drum up

verb

1. (tr, adverb) to evoke or obtain (support, business, etc) by solicitation or canvassing

Idioms and Phrases

Bring about by persistent effort, as in I'm trying to drum up more customers , or We have to drum up support for this amendment . This expression alludes to making repeated drumbeats. [Mid-1800s]

Devise, invent, obtain, as in He hoped to drum up an alibi . [Mid-1800s]

Example Sentences

To drum up business, dispensaries are responding with outlandish workarounds.

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Nuclear power start-up Oklo has gotten heat for not generating revenue, and now it is reporting a wider operating loss than a year ago as it drums up business.

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His staff, meanwhile, has spent hours handing out literal flyers on campus, hopeful that it will drum up interest.

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Hours earlier, Republican spoke out against the ballot measure at John Wayne Park in Newport Beach, before sending teams into neighborhoods to drum up votes for their side.

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Builders have also amped up marketing and drummed up discounts to make newly built homes more attractive.

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Related Words

• canvass 
• solicit