Welcome to the age of reasons
In his now-famous essay of 1946, The Moon Under Water, George Orwell listed 10 reasons for visiting his favourite pub.
At the end of the essay, Orwell admitted his favourite pub didn't exist and it was impossible to find a combination of all 10 features in any pub he knew of. It was a depressing conclusion, not least because Orwell's 10 reasons for visiting were so modest.
For those who've never read Orwell's 10 reasons, here's a summary: 1. A good fire burning. 2. Quiet enough to talk. 3. Pub games only in the public bar. 4. Barmaid knows most customers by name. 5. Besides cigarettes and pipes, it sells stamps and aspirin. 6. It serves bar snacks in the evening, but not dinner. 7. On the other hand, it serves a good solid lunch — cut off the joint, two veg and boiled jam roll.
8. Draught stout on tap. 9. Beer served in glass or pewter tankards 10. There is a
beer garden.
Parts of Orwell's list are timeless, other parts are looking antiquated. But amid the ongoing gloom about the number of pub closures I thought I'd draw up an Orwell-style list of 10 great reasons to go to my favourite pub.
Here they are. 1. Choice of three well-kept cask ales on draught, with the range regularly changed for variety. 2. High-quality coffee served with a biscuit for a full pound cheaper than the local high-street coffee emporium. 3. Home-cooked food prepared on the premises lunchtimes and evenings, together with tasty and unusual bar nibbles. 4. Free complimentary copies
of daily newspapers available for customers to read. 5. Sky Sport available to catch the Saturday morning session of the Test match. 6. Friendly and smiley bar staff
who go the extra mile to ensure good service. 7. A warm and welcoming place to enjoy a Sunday roast for a very reasonable price. 8. A beer garden that has wonderful views of the West Sussex countryside.
9. No music during the day-time to allow customers to have a conversation.
10. Terrific home-made scones and jam served from mid-afternoon onwards after
a stout walk on the nearby beach.
Now, I, like George Orwell, have a confession. I can't claim to have found all
10 items in a single pub (basic business sense means that a pub with a solid food trade based on good quality, home-prepared dishes isn't going to provide Sky Sports coverage).
But all 10 items derive from visits to actual pubs that I have made in the past month or so — and many of them ticked nearly all 10 boxes in my wish-list.
Maybe readers should draw up their own list of 10 reasons why customers should visit their pub. Finding just a few compelling reasons why customers should visit your pub is a start on the road to business out-performance.
