Your Pub Has Something Happening Every Week — Does Anyone Know About It?
- G Man
- November 3, 2026
- Hospitality Growth Ideas
Tuesday is trivia. Wednesday is steak night. Thursday has a pool comp, Friday has live music, and on Sunday there’s the footy on the big screen. Your pub has more going on than most people’s social calendars.
So why is the trivia host sometimes reading questions to three teams and the dog?
Usually, it’s not the event. It’s that the people who would love it have no idea it exists. The chalkboard out front only reaches people walking past. The Facebook post reaches whoever the algorithm feels like showing it to that day. And “everyone knows we do trivia” tends to mean “the regulars know we do trivia”.
Why this matters right now
Pubs are feeling the squeeze. Zeller’s June 2026 hospitality research found spend per diner at pubs and bars was down 24%, and 54% of operators said foot traffic was down. When each visitor is spending less, getting more people through the door on your regular nights becomes one of the most valuable things you can do. Your weekly events are already running and already staffed. You just need them to be seen.
Make every event easy to find
Give each night a clear identity. “Trivia” is generic. “Tuesday Quiz Night: 7pm, teams of up to six, kitchen open till 9” tells people everything they need to decide.
Put the weekly line-up in one place. Pin a “This week at the pub” post, add it to your website’s homepage, and keep your Google Business Profile hours and events up to date. If someone has to scroll through three weeks of posts to find out when trivia starts, they won’t.
Post the week ahead, not just the night of. People plan. A Monday post saying “Here’s your week” gives them time to rope in friends.
Use your regulars. Ask the winning trivia team if you can post a photo. Their friends see it, and suddenly there’s a new team next week.
Go beyond your own channels. Local directories, community noticeboards, school and sports club newsletters, and local “what’s on” platforms reach people who don’t already follow you. That’s exactly who you need.
Tell people in the venue. A table card at Friday dinner about Wednesday steak night is free and reaches people who already like you.
Keep promotions on the right side of the rules
Events are a great reason to visit, but drink promotions need care. In NSW, Liquor & Gaming’s liquor promotion guidelines rule out promotions that encourage rapid or excessive drinking. That includes free drinks tied to the game, drinking challenges, and short-window drink discounts or happy hours that encourage fast drinking.
Promote the experience instead: the quiz, the band, the steak, the company. Good prizes include meal vouchers, merchandise or a local business gift card. Keep food and water front and centre, and make sure RSA always comes first.
Running a meat raffle? Raffles fall under NSW community gaming laws, and the rules depend on the type of venue and who benefits. For example, promotional raffles are limited to venues with a club licence. Check before you advertise.
An illustrative example
These figures are illustrative only, not data from a real venue.
The Corner Hotel’s Tuesday trivia usually draws 8 teams of 4, so 32 people. Each person spends an average of $35 on food and drinks.
The pub starts posting its weekly line-up every Monday, lists trivia on a local what’s-on platform, and puts table cards out on weekends. Within a couple of months, trivia regularly draws 13 teams.
- That’s 20 extra people × $35 = $700 more revenue every Tuesday.
- Across a year (52 Tuesdays), that’s about $36,400, from a night that was already happening.
Add steak night and live music and the numbers add up quickly, without changing the menu or running a single discount.
Practical takeaways
- List every regular event with day, time and what’s included. Write it as if the reader has never been to your pub.
- Publish a weekly line-up every Monday and pin it.
- Update your Google Business Profile and your website.
- Be listed somewhere locals browse, not just where your followers scroll.
- Promote the experience, not cheap drinks. Follow the NSW liquor promotion guidelines and RSA.
- Check the gaming rules before running or advertising a raffle.
Get your events on the local radar
In Store Only (ISO) is a no-commission local deals and directory platform launching in Balmain and Rozelle. Venues can list their events and in-store offers, giving locals one place to see what’s happening nearby. Your Tuesday trivia doesn’t have to be the suburb’s best-kept secret.
Discover how to promote your business at instoreonly.biz, and see what’s on locally at instoreonly.com.au.
Local Deals from Local Businesses.
Sources
- Zeller press release, 2 June 2026: https://www.myzeller.com/au/about/press/only-12-percent-of-operators-say-now-is-a-good-time-to-open-a-venue-as-zeller-backs-hospitality-s-next-generation
- Liquor & Gaming NSW, “Liquor promotions” (incl. GL4001 Liquor promotion guidelines): https://www.nsw.gov.au/business-and-economy/liquor-and-gaming/liquor-licensing/licence-responsibilities/liquor-promotions
- NSW Government, “Promotional raffles”: https://www.nsw.gov.au/money-and-taxes/community-gaming/promotional-raffles
