5 Ways to Remain Competitive in the Beer Industry

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1 5 Ways to Remain Competitive in the Beer Industry Craft beer volume share is accounting for more and more of the beer market. This part of the pie is growing for craft breweries, but so are the number of forks as the number of operating breweries increases. Here are some questions to ask yourself: How long will the market prove to be fruitful for all? How many craft breweries can the market support? Will the bubble burst? How will you remain competitive? There are signs that the craft beer industry is not yet starting to peak while the pie continues to grow. However, with the increase rate of new operating breweries and breweries-in-planning, every brewery owner should consider preparing themselves to be and remain competitive. Here are 5 ways that craft breweries can remain competitive:

2 1. Quality ingredients, quality beer The primary goal in any brewery is to focus on making high quality beer. Quality beer is a critical factor of success. Since there has been an adopted consumer base of beer drinkers converting to craft, it has been an easy decision for consumers to try any type of non-domestic beer, which has been beneficial for the entire craft beer industry. As consumers are introduced to more craft beer options, they will become more educated about their craft choices, which allows for the opportunity of consumer loyalty. With beer connoisseurs becoming more educated about quality, the most important thing that craft breweries can do is continue to make quality beer to remain competitive. As the selection of craft beer choices increases, low quality craft beer will be the first to become extinct. The one thing you should never skimp on is ingredients. Quality ingredients are one of the most important factors that separate a craft microbrew from its mass produced macrobrew counterpart. 2. Manage Recipes Maintain consistency Manage your brewery production schedules and focus on consistency. The consumer may find risk associated with your beer if the experience is not the same every time. Risk can lead to consumers turning to a competitor who can give them a similar experience even if the experience is not as good. Maintaining consistency has been the key to every successful business. You can look at any successful product, brand, or franchise and see that the key success factor was providing a consistent experience for the consumer.

3 3. Plan Ahead Don t run out of beer Make sure you plan ahead, keep up with demands and don t run out of beer. Gaining consumer loyalty can be a long process, but it only takes one bad experience or one missed opportunity to destroy that trust. If your loyal consumers are not able to get their favorite beer, they will accept a substitute which results in your loss and another s gain. Although consumers prefer to try new beers, which presents an opportunity for new offerings, it can be a disadvantage if you aren t able to keep up with demands. Breweries can prevent missed opportunities by ensuring that their flagship beer is readily available in their most loyal markets. Running out of beer for even short periods of time can contribute to your loss and a competitor s gain. Consumers are loyal in nature, but it doesn t mean that they will be loyal to your beer forever.

4 4. Sell better and smarter Whether you have one person responsible for sales, or a team of sales people working the order book, they need to be plugged into what s going on in the brewery. Knowledge is power for sales people and that knowledge should be available from all areas of the brewery. In the mobile age, having tools in place to take live orders via a tablet or mobile device on the move is now a huge benefit but also being able to check out a customer s order history, view statements, inventory, invoices and delivery notes will give the salesperson the edge on customer service over and above their competitors. When looking for new customers, tracking and managing sales opportunities and forecasts is one thing, but being able to use those forecasts to drive raw materials requirements planning and future production schedules is another. Being able to do this, seamlessly integrates with the production floor, meaning no nasty surprises for the brewer or inventory manager.

5 5. Manage Your Growth Lastly, you should manage your brewery s growth effectively. The most common reason the previous four points are compromised is the inability to manage growth. As craft breweries grow, it becomes harder to produce consistent, quality, differentiated beer that satisfies demand. Managing growth and the complexities that accompany it can ensure consumer retention and help your brewery remain competitive. Managing growth is not easy and requires operational expertise and systemized procedures. Your competitive edge may be at risk if this is done organically through individuals, pieced systems or by the seat of your pants. To accomplish these goals, you re going to need some help; the kind of help that spreadsheets and bookkeeping software can t provide in the long-run. Accomplishing these goals won t be easy or guarantee your success, but they ll provide a strong advantage over the competition and help you stay on top. You need robust brewery management software that provides everything you need to manage all aspects of your brewery from a centralized place. You need to adopt a brewery software solution, streamline your processes, eliminate inefficiencies, and focus solely on what you do best: brewing great beer. No matter how big or small your craft beer company is, OrchestratedBEER brewery management software will help your company streamline processes to achieve maximum growth and efficiency. Building your brewery with multiple systems often causes problems down the road. Building on the right foundation is critical for managing scalable future growth. It s why the best run breweries run OrchestratedBEER. For more information on how OrchestratedBEER can help your brewery streamline processes and grow fast, us: contact@vision33.com for a free consultation Vision33 Inc. All rights reserved. All product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies. Data contained in this document serves informational purposes only.