Hosting a Single's Awareness Day Event for your Video Gaming Location

Cold weather and icy, snowy conditions may lead to a drop in customers at your bar/restaurant. You may have found that you must get creative by crafting new promotions to get customers in the door. Maybe you’ve already planned a Valentine’s Day event that’s been relatively successful, but did you know that February 15 is Single’s Awareness Day? Although the acronym for the day is S.A.D., the holiday should be a celebration, rather than a day of feeling down.  The intent of the holiday is to help single people stop feeling left out of the festivities of Valentine’s Day.

The most important thing to ask yourself while planning an event at your video gaming location is who is your customer? You should know what your customers like and dislike and what type of event would appeal to them. If you don’t, feel free to ask them. Here are some ideas on what type of event to host:

Single’s Mixer

• For those customers that hate the fact that they’re single, help them change that by hosting a single’s mixer or a speed dating event.
• Have a seasoned bartender host a cocktail making class. This is a great way to break the ice and keep it fun!
• Make your location conducive to walking around and mingling. Maybe that means re-arranging tables or moving chairs out of the way.

Ladies Night / Boys Night Out

• Many people love the freedom that comes with being single! If that’s the case, planning a fun night where the focus is on them having a good time with friends vs. trying to find a new mate might interest them more.
• Encourage the ladies to come visit for a “Galentine’s Day” by offering discounted glasses of wine, charcuterie or special chocolate desserts like chocolate covered strawberries. For guy’s night, how about a pool/darts tournament?

Anti-Valentine’s Day

• Anti-Valentine’s Day events have been popping up more in the last few years for those people that are jaded or hate Valentine’s Day.
• Ditch the Valentine’s Day decorations and decorate your bar/restaurant in black or green (green is the official color of Single's Awareness Day).

Get the Word Out About Your Single’s Awareness Day Event

Take advantage of social media

Facebook has the option to create an event. Once an event is created on the platform, you should share it to your location’s Facebook page to get the word out. Once a customer clicks “I’m In” or “Interested,” his/her friends will see the event in their newsfeed. Another great feature is that Facebook will send a reminder notification to anyone that has RSVP’d for your event.

Use Facebook Advertising. (Don’t worry, even a small budget can help spread the word!) The easiest way to do this is by creating a post on your business’s Facebook page about the event, then “boosting” it. Facebook’s Help Center is a good resource on how to use this type of advertising: https://www.facebook.com/business/a/boost-a-post.

Contact local media outlets

If you live in a town with a local TV, radio station or community newspaper, look into getting on their event calendar or create an advertisement.

Hang up posters or a banner outside

Planning events for fun, non-traditional holidays is a great way for new customers to find your location, as well as give your current customers a reason to stop in.

Sources:

http://www.singlesawareness.com/single-on-valentines-day.htm

http://www.buzztime.com/business/blog/50-bar-restaurant-promotion-ideas/

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/seasonal-factors-affecting-restaurant-industry-31192.html