Craft Brewery Insights for 2022

People all over the world love beer and appreciate craft breweries. Unfortunately, since the start of the pandemic, there have been more limitations in regards to budget, traveler concerns, vaccination, and masks mandates that have led this industry down a different path. Regardless, people are unwilling to give up their craft brews, so this is still a booming market. So, let's dive into some of this industry's insights for the upcoming year.

Rebranding

The pandemic has forced just about every type of business in every industry to make adjustments, or they will not be able to fight through society's turbulence. Craft breweries are not an exception. The quarantine allowed brewery owners to examine their budget, branding, messaging, design, positioning, and more. This led to many rebranding and a refresh for marketing, sales, and packaging to better align with current strategic goals. There is undoubtedly a high level of competition in the industry, while the craft breweries are "in planning" and demand increases. The competition is also within new alcoholic canned beverages such as hard seltzers, teas, sodas, ciders, spritzers, and wine, just to name a few. With such a wide range of choices for consumers of subcategories and new preferences, it can be very challenging to market individual brands. However, breweries can overcome these obstacles by experimenting with new marketing channels and new content in hopes of standing out in the clutter that consumers now come across in the adult beverage space.

The Revolution of Contactless Technology

You have likely evolved from or are learning to go from accommodating in-person consumer behavior to a new focus on adding outdoor seating, controlling indoor seating limits, online orders, and providing contactless payment. Breweries must become tech-savvy for their taprooms and websites to keep up with new hospitality technologies and comply with the constantly changing local and state ordinances. It is important that your guests have a positive experience from their first time interacting with your business, whether in person or online. Consider how specially designed point-of-sale software, smart kegs, and other technologies can impact your business. Nowadays, brewery technology is a key component for your business's growth and success. Embrace these new dynamics in your marketing efforts so that the marketing materials reflect how the new technologies and processes improve customer experience, making it faster and safer, and all-around more enjoyable. With all the new things to learn and implement comes risk exposure. Don't understand the power of a strong brewery insurance program so that you can take on whatever may come your way.

Direct-To-Consumer Explained

One of the most influential purchasing deciding factors is convenience. However, delivering beer can be tricky in regards to the very strict legal system. The alcohol online space has grown over the last couple of years. Some companies even hold specialized alcohol distribution licenses to get beers from breweries across the country and take them over state lines directly and get them in the hands of online consumers. Some restrictions have recently been lifted on a brewery's ability to ship beer directly to consumers; so many breweries can now take online orders that can be picked up "curbside" onsite or delivered directly to a local customer. If this is an option for your business, be sure to highlight this in your marketing activity, but keep in mind that the legislature is not yet clear and could be temporary.

About David G. Sayles Insurance Services

At David G. Sayles Insurance Services, we help our clients decide which of these options is best for them based on their current situation and risk factors.  Contact us at 1-855-977-1842 or insureme@dsayles.mysites.io for a consultation!