Useyourlocal raises a glass to GigPig music partnership
Useyourlocal, the UK’s leading platform for pubs and bars, provides a single source of information for
punters looking to find out everything they want to know about every one of the 42,904 locals
nationwide. Until now, any live music events taking place in those venues needed to be manually
added to the website by the operator themselves.
The new partnership with GigPig, which works with more than 6,000 artists and 650 venues
nationwide to host thousands of live gigs in grassroots venues weekly, will mean that any gigs booked
through GigPig will automatically appear on useyourlocal, without the licensee having to do a thing.
Live music is proven to boost footfall for hospitality venues. The Live Music Index, an industry-first
report published in autumn 2023, found that 79% of venues see increases to revenue and footfall
(79%) when gigs are staged. In particular, gigs can see spend per visit rise by 64%, dwell
time by 61% and footfall by 36%.
Useyourlocal’s audience of up to 1 million monthly visitors are all in the very moment of looking to go
to the pub. There are currently more than 140,000 useyourlocal members signed up to follow one or
more local pubs and receive regular updates from them about what’s happening, where and when. By
seamlessly adding these upcoming live gigs to every pub’s page, each venue significantly increases
their chances of those consumers seeing what’s on and visiting their pub.
Both useyourlocal and GigPig are on a mission to attract more people to visit pubs and bars
nationwide to support millions of hospitality jobs and ensure cities, towns and villages have a thriving
night time economy.
Michael Forster, CEO of GigPig, said: “I’m really pleased to partner with useyourlocal because it
paves the way for more customers to support their local venues and artists. Venues save time, safe in
the knowledge that live gigs booked via our platform will be seen by an engaged and interested
audience wanting to support their local. Boosting their footfall at a time when the cost-of-living
continues to bite is crucial and we want to do all we can to support the hospitality sector.
“Often artists live within a 10-20 mile radius from gigging venues, so customers are also supporting
homegrown talent by heading to live music gigs at their local. That support is hugely important for the
music industry and gives professional artists the chance to carve out a great career. This is an
exciting collaboration and I can’t wait to see how it develops.”
Stuart Mills, Founder of useyourlocal, said: “We know that live music is a massive attraction for
customers visiting our website, so this is a hugely positive step forward in making sure that we are
driving up footfall for these pubs and bars. Our mission has always been to get people to visit their
local, more often. We’re delighted that this partnership makes it as seamless as possible for GigPig’s
venues to promote their upcoming events to the widest audience possible, and it’s a brilliant bonus for
those artists registered on GigPig too.”
Dave Finn, Landlord at The Queen’s Head in Great Whittington, added: “It’s great to see our gig
listings going live through this partnership and we are already starting to see new people visit because
they’ve seen the events online. We are supportive of any initiative that seamlessly connects our
venue to potential customers who enjoy live music. This partnership has the potential to have a lasting
positive impact on the pub and bar sector with relatively low input from venues once a gig is
confirmed.”
Founded in 2022, GigPig is the UK’s fastest growing music marketplace and booking platform
providing venues with a streamlined way to search, book and manage entertainment in-house, while
offering artists a free platform to find, play and get paid for gigs. GigPig has been the catalyst for
staging more than 18,000 live music gigs in pubs, bars, restaurants to date.
