Media, Marketing and Social Media Ideas for National Pizza Month

Other foods get a day. Pizza gets an entire month! Rightfully so, it is America’s favorite food. October is National Pizza Month. It’s a tradition Pizza Today’s founder started in 1984 and has been going strong ever since. The month was even officially dedicated National Pizza Month by U.S. Congress in 1987.

Our goal for National Pizza Month (NPM) is to help you leverage the holiday to increase your business. We created a Pizzeria Operator Toolkit that provides you with the tools, resources and ideas to promote National Pizza Month in your shop. You’ll find the official NPM logo, social graphics, customizable graphics, a customizable press release, a customizable social media calendar, ways to celebrate, pizza fun facts for games, and an opportunity for you to share your National Pizza Month story. Go to the toolkit at PizzaToday.com/NationalPizzaMonth.

Media Loves National Pizza Month

One area you can find highly successful is gaining media attention during National Pizza Month. It’s an is opportunity to showcase your pizza to your community. Media loves National Pizza Month so be sure to share what you are doing with all your local media outlets.

I combed through past National Pizza Month Coverage and found some common themes. Here are a 5 ways that you may be able to capitalize on:

1. Deals, Deals, Deals! — Offering specials and discounts for National Pizza Month can grab the attention of local media. Often, we see media outlets run stories at the beginning of October sharing with the audience the best places to find National Pizza Month deals. If you have a special or discount going this month, be sure to send the details to the correct person at the media outlet.
2. Local Celebration Roundups — News media receive several press releases and alerts on the same subject. When it comes to NPM, they often create a feature highlighting how each pizzeria is celebrating. You’ll notice community outreach initiatives, pizza giveaways, interviews and more.
3. Pizzeria Listicles — Listicles are very popular in print and online media resources. We see a lot of lists on where to find the best pizza in the area. The focus here is eye-catching photos of pizza and details on the pizzeria. Send them why your pizza should rank high. Include jaw-dropping photos of your pizza and any accolades you’ve received locally, regionally and nationally.
4. New Menu/Product Release — October is a great month to roll out a new menu or new pizza. Share them with your local media, maybe even a tasting event.
5. On-Air Appearances — Media outlets have found National Pizza Month a great opportunity to bring pizzeria owners and pizza chefs live in studio to talk pizza, do a food demo or highlight what the business is doing for National Pizza Month. Reach out and pitch yourself and your business to get an on-air spot.

Yes, you can submit stories through the media outlets general story submission areas through their website or e-mail. Another approach is to reach out to the food and restaurant writers. You’ll notice the writer’s details at the bottom of most stories with e-mail or their social handles. You can try pitching them directly.

You can also host a Press Night. Invite local food writers, bloggers, etc. in for a free dinner during which you hit key talking points that differentiates your pizzeria … i.e. expand on whatever it is that makes you special and unique in your city, whether that be locally sourced ingredients, gluten-free, organic, beer in your dough, etc.

13 ways to celebrate National Pizza Month

Try one or a few of these low-cost or no cost NPM marketing ideas

1. Eating challenge. Get entrants to compete for t-shirts or other swag. Do a wall of fame.
2. Random Pizza Giveaway. Collect customer info and randomly give away a year (or month or week) of free pizza to a customer who orders during National Pizza Month.
3. Pizza History Night. Sell a dinner for $X per person. During the event, tell your patrons the history of pizza and include history games.
4. Run a customer recipe promotion. Invite your patrons to create your next big hit! Have customers submit recipes for topping combinations, etc. Winner gets the pizza named after them on your menu or free pizza for a year or a $200 gift card, etc.
5. Offer a National Pizza Month one-of-kind offer to your loyalty club members. Think swag, secret menu item, etc.
6. Host a Guest Chef Takeover Night, where a local or regional chef creates a menu with pre-sale dinner event tickets at $X per person.
7. Create games for each day of October with a drawing where winner receives free item or offer. (Think small games, like guess the number of pepperonis on a pizza; guess the ingredient; answer questions related to your pizzeria; in-store scavenger hunt; photo with a specific item social contest, etc.)
8. Crown an Ultimate Pizza Fan. Invite customers to submit on social media why they should be the winner.
9. Ask customers to send you video submissions. Have them state why they LOVE your pizza. Push these videos out to social media platforms — free marketing!
10. Challenge a pizzeria owner in another city to a duel. Whoever sells the most cheese pies in October gets to pick a charity and the “loser” donates $500 to said charity.
11. Let an employee take over your social media account each week of the Month of October to share your pizzeria’s story.
12. Take key team members on a pizza tour of your nearest large metropolitan market and share the experience with your pizzeria’s social followers.
13. Create a video to share with your pizzeria’s social followers on who you are and why you founded the pizzeria. Go further and create another video going behind-the-scenes to show how you make the pizza.

Find more marketing ideas and resources for National Pizza Month in our Pizzeria Operator Toolkit at PizzaToday.com/NationalPizzaMonth.

Get Social with National Pizza Month

YAY! 31 Days of Pizza! We’ve made it easy for you to create social content for EVERY DAY IN OCTOBER in the Toolkit. We’ve created a customizable Sample Social Media Calendar. Take an idea or two or use it as inspiration to create your own calendar.

I want to draw your attention to some designated days within National Pizza Month that your will want tie in. Here are a few to make sure you acknowledge:

National Disability Employment Awareness Month. This is a great opportunity to showcase that disability employment is a pillar of your restaurant. Find a unique way to highlight that.

International Pizza and a Beer Day, Wednesday, October 9. Post your best pizza and beer photo or video short. Make them drool and offer a pint and pizza special. “Grab a beer and a slice, throw in a breadstick.”

National Sausage Pizza Day, Friday, October 11. Showcase your best sausage pizza. Or if you make sausage in house, show the process. Your’ customers with appreciate your scratch made approach.

National Mushroom Day, Tuesday, October 15. Mushroom is a top-five pizza topping. Highlight your best mushroom pizza. Get down to the mushrooms types you use and how you prepare them.

World Pizza Maker Day, Friday, October 25. Show your pizza makers doing what they do best. Share their passion and techniques. Thank them for being the best.

National Make a Difference Day, Monday, October 28. Showcase a giving or volunteer program your
pizzeria and crew are passionate about.

Halloween, Thursday, October 31. It’s one of the biggest days in the pizza business. Post a fun Halloween photos and posts.

Our social media calendar has content ideas for every day in October. Check out the customizable calendar in our National Pizza Month Toolkit. 

Let’s have the biggest, best pizza month ever!