13 Fantastic Pizza Marketing Ideas

Pizza is one of the most consumed foods in the world today. In some research studies, it is even listed as one of the Top 5 most craved foods! Frozen pizzas take up entire sections of a grocery store and pre-made ingredients even help people make their own pizzas at home. Some pizza chains even create a pizza and let people cook them at home. It’s difficult to gain a good foothold in a community when there is so much competition for good pizza.

To market yourself effectively, you’ve got to discover what makes your pizza stand out from the rest of the pack. Do you offer a different crust, like from a sourdough starter? Do you infuse the crust with herbs? Create a special sauce? Have a unique signature pizza? Research your local competition to find out what makes you different and you’ll have a better idea of what strengths you can begin to market.

Creative Pizza Marketing Ideas for Your Business

1. Cater Your Pizza
Every business in your community is a natural place for you to provide pizza if you can get permission to cater your pizzas on-site. Take to local owners to see if you can sell pizza by the slice at lunch. The business owner wins because their employees will be more productive. The employees win because they can get a good lunch and save money. You win because you make money.

2. Let the World Know
If you don’t have a way to set your pizza apart from your competition, then create a way by entering competitions that will judge the quality of your pizza, your restaurant, or anything else that you offer. Awards, certifications, and recognitions that you receive can be proudly promoted and displayed. Local competitions will also get you bonus exposure for your products as well.

3. Host Your Own Competition
Everyone loves to compete and that can benefit you if you host a competition at your pizzeria. You could have a competitive eating contest to see who could eat the most pizza in a specific time period. You could invite people to bake their own pizzas for tasting and judging. Award prizes to the best, hand out plenty of free samples, and you’ll create a level of fun that will keep you at the top of everyone’s mind.

4. Event Sponsorships Are Cost Effective
Getting involved with your local community will always provide you with exposure for a relatively low cost. From the Boy Scouts to Little League, there are plenty of opportunities to put your logo on something that people need for their event. As an added bonus, you could offer to cater the event as well.

5. Engage People Where They Are
Most people today engage more through social media than they do personal interaction. When you build relationships with people, they’ll be more likely to frequent your pizzeria when they have a craving for a slice or two. Start a Facebook page, get yourself onto Twitter, share pizza recipes that aren’t your secret family recipe, and have a good conversation online.

6. Be Convenient
Sometimes to set yourself apart, you’ve got to do something different than your competitors are doing. This often means being a more convenient option for customers to grab some pizza when they have a craving. It could mean starting a delivery service with a wider coverage area, staying open later, or offering an online ordering service.

7. Coupons Can Boost Sales Dramatically
Coupons that provide a real value can boost sales when used correctly. To create a good coupon, you’ll need to get out into your community to see what it is that they want. It could be discounts, free pizzas, or even bonus toppings. If you just want to test the market directly, print coupons of different types and then gauge which gets the best response.

8. Partner With a Non-Profit
Local charities can always use a helping financial hand and that’s prime real estate for a marketing push. Partner with a local non-profit to create a night where a portion of all the sales made will be directly donated. The charity will promote the cause, you can hand out fliers or special coupons to promote the event, and boost your sales. Some pizzerias choose one local non-profit for every week.

9. Be Magnetic
When people have a craving for pizza, they tend to go with their favorite place or the one that is most convenient for them to reach. If you hand out magnets with your contact information, you’ll be more likely to have your target demographic keep the magnet on their fridge and call your number when they need an emergency dinner.

10. Let On Hold Marketing Work Wonders
Anyone who has ordered a pizza at some point as been placed on hold and then forgotten about for awhile because there are tons of orders coming in. Make being placed on hold worth a customer’s time by offering discount codes that can only be accessed through your on hold recording. Switch up the codes once per week or so to prevent repetitive use.

11. Be a VIP
Everyone loves to feel important which is what a VIP program provides your local community. You can provide VIPs with special discounts, brand merchandise, or small free items with every visit that the average customer won’t provide. This can be incorporated into a loyalty program or other special offers that will encourage people to sign up.

12. Be Surprising
A new pizza that tastes great is always a great surprise, but so is doing something unexpected that helps others. Every once and awhile, offer a free pizza to someone just because. Donate pizzas to your local food bank. Hand out free slices to those who are struggling in your area or homeless. It doesn’t cost a lot and in return, you’ll receive a lot of positive feedback.

13. Be Kid Friendly
If your environment is kid-friendly, then families will stop for a good time. Have games, an arcade, cartoons, or toys with which to play and the kids will put pressure on the parents to come get your pizza.