MicroBrewr 059: How to get the most out of a beer festival
Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed
Subscribe: RSS
Beer festivals are an important part of a startup brewery’s marketing plan. Stephanie Carson and SuperFly Fabulous Events in Asheville, North Carolina put on 11 beer festivals every year.
I asked her, how much do beer festivals play a part in a startup brewery’s existing marketing plan?
“I think it’s everything,” says Stephanie. “A startup brewery is not going to have the marketing budget, they’re not going to have the advertising budget, they might not even have a contact at a good distributor.”
“So I think attending a festival is really important.”
When you’re getting ready to attend a festival as a brewery, you’ll need to make sure you have several items. Some events will provide these, so always check beforehand to make sure you know what you’ll need to bring.
Stephanie says to make sure you have these items:
- Creative looking tap handles
- Carbon dioxide (CO2) canisters
- Ice
- Jockey box
- Tent/awning
- Items to sell
- Something to entice the customers back to your brewery
The beer festival is a key part of getting your product out to the public. People attending the beer festival are your core customers: They love craft beer, and they seek out new beers.
There are some things that you can do to best leverage your presence at the festival. Make a good impression, initiate contacts, and turn those into long-term customers.
This is what Stephanie recommends to get the most out of a beer festival:
- Help promote the event.
- Be organized and on time.
- Give a creative take-home item, so the attendees will remember you.
- Bring a unique beer that is not available elsewhere.
“With so many craft breweries opening up, you can’t just have your old standards.” [Tweet This]
Listener question:
From Conrad B.: Why do you do what you do?
Book recommendation:
- Brewing Up a Business: Adventures in Beer from the Founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery by Sam Calagione.
Check out the entire list of recommended books, click here.
An upcoming beer style:
Dark beers
Other resources:
- Tri-Cities Craft Beer Week, Tennessee & Virginia.
- Beer Festivals: A brewer’s view, Gregg Smith, Realbeer.com.
- Beer Mixology, where the science of brewing meets the art of the cocktail.
You can reach Stephanie Carson and SuperFly Fabulous Events at:
Sponsors:
“Fast, reliable, affordable, web hosting.”
Support MicroBrewr
Help keep MicroBrewr on the air. CLICK HERE for ways you can help.
i agree that a takeaway item, like a sticker or beer coaster, is important, as after a few beers its easy forget which breweries you visited. Another option could be to encourage photos and highlight a hashtag on your booth as a way of ensuring your visitors remember you.
Hey, that’s a great idea, Ian! Thanks for contributing to the discussion.