is a marketing problem. Getting the same people back every week is a habit problem. This guide covers both, for bars and pubs that show sport: how to be seen, how to fill the quiet nights, how to raise sales without discounts, and how to turn a first visit into a regular.
The short answer
- Be seen where people decide: a board outside, one post on the day, a message to your regulars.
- Tie nights to dates people already care about: the match, the derby, the final.
- Sell the whole evening, not one drink: kick-off food, a reserved table, a reason to stay.
- Give them a reason to return: a season-long prediction league with their name on your screen.
1. Be seen: the free basics
Most bars lose customers they never knew existed: the person walking past who did not know the match was on. Put the fixture and kick-off time outside, on a board or in the window. Post the same thing once on the day, with a photo of your screens. Start a group chat for regulars and send one message before each big match.
Print the week's fixtures with your bar's name on them: our free fixture poster maker fills in the matches, kick-off times and crests, and adds a QR code to your own league.
2. Fill the quiet nights
| Quiet night | A fixed reason to come |
|---|---|
| Monday or Tuesday | A quiz, or the week's late fixture with the league table on screen |
| Midweek | Champions League and Europa League nights |
| Early evening | The early kick-off with a food offer |
| Away games | Adopt a local supporters' group and give them a corner |
The rule is the same for every night: a fixed reason, announced every week in the same place, so people plan around you.
3. Raise sales without discounts
- More visits: the same people on more nights is worth more than a cheaper pint.
- Longer visits: people who stay for the full match and the result spend more than people who leave at half-time.
- Food for kick-off: sharing platters and table bundles raise spend per table.
- Rebook at the final whistle: ask tables to book the next big match while the room is still loud.
4. Turn first-timers into regulars
A first-time customer becomes a regular when something of theirs stays in your bar. A prediction league does exactly that: they scan the QR code on your wall, guess the scores before kick-off, and their name goes on the table on your screen. Next matchday they have points riding on the result and a place to defend, and the league's group chat lets you remind them what's on.
A free league that brings them back
Named after your bar: one printed sign, a live table for your screen, three posts written for you. No fee, no contract, no betting, and no staff time on matchday.
Get my bar's leagueWhat to avoid
- Paid sweepstakes and pots. Money pools are regulated as gambling in most countries, and in a pub they are restricted almost everywhere.
- Drinks as prizes. Banned or restricted in several places; keep rewards non-alcoholic.
- Deep discounts. They fill one night and teach people to wait for the next one.
Keeping regulars once they come is its own topic: see our guide to bar loyalty program ideas.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get more customers into my bar?
Be seen, give people a reason to come on a specific night, and give the ones who came a reason to return. In practice: a board outside and one post on the day, events tied to dates people already care about such as the match, and something that lasts longer than one night, like a season-long prediction league on your screen.
How can I make a quiet pub busy?
Pick the quiet night and give it a fixed reason: the midweek Champions League, a quiz, a supporters' group that adopts you for away games. Then tell people every week in the same place. A prediction league helps on match nights because customers have points riding on the result and want to watch it with the table on your screen.
How do I increase sales in my bar without discounts?
Raise visits and time spent rather than cutting prices: more people on more nights, staying for the whole match. Food bundles for kick-off raise spend per table, rebooking at the final whistle fills the next big night, and a league brings the same people back every matchday.
What is the cheapest way to promote a bar?
The free ones: a fixture board outside, a weekly post with what you are showing, a group chat for regulars, rebooking at the end of a big game, and a free prediction league. Our fixture poster maker prints the week's matches with your name on it in a minute.
How do I turn first-time customers into regulars?
Give them something of theirs in your bar before they leave: their name on your league's table, a seat for the next match, a reason to come back on a set night. Someone who joined your league on the first visit has points riding on the next match.
