Transforming Your Brewery Into a Destination
Transforming Your Brewery Into a Destination
This blog was adapted from the interview Craft Brewery Professionals, “Transforming Your Brewery Into A Destination.”
As craft breweries become more popular, just being a craft brewer is not going to draw enough people to your brewery to stay in business. Craft brewery tourists may come to your brewery once to check off your name on their list and locals may hear about your brewery organically and want to try it out, but what keeps them coming back?
Turning your brewery into a destination is what will keep people coming again and again. When you think of your favorite destination, chances are you think of somewhere unique that provides you with an experience, atmosphere, or community you can’t find elsewhere. Make this happen with some innovative and strategic ideas, but more importantly, by building community.
Specialty Programming
A reliable calendar of events is a great way to keep people coming back again and again. Weekly trivia nights, game nights, themed music nights, movie/TV watch parties, yoga, or other specialty events. Try out a bunch of different ideas and see what people respond to. Hosting these events is often low-cost to your brewery, compared to other marketing methods, and it does a great job of building community.
When people have a good time at your events, having an experience that aligns with their interests, they will want to keep coming back. This will build your group of regulars who are also a cornerstone of your brewery. These regulars attract like-minded people to also become regulars. Before you know it, your brewery becomes the destination for this new community.
Community Partnerships
Another way to grow your brewery community is through partnerships. By partnering with other local businesses, you get a new audience of people to hear about your brewery. If someone hears a recommendation straight from a business they trust, they are much more likely to give their recommendation a try. Then they also become a member of your brewery community.
Look for other businesses who match your values, or just lend your venue to small vendors to showcase their work! If you try something and it doesn’t work, you’ve learned valuable information to judge your partnership strategy.
Become A Host Location on Harvest Hosts
Make your brewery a destination, quite literally, by becoming a Host Location. By inviting self-contained RVers to park in your parking lot for a night, and opening your brewery up to an audience of over 250,000 RVers who are a part of the program, you can become a travel destination instantly at no cost to you.
While providing a great experience, alongside making stellar beer, you can make an impression on visitors. They’ll leave a great review, and then other Harvest Hosts Members will be more likely to check it out. By being authentic, hospitable, and sharing your craft and your trade, you are likely to succeed and become a destination in no time.
Ready to turn your brewery into a destination? Start by signing up to become a Host!
“Hi, I’m Allison! When I’m not writing content for Harvest Hosts, you can find me with my cat, Ash, or spending time outdoors.”