Your venue's
30 days.

Most venue marketing plans start with social media because it's the visible bit. I'd start with the facts, because a post that sends people to wrong hours or last year's prices does more harm than no post at all. Diners check a few things fast: are you open, what does it cost, what's on the menu, what do others say. Get those right and every later step works harder.

The plan fits around service. Most tasks take under half an hour and none needs an agency. The tick list remembers where you're up to in this browser, and flags national public holidays so you can set Google's special hours ahead of time.

Set your start date, then work down the list. Each task says why it's there. State holidays, such as NSW's King's Birthday in June or Labour Day in October, aren't in the national list, so check your own state's dates too.

List every place your hours and menu appear: Google, the website, Facebook, Instagram, the booking system, the delivery apps. Then make them match. Google says special hours are for holidays and events, show only for the dates you set, and it recommends confirming holiday hours even when they're the same as usual.

While you're there, check prices. Since 1 October 2026 card surcharges on eftpos, Mastercard and Visa have been removed, so a '1.5% card fee' line left on the website or an app menu is out of date. Weekend and public holiday surcharges are still allowed, shown with the percentage and days as prominently as your most prominent price. The menu rules page has the detail.

Photograph your five best sellers as they go out, and the room on a normal busy night. Add them to Google and Instagram. A café in Kiama with a current photo of its Saturday brunch crowd answers 'is it any good?' faster than any caption.

Then reviews. Reply to every one from the last three months in your own words, including the bad ones. Choose one way to ask every table, such as a card with the bill, and brief staff. Google's policy bans offering anything for reviews, asking only happy customers, and staff review quotas.

Write one plain line on what you're good for, like 'dog-friendly courtyard, kids' menu, open till late Fridays', and use it on Google, the website and your Instagram bio. It's what people, and AI tools, match to questions like 'family lunch somewhere we can bring the dog'.

Pull covers or sales by service for the last four weeks from your point of sale. Pick the one quiet service worth filling, where the kitchen and floor are already paid for. Give people a reason to come that night: a set menu, a pasta night, live music, kids eat free.

If drinks are part of it, check it before it goes out. In NSW, the Liquor & Gaming NSW guidelines rule out promotions that encourage rapid or excessive drinking; Queensland treats drink cards for big volumes in a short time and 'beat the clock' deals as unacceptable. Then post it on Google, Instagram and Facebook in the week before, with the day, the time and a booking link. The social ads page covers paid promotion and competitions.

Add a tick box to bookings and direct orders: 'Send me specials, about once a month.' Under the Spam Act you need consent, clear details of who's sending, and a working unsubscribe. A list of regulars who said yes is the cheapest channel a venue owns.

For one week, ask every new face 'How did you hear about us?' and write it down. If you run an ad, run it only for the quiet service, with ad scheduling limiting it to the days that need help, and a spending cap. On day 30, compare that service's covers with the four weeks you pulled in week three. The budget page shows what each new regular is worth.