Walkers – A Menace or Meal Ticket for Publicans?

Walkers – A Menace or Meal Ticket for Publicans?

Publicans seem to give walkers a very mixed reception. Some welcome them with open arms with a “Walkers’ Special” on the menu, whilst others curse them for clogging up their car parks over lunchtime and then disappearing for a few hours simply to call in for one quick drink on their return.

So how do you turn a menace into a meal ticket?

Some thoughts:

- There are 8 million regular walkers in England along, that’s 8 million people working up a hunger and a thirst each month, every month. (Source – Sport England survey)

- Walking is Britain’s most popular outdoor activity. Generally, people on higher incomes participate more in recreational walking than people on lower incomes. (Source – The Ramblers)

- 891 million day trips for leisure in Great Britain in 1998 included a ‘walk, hill walk or ramble’. This is 15% of the total of all leisure day trips. The figures are old but the popularity of walking is even higher today. (Source – The Ramblers)

- Increasing numbers of young people are giving up the stuffy atmosphere of the gym (saving a fortune on their memberships) and getting out into the countryside for their exercise instead. (Source – The Ramblers)

- Ever increasing numbers of older people join walking groups too and we all hear constantly about the power of the “grey pound”.

Need I say more? This is a huge market and many like nothing more than to finish their walk at a traditional pub. Certainly that is my experience from the many walkers I know.

So my advice is seize the opportunity and get a pub walk written down that leads those hungry and thirsty walkers straight to your door, rather than someone else’s. Have copies available in the bar to take away, send it to your local paper and get it on the internet! When people enjoy a walk and are welcomed at the pub, they do it again and again and what’s more they tell their friends.

If you think your car park is being abused by walkers, rather than turn them away with a rude notice, think about what you can do to get them through the door instead, even it its just making sure you have a copy of the menu and the specials board outside (many pubs still don’t).

Finally, why not even offer a free meal to the walker that produces the best walk from your pub? And again tell your local paper. You could be surprised at how this takes off!

For more information on attracting walkers to your pub, visit www.myfavouritepubwalks.com/publicans.

The Pub Walker
MyFavouritePubWalks.com
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A Budget for Pub Walkers after all?

Enjoy a Pub Walk along our Waterways

As our waterways are synonymous with pubs and walking, its great to see that there was something positive in the budget for us "pub walkers" after all. The government plans to mutualise British Waterways in England and Wales, giving the waterways’ users and the communities that live alongside a greater say in how they are managed. It is also expected to reduce the long-term public liability by transferring responsibility for waterways maintenance to possibly a charitable trust.

Much less publicised than some of the other budget statements such as the hikes on alcohol duty, this at least is something a little creative, protecting a national asset while reducing the ongoing costs borne by the taxpayer. And the real benefit of course is that this can secure this national treasure for everyone to enjoy for generations to come. A true win win!

For more details, read Government to mutualise British Waterways on the Waterscape site.

Or if like me you just want to get out there and experience our waterways then click on waterside pub walks.

The Pub Walker
MyFavouritePubWalks.com
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Share a Pub Walk to Win Granola Bars

Share a Pub Walk to Win Granola Bars

If you have a favourite pub walk you would like to share then now would be a great time to do it. Our friends at Dorset Cereals have offered us some of their delicious granola bars as prizes to promote the launch of their new chocolate granola recipes.

PRIZE: A pack of each of their cereal bars, in a Jute bag, with a couple of Dorset Cereals mugs!

As these make perfect snacks to take on our walks, we have decided to give the prize to someone chosen at random from those who send us a pub walk between now and the end of April 2010.

To be in with a chance of winning this prize, you can either:
(a) click on submit a pub walk to enter one you have written yourself, or
(b) use our contact us page to send us a link to an existing on-line pub walk with your comments about why it is one of your favourites. (This has to be a different pub walk from those already featured on www.myfavouritepubwalks.com).

Sorry, the competition is only open to people in the UK).

The Pub Walker
MyFavouritePubWalks.com
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Publicans - How to make your customers thirsty for National Cask Ale Week

Publicans - How to make your customers thirsty for National Cask Ale Week

National Cask Ale Week is a great marketing opportunity for publicans and if you want to maximise your customer spend then why not ensure that they arrive extra thirsty?

How? Show them a pub walk that leads them straight to your door!

An interesting fact - there are 8 million regular walkers in England alone (according to a Sport England survey) and the ones I know usually look for a walk that offers a great pub en route. That's up to 8 million people working up an appetite and thirst each month, and you can get a share of their business if you show them you welcome walkers and that there is at least one interesting walk nearby.

If you are interested in this market then do take a look at yesterday's post:
5 Ways to Get a Pub Walk for Your Pub


The Pub Walker
MyFavouritePubWalks.com
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Publicans - 5 Ways to Get a Pub Walk for Your Pub

Publicans - 5 Ways to Get a Pub Walk for Your Pub

It's official. Walking is the most popular recreational activity with over 8 million of us walking at least once a month, according to a Sport England survey. That's 8 million people out there every month, looking for somewhere to walk and, if they are all like my walking friends, often somewhere to stop for refreshment. That's a huge opportunity for pubs that welcome walkers - 8 million people working up a thirst and an appetite. Every month.

So why not tap into that market by showing them an exciting walk featuring your own pub? Here are some ideas for how to get a pub walk and lead them to your door:

1. Run a competition, offering a prize to the customer producing the best walk from your pub. This is a perfect way to engage with your customers and get them talking about your pub. See Running a pub walk competition for more information.

2. Search on-line for walking leaflets - type in "(your town/village) walking leaflet" or "(your town/village) walks" and you'll probably be amazed at how many walking routes are available free on-line. Check them out to see if one passes your pub door. Try also your local library and Tourist Information which are both likely to have a selection too.

3. Contact your local Ramblers groups and walking clubs - they may already have a suitable walk which they would allow you to use as long as you give credit for its source.

4. Check pub walk books - if your pub is included, dont be afraid to advertise "as featured in My Area's Best Pub Walks book" in your pub to encourage customers to return another day to do the walk. Have a copy of the book available but do not give out photocopies of the pages as this would infringe copyright.

5. Write your own pub walk is the other obvious way if you enjoy walking yourself.

Any of these can help you get new customers and increase their spend. Whichever route you follow, its worth reading the marketing steps under Running a pub walk competition as some of these can be applied to the other methods too.

Finally, if you create or find a pub walk, do please share it with us at www.myfavouritepubwalks.com so we can help you spread the word.

The Pub Walker
MyFavouritePubWalks.com
Follow us at twitter.com/PubWalker for live updates
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