Pub quizzes

Quiz evenings are relatively cheap and simple to organise, but some preparation is essential to make the night a success. Here's some advice for would-be Anne Robinsons.

The popularity of the pub quiz is understandable. It is a great way of bringing together groups of different customers who might not otherwise meet - the Friday night lager lads vs the Sunday lunchtime gin and tonic crowd. It will hopefully build additional trade from your regulars and attract a few new customers.

The primary aim, however, is usually to fill the pub on a normally quiet evening, which is why there are many more quiz nights held on Tuesdays than Saturdays. It is relatively cheap and easy to organise, but like any pub activity you need to do some preparation to make sure it's successful.

Promotion​

Initially, you can ask your regulars if they would be interested in forming teams to take part. Think about the profile of your pub at different times. The office workers who use the pub on weekday lunchtimes may be willing to come in one night a week after work to take part, as may members of the football team you normally only see on a Saturday evening. Ask them which night would suit them best.

Check which evening other pubs in the area hold quizzes. You don't want to compete directly, but your competitors may enter a team on your quiz night if you return the favour on theirs. There may even be a local pub quiz league you could join, and host the quiz on a rotating basis.

Once you've set the date for the first quiz, posters in the pub and perhaps an advert in the local paper will help to bring in the teams. Initially, a one-off or monthly quiz will allow you to assess the interest without committing to a weekly event straight away.

Tim Hawkes, director of TDH, which provides quizzes and other pub entertainment, said: "Quizzes are a cost-effective way of building traffic and increasing customer loyalty throughout the year with minimal advertising required.

"It is vitally important that the licensee chooses the correct quiz format to suit their customers. Once this has been decided, if the quiz is run regularly, on an otherwise quiet night, it isn't long before an increase in trade is noticeable."

Setting the questions​

With a few reference books, it is relatively straightforward to set the questions yourself. Publicans who have done so estimate that its takes about three to four hours to put together eight or 10 rounds of 10 questions.

Many quizzes also provide a picture round, a photocopied page of pictures of celebrities or people in the news for teams to identify and hand in at the half way point or end of the quiz.

If you are setting the questions yourself, bear in mind the age range and different interests of the teams taking part. A music round, for example, should span popular songs from at least the 1960s to the present.

A typical quiz might include the following rounds:

• Current affairs
• Sport
• History
• Geography
• Science
• Entertainment
• Music
• General knowledge
• Picture round

The advantage of setting the questions yourself is that it is relatively cheap, if time-consuming.

There are also companies which provide quizzes on a commercial basis. This saves your time, and ensures you a regular supply of fresh questions, which may be an advantage if your customers ever work out which reference books you are using. Find out if the question supplier is providing quizzes for any other pubs in your area - if teams have heard the same questions in another pub the night before, you're likely to be handing out a lot of prizes.

Charging​

Its normal to charge teams an entry fee for taking part. For this, they will expect a reasonable prize, which may simply be cash. You might also be able to persuade a supplier to support the quiz by donating a prize such as a bottle of spirits, or branded merchandise. Many pubs also provide a free buffet for teams taking part.

Quiz Leagues​

As stated, there are often local pub quiz leagues you can take part in. There have been a few attempts to capitalise on the popularity of pub quizzes by organising national leagues and high-profile games with major prizes, without much success.

Andrew Taylor, owner of Jubilee Quizzes, a company which provides weekly quizzes which leave the choice of prize to the individual publican, believes that many customers prefer the friendly, low-key approach.

"Pub entertainment isn't always about big prizes. We can guarantee a top quality product with unwavering reliability - a traditional, thoroughly entertaining pub quiz for all walks of life at an easily affordable outlay," he said.

Music​

While you do not need a specific licence to run a pub quiz, if you include a music round you may be leaving yourself open to legal problems. Many quizzes include a "beat the intro" or similar round which asks contestants to name the artist and/or title of a song from as snippet of music.

The music licensing authority Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) has recently issued a warning about this type of use of music. Basically, PPL regards the vast majority of pub music quizzes as illegal. Even pubs which have been licensed by PPL to play recorded music are not automatically covered if they run quizzes which involve taping and playing excerpts of songs. This is regarded by PPL as "dubbing", which is not covered by a standard pub licence.

The law is broken if the licensee or quizmaster records a track or excerpt themselves. While there have been no prosecutions in this area for some time, PPL has warned that it is conducting a major survey of all premises using music quizzes over the coming year.

A spokeswoman for PPL said: "We consider that there are a lot of quizzes containing an element of unauthorised music use. This is being highlighted by an in-depth look at the market, which has revealed there are more quizzes with an element of music taking place than the number we currently licence.

"We would like to educate the industry that this kind of use is illegal. PPL has a duty to protect its members' rights and will vigorously pursue any unauthorised use."

It is unlikely that any individual pub could justify the cost of a PPL licence for this type of use, but there are a number of specialist firms which are licensed by PPL to provide music rounds and music quizzes.

Running a quiz​

Quizpack provides a weekly quiz to pubs, which runs for 10 rounds of 10 questions, along with a picture round which teams play at the table throughout the quiz.

Leo McElgin of Quizzpack suggests the following tips for publicans running their own quiz:

• A 10-round quiz should take about two hours. Remember to start early enough to leave yourself time to finish before the pub must close.
• It is a good idea to put up a score chart where the teams can see how well (or badly) they are doing. This adds to the evening and keeps the quiz competitive.
• It is traditional to have a break after round five. If there is a raffle, tickets can be sold at this point.
• Remember that the quiz is only a bit of fun, although the players can get carried away on the night and take it all very seriously. If someone insists that there is an alternative answer to the one given quietly give him or her the point. If more than one team has given this answer then announce that you will accept it as well as the original answer. Life is too short to argue about it.
• There are normally four players on a team but it is not worth spoiling everyone's evening splitting teams up. Large teams are often more of a hindrance to themselves as they argue more over the answers.
• If you are charging t