Depending on what part of the country you’re in, March 17, also known as St. Patrick’s Day, could either be a huge deal filled with parades, drink specials, and green bodies of water, or just another casually-observed holiday.

Whether people in your area are super into St. Patrick’s Day or not, there’s never a bad reason to engage your customers and find new ways to get in front of a new audience.

And you’re in luck because I’m sharing everything you need to make your St. Patrick’s Day marketing a success.

St. Patrick’s Day marketing ideas

St. Patrick’s Day was first observed in the 9th or 10th century as a way to commemorate Christianity coming to Ireland but has since evolved into more of a celebration of Irish culture and heritage open to anyone. Meaning it’s a great day to use these St. Patrick’s Day marketing ideas to keep your audience engaged (and entertained!).

Run a “wear green” special promotion

Everyone knows that you’re supposed to wear green on St. Patrick’s Day or you risk getting pinched. Instead of punishing customers who don’t wear green with a pinch, reward those who do wear green with a special discount. Have them come in wearing their St. Patrick’s Day best to get a special discount (it could even be a festive amount, like 17% off!).

Get more March promotions ideas here.

Go green for St. Patrick’s Day

While the focus is typically on wearing, eating, and drinking green items on St. Patrick’s Day, you can look at it a different way: Going “green” or eco-friendly throughout March in honor of St. Patrick’s Day. You could host a highway cleanup and invite your customers, share how your business supports eco-friendly efforts, or run a “bring your own bag” special where customers get a discount if they bring in a reusable bag instead of using a new, plastic bag.

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Decorate your storefront

If your business has a storefront, you can get in on the St. Patrick’s Day spirit by decorating for the holiday. Find green items from your store to display at the front, bring in some shamrocks, and hang some green streamers for a quick and easy display that attracts passersby and creates a positive in-store experience throughout the month.

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Host a St. Patrick’s Day gathering

Another way you can bring people into your business on or around St. Patrick’s Day is to host a little gathering. You could offer light snacks and drinks as well as a small discount to customers who shop with you throughout the day. During your gathering, you can also play Irish music or invite a local band to perform.

This brewery partnered with a dog rescue for a St. Patrick’s Day party.

Send a St. Patrick’s Day marketing email

Whether you’re hosting an event, running a special promotion, or simply wishing your customers a Happy St. Patrick’s Day, email marketing can help you get the word out and stay top of mind.

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Send your customers regular emails throughout the month to let them know how your business is observing St. Patrick’s Day (and how they can get in on the fun!).

Use these March email subject line ideas for inspiration! Or keep scrolling for some St. Patrick’s Day email subject lines 🍀

Create St. Patrick’s Day blog content

If your business has a blog or content marketing efforts, you can create content around St. Patrick’s Day to educate and inspire your audience.

Here are some examples:

• Health and wellness businesses: Share healthy St. Patrick’s Day recipes.
• Hospitality: Share the top places to visit in Ireland.
• Education: Share St. Patrick’s Day crafts or educational resources for kids.

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Think about how you can tie what your audience is interested in to what you offer and how that can relate to this holiday as part of your marketing.

Once you’ve created this content, you can promote it on your social media pages or through your email marketing.

Sponsor a St. Patrick’s Day parade or event

Another St. Patrick’s Day marketing idea to try this year is sponsoring a parade or event. This can help you get out in front of your local community while also lending support (and having a bit o’ fun!). Reach out to your local chamber of commerce to see what events are coming up or check your city page to find out how you can get involved.

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Create a St. Patrick’s Day limited-time offer or item

Limited-time offers or items can create a sense of urgency that entices customers to make a move quickly. By offering specific products or promotions for a limited time around St. Patrick’s Day, you can increase the chances that people will want to take advantage. An example of a St. Patrick’s Day limited-time offer could be a bundle of green items, a special service add-on, or a seasonal product offering.

Krispy Kreme offers green donuts for St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick’s Day social media posts ideas

Now that we’ve covered some general St. Patrick’s Day marketing ideas, here are some engaging social media posts that you can use to keep the celebration going on all your social sites.

Run a St. Patrick’s Day social media contest

Let luck be on your customers’ side by running a St. Patrick’s Day social media contest. Facebook giveaways and Instagram contests are great ways to get new followers and increase engagement, and they also tie in really easily to holidays.

You can have your followers:

• Tag your business location or just your business in a picture (maybe wearing green for St. Patrick’s Day!)
• Like one of your posts and tag friends to enter the contest
• Comment their favorite thing about St. Patrick’s Day on one of your posts

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Make sure to clearly outline the terms of your contest, including how to enter, how you’ll select a winner, and when/how the winner will be announced. You can run the contest throughout the month of March or just up until St. Patrick’s Day.

Create and share a fun St. Patrick’s Day graphic

If St. Patrick’s Day isn’t a huge deal to you or your followers, you might simply observe the day with a cute graphic. You can easily create one of these posts using a tool like Canva (we created a guide on how to use Canva here!) that will attract your audience and stand out on the News Feeds.

I curated some free St. Patrick’s Day social media templates for you here!

Highlight your St. Patrick’s Day promotions

If you’re using any of our St. Patrick’s Day marketing ideas above or running your own sale or promotion, it’s important to post about it on social media. Let your customers know how they can take advantage of your promotions and remind them to visit your business or your website to learn more.

Don’t forget to include some catchy St. Patrick’s Day phrases and slogans to make your promotions pop!

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Share St. Patrick’s Day events

Your business is part of your local community, which means your customers may see you as a source of information about what’s going on around town. Share St. Patrick’s Day events happening in your area on your social media pages. You can even reshare posts about events from other businesses or local accounts (they might return the favor to help you increase your following later!).

If you’re hosting your own St. Patrick’s Day event, you can create a Facebook event and invite your followers to attend. This gives them an easy way to get all the information about your event and invite their friends.

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Use St. Patrick’s Day hashtags

Hashtags can help you reach a new audience on social media and increase engagement. Here are some St. Patrick’s Day hashtags to try in your social media posts:

• #shamrock
• #stpatricksday
• #clover
• #irish
• #kissmeimirish
• #stparicksparade
• #stpattysday
• #paddysday
• #gogreen
• #fourleafclover
• #guinness
• #stpatricksdaydecor
• #lucky

Get 50+ St. Patrick’s Day Instagram captions to make planning your posts even easier.

17 St. Patrick’s Day email subject lines

Use these St. Patrick’s Day email subject lines to bring the luck of the Irish to your campaigns.

• Save some green with our St. Patrick’s Day sale 💰
• [Name], you’re in luck: Buy one, get one happening NOW
• There’s something sweet at the end of this rainbow 🌈
• [Name], try your luck 🍀
• Get it before it’s gone! St. Patrick’s Day [item/product/service]
• Book before your luck runs out 🍀
• It’s your lucky day: Shop our St. Patrick’s Day sale!
• Better than a pot of gold…
• Consider this your lucky charm 🍀
• [Name], thanks for being our lucky charm
• Don’t miss our St. Paddy’s party!
• Get shamrocked at our St. Paddy’s bash 🍻
• St. Patrick’s Day recipe ideas to try
• [Name], a St. Patrick’s Day treat from us to you!
• 5 Things to Do on St. Patrick’s Day in [City]
• The best St. Patrick’s Day breweries in [City]
• [Name], get 17% off everything!

Make St. Patrick’s Day marketing your good luck charm

Like any holiday, St. Patrick’s Day is a great opportunity to keep your marketing fresh and find fun ways to connect with your audience. Using these St. Patrick’s Day marketing ideas, social media posts, and email subject lines, you can get your business lucky with a new pot of customers.

Stephanie Heitman

Stephanie is the Associate Director of Content for LocaliQ and WordStream. She has over 10 years of experience in content and social media marketing and loves writing about all things digital marketing. When she’s not researching the latest and greatest marketing news and updates, she’s probably watching reality TV with her husband, reading, or playing with her two pups.

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