Marie-Louise Collard, Picture researcher, London
"My local pub, in south-east London, recently ran a Shakespeare night over several evenings, performed by local actors. It was such a sell out that they had to put on extra nights. It was the first time they had ever done such a thing.
"The takings for food and drink soared, judging from the queue at the bar. You could extend such events to include other performing and visual arts; even fashion, perhaps using local retailers."
Jonathan Collins, Publisher, London
"My local runs a night called "Lucky Sevens" every Thursday. The idea is that anyone can bring along a selection of seven-inch vinyl singles - and they then chalk their name on a blackboard and take it in turns to play their records. House rules are there is no mixing and only one deck may be used. Consequently we get a great night's music and the place is rammed."
Adele Turner, Web manager, London
"I recently went to the Leather Exchange near London Bridge for a comedy night. The comedians were only just starting out, so tickets were just £3 - handy for the credit crunch pocket, and what better time for a laugh?
"The pub uses a third party to supply/organise the comedians and also runs poetry and other nights to make use of their function room, which was rammed full for the comedy night (while the downstairs bar itself was pretty empty)."
Mary Johnson, Receptionist, Cleveland, Ohio, US
"Theme nights always worked when I was in the bar business. Ladies night is the obvious one, because when I was working in the scene if the women show up the men are sure to follow! But I think in this age of bar/pub hoppers women might show up just to hang out with other women and not feel threatened.
"Same with a men's night, men can be men, drink whiskey and swear!"
Ted Hopton, Website manager, West Chester, Philadelphia, US
"Live music is the first thing. My local place has live performers on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Another draw some places use is to have a trivia quiz night. Speed-dating is also a good idea.
"I will say that the smoking ban's effect on business will likely wear off over time. We've seen that here in the US, as many people who had little interest in being cooped up in a smoky place enjoy coming out and enjoying the pub experience."
Tell us how YOU are tackling the crunch. Email news@thepublican.com