BMTC20: Beer MARKETING Certificate Course

This three-hour course will cover advanced marketing topics in the beer industry. Participants should already be familiar with the fundamentals of modern marketing. Our presenters are Kevin York of Kevin York Communications, who runs his own marketing company dedicated to the craft beer industry, and Neal Stewart, VP of Marketing for Deschutes Brewery and former VP of Marketing for Dogfish Head. Walk away with new office wall swag: a Certificate in Beer Marketing.

Transcript

1. Beer Marketing Certification Course
2. Hi, I’m Neal.
3. What I do • Brand revitalization • Brand strategy • Creative direction • Portfolio strategy and development • Collaboration with Sales, distributors and retailers • Building teams
4. And I’m Kevin.
5. What I do • Marketing strategy • Brand experience • Content strategy • Public relations & corporate communications • Influencer relations • Social media
6. Topics of the Day • Marketing Strategy • Brand Strategy • Content • Measurement
7. You’ll leave with a customized marketing plan.
8. This is going to move fast.
9. Use the constraint of time to your advantage.
10. Parts 1 & 2 Marketing Strategy Brand Strategy
11. Marketing Strategy
12. What’s a business challenge facing you and your company?
13. What is your aspiration?
14. What is Marketing Strategy?
16. What is Marketing Strategy? A series of choices that outlines how you will win, communicate your identity, differentiate yourself and provides focus on what tactics you will implement.
17. Let’s get aligned on words
18. What do all of these words mean? Objective - Your aspiration, broad and not measurable Strategy - The “how” you will get there. Tactic - The “what” you will implement to reach your objective Key Progress Indicator (KPI) - measurements along the way to make sure you’re on track Goal - SMART: Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Relevant, Timebound
19. Objective Strategy Strategy Tactics Tactics Tactics Tactics Tactics Tactics Tactics Tactics SMART Goals / KPIs SMART Goals / KPIs
20. Pro Tip: Figure out how you will measure your progress and outcome before you start!
21. Objective - Improve my fitness to competitively run a half marathon Strategies • Keto diet • Regular exercise Tactics • Salads for lunch • Run on treadmill Key Progress Indicators (KPI): • Lose 5 lbs in Jan • Run 8 minute mile by March 31 Goals • Complete race in less than 2 hours • Lower my cholesterol
22. Setting Objectives Dream big (Peloton) Get focused and be specific. (GoPro) Create meaning to your stakeholders.
23. Mapping Strategy Gather Info. Consider SWOT or “5 Forces” analysis Understand and state what needs to be TRUE. Articulate your vision.
24. Key Challenge: Objective/Aspiration: Strategy 1 Strategy 2 Strategy 3
25. Key Challenge: Objective/Aspiration: Strategy 1 Strategy 2 Strategy 3 Components of Strategic Statements: • Choiceful - It clearly demonstrates your intent. • Overcomes your barriers to win • Short and direct. No fanciful language.
26. Strategy Examples • Increase on-premise share of IPA in Tampa • Diversify portfolio with introduction of golden ales • Provide best in class customer service • Expand consumer base by opening new markets in South Florida • Increase consumer loyalty • Focus efforts on flagship IPA • Optimize visibility at retail with improved shelf placement • Recruit new consumers
27. Marketing Strategy Reverse Q&A
28. Marketing Objectives & Strategies What is your specific challenge? What is your objective or aspiration? What strategies will you implement to achieve your objective?
29. Brand Strategy
30. Your Brand Strategy must... • Provide value and meaning to the entire organization • Get buy-in from founders/senior management • Be memorable and repeatable • Feel unique • Be inspirational • Reflect on the past but be relevant in the future • Be simple
31. Things to know about developing a Brand Strategy... • These things take time • Words matter • Don’t be too academic • Be ok with amateur copywriters • Can be expensive • Expensive doesn’t mean better • It may take a couple tries
32. BUILD ALIGNMENT AROUND “WHY?’” If the team doesn’t see the value, you won’t get the participation necessary to be successful. PRESENT AND CREATE BUY IN Share with the organization Demonstrate how you involved people Create learning tools and integrate into culture CONDUCT COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS Get your key stakeholders to participate. Understand them better than you understand yourself. Map and understand white space BUILD ALIGNMENT AND GET FEEDBACK Form a perspective and do the work Lose the battle to win the war INTERVIEW STAKEHOLDERS & OPINION LEADERS Look to your people to define the DNA Understand the brand history and what drives meaning in the culture Marketing Strategy Development
33. What does a Brand Strategy look like?
35. There are lots of models out there.
36. Components of your Brand Strategy Objective/Aspiration Target Brand Personality Point of Difference Key Brand Benefit Reason to Believe Positioning Brand Communication Pillars
37. Objective / Aspiration What mindspace do you wish to own with your target consumers?
38. Target Consumer Who are they? What do they believe? How do you group them together?
39. Target Personification QUICK DESCRIPTION OF THIS UNIQUE GROUP: • Soccer Moms • Urban explorers • Family Heroes Demographics WHO ARE THEY? • Age • Gender • Ethnicity • Household Income • Geography • Family Dynamics Psychographics WHY THEY BUY: • Beliefs • Behaviors • Values • Emotions • Opinions • Interests • Lifestyles
40. Brand Personality Your brand’s psychographics
41. Brand Personality What are your: • Beliefs • Values • Emotions • Opinions • Interests • Lifestyle
42. Point of Difference It’s hard to be 100% different these days, so focus on defining your superpower.
43. Key Brand Benefit
44. Positioning Statement How it all comes together. Who you are for. What you represent. How you do it uniquely. Why you deserve it.
45. Positioning Statement For (insert target here), (insert brand here) is the (insert category here) that delivers (insert point of difference) so they can (key brand benefit) because (insert reason to believe).
46. Positioning Examples
49. Communication Pillars Three to five themes that represent your brand and are meaningful to your consumer that you will focus your communication efforts around. • Passion for Craft • Passion for Outdoors • Passion for Community
50. Fits your personality Makes sense to consumers Highlights features and benefits
51. Key Challenge: Objective/Aspiration: Our Target Consumer: Communication Pillar 1 Brand Personality: Positioning Statement: Communication Pillar 2 Communication Pillar 3 Strategy 1 Strategy 2 Strategy 3
52. Brand Strategy Reverse Q&A
53. Marketing Objectives & Strategies Who is your target consumer? What is your brand personality? What is your positioning statement? What are your communication pillars?
54. Parts 3 & 4 Content Measurement
55. Content
57. Content How you carry out your marketing strategy (The Tactics)
58. Types of Content • Owned • Earned • Shared • Paid
59. Media Influencers Sponsored Sponsored Sponsored Influencers Sponsored
60. Why is it important to consider them all?
61. Different content... Different channels... Different purposes...
62. Your job is to determine the right mix.
63. Content Considerations • Purpose • Audience • Budget • Control
64. Owned Content
65. Website & Blog
66. Why are your website and blog important? • Search ranking • Branding • Bring people deeper into your brand • Indexed information
67. Why are people visiting your website?
68. Website
69. Blog
70. Email
71. Why is email important? People have given you permission to send them content. If you don’t violate their trust, it’s a permanently standing invitation with terms that won’t change.
72. Make email more than a checkbox • Put the subscriber at the center of your emails • Use list segmentation for better targeting • Provide unique value • Surprise & delight • Tell your stories • Maintain consistency
73. Increase email opens
74. Increase subscriber actions
75. Improve email aesthetics
76. Do A/B testing - it’s not hard!
77. Automation Make your job a little easier Subscribe Thank you for subscribing! At ABC Brewing, our mission is to….. I’d like to invite you to get to know us a little better by…. We Have Lots to Share! We’re only two months in, but 2020 has already been a very busy year for ABC Brewing. In January, we released the first three bottles of our new barrel-aged program…..
78. Email-Snail Mail Integration Yes, snail mail can work… Why would you do this? Taproom traffic! • Promo code • Releases • Events
79. Earned Content
80. Influencer Relations
81. Why is influencer relations important? It’s an opportunity for you to expand your reach, improve credibility, and create loyalty.
82. Influencer Marketing - What is it? • When you utilize people who don’t work for you • Participants influence the decisions and purchases of others • Participants are usually, but not always, active on social media • They may or may not know they’re part of your program They help you market to a new group of people. @porkandpintsboston Wakefield, MA 33.1k followers
83. Influencer Identification The 3 Rs • Reach • Relevance • Resonance @beer.withme Los Angeles, CA 828 followers
84. Run an Influencer Program - The Steps 1. Determine your objectives 2. Decide what you can offer ◦ Product ◦ Merchandise ◦ Access ◦ Experience 3. Identify the influencers 4. Decide on consistency 5. Create measurement framework 6. Conduct outreach @craftbeerburton Portland, OR 1,147 followers
85. Media Relations
86. Why is media relations important? It’s an opportunity for you to increase awareness and credibility, sometimes at a very large scale.
87. 3 Requirements of Media Relations 1. Knowing & understanding the media 1. Telling a story 1. Recognizing how to fit your company into larger stories
88. Knowing & Understanding the Media Local/Regional • Tampa Bay Times • Boston Globe • 7X7 • New School Beer Beer-Focused • Hop Culture • Good Beer Hunting • Craft Beer & Brewing • October National Business • New York Times • Forbes • The Wall Street Journal • The Economist Food & Drink • The Takeout • Eater • Wine Enthusiast • Imbibe Lifestyle • Thrillist • Paste • Gear Patrol • Refinery29 What else?... • Music • Art • Fitness • Travel-Tourism
89. Storytelling Drafting a good pitch
90. The Ingredients of a Good Pitch
91. Shared Content
92. Social Media
93. Why is social media important? It’s great for community engagement and direct interaction with those who purchase from you. It can also help extend your reach.
94. Look familiar?
96. Conduct a Social Media Audit • Discover what’s working and what’s not • Analyze your awareness, engagement, conversion, and advocacy • Uncover which content performs best and worst • Determine who your audience is, why they use a particular platform, and how they use it • Assess if your social media activities align with your marketing strategy • Compare your performance with the competition
97. Perform a SWOT Analysis
98. Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats
99. Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats • High follower count • Strong community sentiment • Variety of content • Event promotion content • Low engagement • Low number of shares • Beer release content • Algorithm changes • Increased interaction with followers
100. Social Listening helps you improve your program • Learn about your customers • Discover your place in your market • Insert yourself into discussions • Prevent issues from becoming crises • Identify influencers and advocates
101. Social Listening
102. Develop your social media voice? Who is the voice in your head? • Choose your adjectives • Write like you talk • Consider your reader’s perspective • Be consistent
103. Don’t be lazy
105. Create a unique approach for each social media platform.
106. On & Off-premise POS Collateral
107. Why are on & off-premise POS collateral important? Your distributors want on-site content to support retail sales. They’ll create it if you don’t. But they aren’t concerned with your brand’s consistency.
108. Create a Brand Portal
109. Paid Content
110. Sponsored Social Media
111. Why is sponsored social media important? Targeting, targeting, targeting. You can reach the exact type of people you want. And you can produce significant increases in followers, awareness, engagement, and conversion - at a price.
112. Running Sponsored Social Media Campaigns
113. Make sure you’re following FTC influencer disclosures.
114. ...and that your influencers are.
115. Content Planning Things to Remember & Consider: • Your marketing strategy • A unique approach to each channel • How people use each content channel • Your time and resources • Quality vs. quantity
116. Content calendars make your life easier
117. Content Reverse Q&A
118. Content Which content channels are your top three priorities? How are you balancing owned, earned, shared, and paid content? How have you successfully used all four types of content?
119. Measurement Tracking the progress of your marketing program and Discovering areas of improvement
120. Pro Tip: Figure out how you will measure your progress and outcome before you start!
121. Measurement defines success Data-informed Measurement X
122. Quantitative KPIs Awareness • Follower count • Number of articles • Website visits • Open rate/click-thru rate Engagement • Number of likes/comments • Clicks Conversion • Clicks Advocacy • Number of advocates Qualitative KPIs Awareness • Sentiment • Specific people reached • Time on site • Top links clicked Engagement • Specific people liking/commenting • Sentiment Conversion • Specific people converting Advocacy • Strength of advocates +
123. True Qualitative Research • Focus groups • Individual interviews • Online focus groups • Lifestyle immersion (festivals, liquor stores, concerts, etc.) • Observations
124. Set your benchmarks • This is not goal setting • They become your starting point • They’ll build on themselves over time • Align them to your goals • Don’t create analysis paralysis
125. Google Analytics
126. Audience Overview
127. Audience - Geo - Location
128. Behavior - Site Content
129. Acquisition
130. Email
131. What to track • Open rate and click rate are good starting points… • ...total opens can be just as valuable • Track unsubscribes • Analyze top locations by open
132. Measurement Reverse Q&A
133. Measurement How are you measuring your marketing program? How are you applying what you learn from your measurement to your marketing program? What have you found to be your biggest time saver with measurement?