If you’re reading this and you’re linked to a pub or bar in any official capacity, we’ve got good news for you... St. Patrick’s Day is the holiday of pubs and bars, bringing people through your doors with an excuse to get a round or two in the name of this classic Irish holiday.
Even so, there are plenty of other watering holes your wannabe drinkers could be heading to, so how can we make sure they’re coming your way?
Let’s have your competitors feeling green with envy – here are 10 St. Patrick’s Day digital marketing strategies to make sure your establishment is the place to be on this beloved Irish holiday.
10 digital marketing ideas for St. Patrick’s Day
1. Offer limited-time offers on Irish-themed drinks
If there’s one thing pubgoers love, it’s a limited-time deal. Offer deals on Irish drinks such as Guinness or Baileys or mix things up with Irish-inspired tipples like Jamaican classic Guinness punch or a White Russian or Espresso Martini using Baileys.
Use social media and your email database to let people know about this exclusive offer that’s available for one day only!
Make sure to offer a mix of authentic Irish tipples and more outlandish, green-themed cocktails, capturing true Irish members of your community and those who just enjoy a good excuse to celebrate with a drink or two.
2. Exclusive St Patrick’s dishes
If you feel comfortable trying something new in the kitchen, launch a limited-edition Irish dish to celebrate St. Pat’s.
Talk to your chefs about creating an exclusive dish like Irish stew, soda bread or Guinness cake. Make it available for a limited time, either on the day or perhaps even the whole of March.
Once you’ve got it just how you like it, take pictures of your new menu item and talk about it on social channels. Or, if you’re feeling brave, you could even attempt to share the whole process on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube Live.
Who knows – it might be popular enough that it becomes a stable on your menu!
3. Go green!
If St. Patrick’s Day doesn’t fit with the vibe of your pub then modernise the message and go ‘green’ with an eco-friendly March.
Come up with some ideas of how your business can better support the planet – change all your lightbulbs to energy-saving bulbs, banish plastic straws and single-use items, reduce your carbon footprint by using local sources, donate surplus food and use a coaster instead of napkins when serving drinks.
Even better, if you decide to adopt the changes permanently – let your customers know and encourage them to do the same.
Consumers are becoming driven by purpose and sustainability more each year, so try to put your best – and greenest – foot forward.
4. Hide “lucky charms”
Hide treasures around your pub on St. Patrick’s Day and give your guests clues on how to find them on social media. It might be vouchers for a free dish or drink, a pack of Guinness or a bottle of Baileys.
Ask them to post pictures of their prizes on social media (using a hashtag of your choice) and one winner will get a true pot of gold… a meal for four with drinks! Be sure to re-post all the content and create a digital buzz while having fun.
This is a relatively cost-effective way to bring people to yours on St. Patrick’s Day, while also giving them an extra incentive to shout about it online.
5. Paint the town green!
Hold a green-themed party on St, Patrick’s Day and decorate your pub in Irish colours. Encourage your customers to wear green and pay homage to the Irish with Irish-themed music.
Leave some fun props (think hats, beards and glasses) around the tables and encourage guests to tag you in any pictures the post. Remember to talk about the event in your email and social media marketing in the weeks running up to the big day.
6. Hold a costume competition
Building on the idea above, you could even take the St. Paddy’s costumes even further with a costume competition! The most creative or stylish representation of Ireland could win a free drink or more, depending on how far you want to take it.
As proved by our Pints & Profits 2024 report, in which we gathered data from 750 pubs and bars to better understand changing consumer behaviour, customers are more likely to visit a pub or bar for a special event like this.
And, on the way, they’re sure to turn and few heads and tell a few more people where they’re going looking so... green.
7. Collaborate with an Irish influencer
If there’s one thing your audience want to see across your pub digital marketing plans, it’s authenticity! So, unless your business is already Irish-run or affiliated, you may raise some eyebrows if you’re suddenly shouting about St. Patrick’s Day.
One way to make this feel more natural is to collaborate with an influencer who is already affiliated with Ireland or Irish culture. Not only will it give your pub or bar a more natural entrance into St. Patrick’s Day marketing, but it will also open you up to another audience who already have an interest in such events!
We’d recommend looking for a “micro-influencer” or two, meaning that it’s someone who has less than 10,000 followers on social media. They tend to have extremely engaged audiences and are much more approachable for collaboration without insane requests or fees.
8. Use St. Patrick’s Day hashtags
Make sure you’re part of the conversation on social media leading up to St. Paddy’s. Here’s a list of hashtags you could try to include when talking about your plans….
- #shamrock
- #stpatricksday
- #clover
- #irish
- #kissmeimirish
- #stparicksparade
- #stpaddysday
- #paddysday
- #gogreen
- #fourleafclover
- #guinness
- #stpatricksdaydecor
- #lucky
Don’t go overboard, but aim for a sprinkling of relevant hashtags to make sure your content is appearing for people interested in local St. Patrick’s Day events.
9. Create SEO-friendly blog content
In a world where everyone is shouting about the next big event, one thing remains true: Content is king.
If you have a blog, write about St. Patrick’s Day in all its glory and you’ll capture people who are interested in the culture and people who are interested in the day for drinking with friends. For example, you may want to include:
- What is St. Patrick’s Day?
- St. Patrick’s Day Parade in [location]
- St. Patrick’s Day events in [location]
- Ways to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day
- Common dishes and drinks for St. Patrick’s Day
The key element here is to create some content for the kind of things people may want to know about the cultural holiday. Then, once they’re suitably informed and suddenly parched for a pint... they already know about your establishment and the booking link is right there.
While you can mention other local pubs holding St. Paddy’s events, it’s also completely fine to focus on your pub as the place to be!
10. Track and evaluate your marketing activity
When it comes to your pub’s digital marketing, understanding and improving your strategy is as important as creating it.
Examine the results of your marketing activity by tracking your digital activity. Which elements of your activity and which marketing channels worked best? What could you change to reach and convert even more people next year?
Track your traffic using this UTM builder and you can even see which specific posts on specific dates created the most engagement.
Bonus idea: St. Patrick’s Day puns!
One last time-saving gift from us is a list of Irish and St. Patrick’s Day phrases for you to have a little fun with in your digital marketing....
- Irish you were here
- Top of the mornin’ to you
- Let’s get shamrocked!
- Luckier than a four-leaf clover
- Lucky like a four-leaf clover
- Richer than a pot of gold
- Get your green on
- Irish you a Happy St. Patrick’s Day
- The paddy don’t start ‘til I walk in
- Time to sham-rock and roll
- You’re our lucky charm!
- Don’t worry, beer happy
- What a brew-tiful day!
- Get your charm on
The goal here is to have a little fun with one of the more laidback cultural holidays without offending anyone who’s actually Irish!
Want help with St. Patrick’s Day marketing for your pub?
If you love the idea of introducing some fun digital marketing for your pub around St. Patrick’s Day, but you’re lacking in time and know-how then get in touch and ask us for help!
We’ve worked with a wide range of pub brands in the UK to bolster their digital marketing, from All Bar One and O’Neill’s to Wadworth and Vintage Inns. We’d be more than happy to put a plan together for your business.
When it comes to St. Patrick’s Day marketing ideas, you could say that we have the luck of the Irish on our side!
Matt Bowell
Matt has been in marketing for 25 years, clocking up many years for institutions like the NHS, the BBC, Comic Relief, Goodyear Dunlop, and Lonely Planet in the UK and abroad. Matt leads the client service team as one of Brew’s directors.
