Why Bars Should Capitalise on Email & SMS Marketing

Most Australian venues are sitting on an untapped marketing channel: their own customer list. Email and SMS marketing delivers some of the highest ROI of any channel available to hospitality businesses — yet the majority of bars and venues either don’t use it at all or treat it as an afterthought. The Haylo helps venues build and activate their customer database through strategic email and SMS campaigns that drive real bookings.

Why Email and SMS Outperform Social Media for Venues

Social media reach is algorithmic — your post may only reach 3–5% of your followers organically. Email and SMS land directly in the customer’s inbox or messages, with open rates that far exceed social engagement. For venues with an existing database, these channels are consistently the highest-returning marketing investments available.

Building Your Venue’s Customer Database

The foundation of any email and SMS strategy is the database. The Haylo helps venues capture customer contact details through multiple touchpoints — photo booth sessions via The Haylographic, function enquiry forms, event registrations, and in-venue WiFi capture. Every interaction becomes a database entry that can be marketed to indefinitely.

What Effective Venue Email Campaigns Look Like

Event Promotion Sequences

Before every major event — Christmas, New Year’s Eve, Melbourne Cup, Mother’s Day — The Haylo runs a multi-step email sequence. The first email announces the event. The second highlights limited availability. The third is a final reminder. This sequence consistently outperforms single-send campaigns.

Function Package Campaigns

Venues that send function package emails to their database see a direct lift in enquiries — particularly for corporate groups and milestone events. The Haylo times these sends to align with the booking windows for each event type.

Re-Engagement Campaigns

Customers who haven’t visited in 60–90 days are targeted with re-engagement offers — exclusive deals, new menu announcements, or upcoming event previews — to bring them back before they become permanently lapsed.

SMS Marketing for Immediate Response

For time-sensitive offers — last-minute table availability, same-week event promotions, or flash offers — SMS delivers near-instant results. Open rates for SMS consistently sit above 90%, making it the fastest way to fill seats at short notice.

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