Pubs and bars compete on atmosphere and occasion. The banner outside is the first signal that there is a reason to walk in tonight. Quiz night, big match, live band, Sunday roast, new menu, the right banner stops the regular on the way home from the station.
We print for pubs and bars across south west London, from Putney boozers to Wandsworth craft bars. This is what fills the room.
Run two banners: a 5ft x 3ft permanent menu/Sunday roast banner, and a 3ft x 2ft swap-it weekly banner for the event of the week. 510gsm PVC, hemmed and eyeleted, £42 to £50 each from our Putney studio, same day.
The permanent vs swappable banner setup
Most successful pubs we work with run two banners. The first is permanent and pushes the always-on offer: Sunday roast, weekday lunch, two for one cocktails Monday to Thursday. It stays up for six months.
The second is a smaller swap-it banner that changes every week or fortnight. Quiz night, match screening, open mic, pub takeover, beer launch. Cycle four or five of these and the bar always looks busy with what's on.
Beer gardens and front facia banners share one rule: keep colour palette simple. Three colours including the brand colour, no gradients, no shadows. Print rendering on textured PVC handles flat colours far better than smooth gradients, which can band visibly when scaled up.
Quiz, match, music: copy that fills seats
Quiz banners need three things: the word QUIZ in giant text, the night and start time, and a prize. PUB QUIZ / TUESDAY 8PM / £50 BAR TAB beats anything fancier. The prize is the hook.
Match banners are simpler. The fixture, the start time, a teams emoji or rosette graphic, and the words BIG SCREEN or 4K. Skip the live commentary detail. Everyone assumes it now.
Live music banner template
Top: LIVE MUSIC or LIVE BAND. Middle: the act name and night. Bottom: NO COVER or £5 ON THE DOOR. If the act has a recognisable name (a local covers band, a tribute act), make the name biggest. If not, sell the night not the name.
Sunday roast banner template
SUNDAY ROAST / £16 / 12 to 8. The price up front beats a flowery description. London diners are looking for the price tier first, the kitchen quality second.
Material and weather considerations
510gsm PVC handles wet pavements and beer garden rain without warping. Hem the edges, brass eyelets every 50cm. If the banner is on a beer garden fence in winter, mesh banners reduce wind load.
Avoid laminated paper banners. They cost a third of PVC but lose colour and curl in a fortnight, which makes the pub look unloved.
The prize is the hook. £50 BAR TAB beats CASH PRIZES and TROPHY combined.
Placement around the pub
Above the door catches station-bound commuters at 6pm. On the beer garden fence catches passers-by who can see the garden is open. On the chalkboard A-frame catches kerb traffic on lunchtime.
If you have a corner pub, run two facia banners at 90 degrees. If you have a beer garden that faces a road, put the menu and Sunday roast there. The garden does the marketing while the pub does the service.
Pub banner calendar and specs
| Banner | Size | Frequency | Hero detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday roast | 5ft x 3ft | Permanent, refresh annually | Price |
| Quiz night | 3ft x 2ft | Permanent weekly event | Prize and time |
| Match screening | 3ft x 2ft | Per fixture | Fixture and time |
| Live music | 3ft x 2ft | Per gig | Act and night |
| Seasonal menu | 5ft x 3ft | Quarterly | Headline dish + price |
Seasonal pub banner calendar
Six Nations February to March, FA Cup spring, summer beer garden May to September, Oktoberfest October, Halloween, World Cup or Euros every two years, Christmas party menu November to December, January detox/Dry January, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day Sunday roasts.
A pub running banners across all these gets 12 banner refreshes a year. Budget around £500 to £700 for a full annual programme. Smaller bars rotating four or five core banners can do it for half that.
Sell the night, not the name, unless the act is already a local draw.
Beer garden and outdoor seating banners
A pub with outdoor seating has more banner real estate than most owners use. The beer garden fence facing the street is prime advertising space. A 5ft x 3ft Sunday roast banner on the garden fence sells the kitchen to passers-by who can already see the garden is open.
If the garden is on a corner or alley, run banners on two sides. Garden banners take more weather than facia banners (lower fences mean more rain splash), so go heavier 540gsm or 610gsm PVC and check for fading at the end of each summer.
Set a calendar at the start of each quarter and stick to it. Reactive banner orders (we need something for tonight) cost more in design time and reprints than a planned quarterly batch. Plan the quiz, the match nights, the Sunday roast and seasonal pushes in one batch order and the unit cost drops noticeably.
Ready to Get Your Banner Printed?
We print for pubs and bars across south west London. Send us your event calendar for the quarter and we will quote a batch run that cuts unit cost.
Call 020 3669 9854 or WhatsApp +44 7376 464869 with your weekly events, or pop into Shop 395 Tildesley Road, Putney Heath, with the chalkboard you want translated into proper banners.
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From our Putney studio we deliver same day to areas including:
