Pub social media ideas for Facebook and Instagram

Regular post types that suit a pub

Social media for pubs works best as a habit, not a burst of activity whenever trade is quiet. A handful of regular post types gives you a rhythm your followers get used to, and it means you never start the week staring at a blank screen.

• The week ahead. On Monday, post what's happening: quiz night, live music, the match, food specials and any change to opening hours. It's an easy post for people to forward to friends when they're making plans.
• What's on the bar. A new guest ale, a seasonal cider, a cask that's just gone on, a new alcohol-free option. Hold the glass up to the window light and take a close photo.
• What's on the menu. The specials board, the pie of the week, the roast. Show the plate rather than a list of prices.
• Practical news. Bank holiday hours, a kitchen closure, roadworks outside, a new way to book. Useful beats clever here.
• Questions and polls. Ask which guest ale should come back, what the next quiz theme should be, or which pie to add to the menu. On Instagram, the poll sticker in Stories lets people vote and see the results as they come in, and the Facebook app has a poll sticker for Stories too.
• Song requests. Before a DJ night or a busy Friday, add Instagram's questions sticker to a story. Choose Music and people can send you a song, or Text to let them type an answer.
• Behind the bar. The cellar, a delivery arriving, the chef prepping, the garden being tidied for summer. People like seeing the work that goes into a good pint.

Showing the people and the place

People choose a pub as much for who's there and how it feels as for what's on the bar. Good pub marketing lets them see both before they walk through the door.

Your team

• Introduce a member of staff: their name, how long they've been with you, their favourite thing on the menu.
• Mark a milestone, like a year behind the bar or a new skill learned.
• Show the chef's hands at work on a new dish.

Your regulars and their dogs

• A regular of the month, with a line or two about them.
• A dog of the week, if you're dog friendly.
• The local teams and groups who meet at yours: darts, pool, a running club, a book group.

The room and the building

• The fire lit for the first time in autumn, or the beer garden set out in spring.
• Quiet moments: the bar at opening time, sunlight through the window, fresh flowers on the tables.
• The story of the building: its age, old photos, how the pub got its name.
• The view from the door: the green, the river, the walk that finishes at yours.

Food, drink and event posts

These are the posts that bring people in on a given day, so give each one a clear "when".

Food

Show real plates from your kitchen, photographed in daylight near a window where you can. A close shot of one dish often says more than a table covered in plates. Post the Sunday roast by Thursday for people who book ahead, then remind everyone on Saturday evening or Sunday morning, while people are still making plans. Launch a new menu with a run of posts, one dish at a time. If the words are the hard part, our guide to food and drink captions for Instagram has plenty of starting points.

Drink

Talk about taste, where a drink comes from and who made it: the local brewery, the cider farm, the new low-alcohol lager. A meet-the-brewer evening or a guest beer from down the road makes a good story too.

Keep drinks posts responsible. Never suggest drinking a lot or drinking fast, never make being drunk look fun, and never aim drinks content at under-18s. If you want to advertise a drinks offer, check it first: the mandatory licensing conditions include a ban on irresponsible promotions, as the government's alcohol licensing guidance for England and Wales explains. This isn't legal advice, so ask your council's licensing team if you're unsure.

Events

Quiz nights, live music, open mic, the big match and themed nights all make natural posts, and each one deserves more than a single announcement. Post when it's confirmed, remind people a few days before, post again on the day, then share photos afterwards. For a full list of ideas and a simple posting plan, see pub event ideas, and how to promote them.

Giveaways

A small prize draw can bring in new followers, but read the rules before you run one. Facebook's policies for Pages, groups and events say a promotion must not require or reward sharing, reposting or tagging others, so "tag a mate to win" is out on Facebook. Instagram's promotion guidelines say you must not encourage people to tag content inaccurately. Both platforms also say entrants must release the platform from liability and acknowledge that it isn't involved. UK advertising rules apply on social media too: the ASA's advice on prize draws in social media explains what to include in the post, and recommends taking legal advice first so a draw doesn't become an illegal lottery.

Facebook versus Instagram for pubs

For most pubs the answer is both, with each one doing the job it's good at. The same idea can work on both, but it usually needs different words and a different crop of the photo.

Where Facebook helps

• Events. A Facebook event gives people one place for the details, and a way to say they are Interested or Going.
• Local groups. Sharing an event to a local community group can put it in front of nearby people who don't follow you yet. Read each group's rules on business posts first.
• Practical updates. Opening hours, closures and notices are easy to post and easy to find again. You can pin posts and upcoming events to the Featured section at the top of your Page.

Where Instagram helps

• Photos and short videos of food, drink and the room, which is where a pub's atmosphere shows best.
• Stories for the day to day: tonight's special, the band's soundcheck, the garden in the sun. Stories disappear after 24 hours unless you add them to a highlight on your profile.
• Stickers that get people involved, such as polls, questions and a countdown to your next event. Instagram says not every sticker is available to everyone, so update the app if one is missing.
• Collab posts with a brewery, a band or a local supplier. When the other account accepts your invitation, the post appears on both profiles and goes to both sets of followers.

Keeping it going week after week

The hardest part of social media marketing for pubs isn't finding ideas. It's finding the time, every single week. A few habits make it manageable.

• Plan the week in one sitting. On Monday before opening, note what's on and what's new, then draft the week's posts in one go. A simple social media content calendar helps you see gaps.
• Take photos when it's quiet. Ten minutes before opening, with good light and nobody in a rush, can give you a week of pictures. Keep them in one album so you can find them later.
• Reuse your regulars. The quiz, the roast and the open mic come round every week. Treat them as repeating posts and refresh the photo and a line or two each time.
• Plan around the calendar. Mark bank holidays, big matches, Halloween and Christmas well ahead. Our guide to a year of social media dates for venues lists the dates worth planning for.
• Share the load. Ask staff to snap anything worth posting and send it to whoever runs the accounts.
• Answer people. A quick, friendly reply to a question about booking, dogs or parking is part of the job, and it can be what turns a follower into a visitor.

Social media is only one part of digital marketing for pubs, but it's the part you can keep up every week from your phone.