A national consumer campaign, It’s Better DownThe Pub, created to celebrate Britain’s passion for pubs, was unveiled to the trade this week at the British Institute of Innkeeping’s (BII) Annual Lunch in London.
The It’s Better Down The Pub campaign is designed to encourage pub goers to share their experiences and highlight why they love pubs via a dedicated website and Facebook and Twitter.
The national initiative is the brainchild of six leading organisations who came together to make a film featuring real customers and real pubs, showcasing the integral part pubs play in every day British life.
The groups – Admiral Taverns, the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII), Everards, Fuller’s, Pub is the Hub (PITH) and the SIBA (Society of Independent Brewers) – want to promote all the positive things about pubs, with the aim of reigniting people’s passion for pubs. The backdrop to the campaign is one of negative headlines and a pub closure rate that peaked at more than 50 per week,.
They decided to launch a national campaign, which a raft of other leading companies and organisations have got behind, including Britvic, Christie + Co, CAMRA, Diageo, Heineken, Gamestec, the Independent Family Brewers of Britain, Matthew Clark, Poppleston Allen, Sky, Stonegate Pub Company and Venners.
In total, a six-figure sum has been raised to fund the campaign.
These groups are now calling upon everyone in the trade: licensees and bar professionals; pub and bar groups; suppliers and service providers, to unite behind the It’s Better Down The Pub campaign, when it launches to consumers at the beginning of June.
With eight out of ten people counting themselves as ‘pub goers’ and over 15 million visiting a pub once a week, the campaign is intended to capture the imagination of this audience, as well as attracting new customers to share their best pub experiences.
Please get involved
BII CEO Tim Hulme said: “The pub is an integral part of our culture. It’s important that we encourage our customers to celebrate the enriching impact this great British institution has on our lives, as well as the special people that run them.
“It’s Better Down The Pub provides a fantastic opportunity for pubs and licensees to drive a positive message about pubs, and if we can encourage our customers to make an extra visit here and there, then that would be fantastic too.
“So please get involved – visit the website, follow the campaign on Twitter and also on Facebook. Most importantly, please tell your customers and encourage them to get involved.”
Prizes for consumers
There will be opportunities for consumers to win a range of prizes, provided by the campaign sponsors, from major prizes such as tablet computers, digital cameras and camcorders to spot prizes of t-shirts, sweat shirts, meals out and bar tabs, to tickets to major sports events.
Commenting on the campaign, Pub is the Hub’s CEO John Longden said: “We’re thrilled that the film recognises the fantastic work done by licensees, especially those whose pubs are at the heart of communities. Pubs create jobs, boost sales for local suppliers and provide much needed services for communities.”
A briefing will be held at Fuller’s Parcel Yard pub in King’s Cross on 20 May, when the group will explain the thinking behind the campaign to a trade audience, including leading trade media, MPs and other industry stakeholders.
Visit the campaign website
Follow the campaign via twitter
Join the Facebook group