Video Marketing Your Craft Brewery

The importance of video and its effects on engagement cannot be overstated. If you have ever posted a video of your brewery on social media and compared the amount of engagement it is almost a given that the video will perform better and generate more engagement than a similar photo post. It comes as no surprise that the big brewing companies spend big on strategy and content. According to statista, Anheuser-Busch (Budweiser), Constellation Brands (Corona, Modelo), and Molson Coors Brewing Co. (Coors, Miller) spent 482 million, 359 million, and 218 million on advertising respectively in 2019. While your local craft brewery isn’t looking to spend 30 million dollars on spots for the super bowl (cost of production not included), you are probably thinking about the next stage of your small business. Be it expanding your production, growing your distribution, or getting more sales; a professional video campaign can be the very sharp spearhead your brewery needs to “break on through to the other side”- The Doors.

How much do Craft Breweries spend on video marketing?

According to annual SEC reports, Constellation Brands spent around $805 million in advertising costs during their Feb. 2020 to Feb. 2021 fiscal year. More than 90 cents of every advertising dollar is spent by the top 6 industry giants and no craft brewer is here to out advertise Budweiser. Craft brewers also don’t wait and sit on the sidelines either.

The costs from a small or medium video production company can vary wildly. You can find projects costing $10,000 dollars for a single advertisement. While a whole video campaign may cost $30,000 dollars. You can also find companies charging $600 for a 30-second spot for TV. It is also important to be mindful that buying the space for your advertisements to play is also an added cost unrelated to the production of a video.

The point is that answer is not a simple one. A better question would be “how do I determine what I should spend on advertisement?”, and you guessed it, that answer is also not simple. I can suggest sticking to a production company that asks about goals and keeps an open conversation about ROI. This will give you a lot of insight into how much you should budget for video marketing. Producing a video is a very creative process and as creatives, we keep ourselves in check about value. We don’t see this part of the conversation as uncomfortable, we have placed ourselves in the mindset that we get the opportunity to have these conversations with you. Ultimately, the value we produce for you as a craft brewer will lead to a renewed campaign next year and the year after that.

The bottom line is less time spent on figuring out your brand next year turns into more time spent on creative problem solving which will inevitably lead to better, and more captivating video campaigns that will awe your clients.

Four ideas to efficiently market your craft brewery:

Chances are that if you started or are currently running a craft brewery you’ve noticed the lull that many other brewers experienced in volume sales in 2020. Those of you that were already packaging and selling your products on the rack may have seen a healthy source of income during a time where businesses were shuttered due to the global pandemic. With markets reopening in 2021, the $94 billion dollar U.S. beer market, down from $116 billion according to the Brewers Association, can be expected to come out swinging this year. Especially craft breweries who are coming out strong with community presence, marketing, and more passion than ever. A compelling video campaign is an effective tool to attain your goals, yet, it is also important to focus on ideas of community involvement, social media presence, brand repositioning, and local events. These will help you tackle the competitive craft beer market and boost your sales as the industry resettles.

Get involved in your Community:

There are many ways to build community presence and they only require a little observation of your community’s interests. For example, in a coastal community like ours, the beach and its preservation are important subjects here in Surf City. One of our clients, The Salty Turtle Beer Company, decided to center their whole brand around a relatable subject and give back in the form of percentages of sales of some of their products to Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue & Rehabilitation Center. The veteran-owned company has also performed the same type of donations to other non-profit organizations like Paddle 4 Troops.

Post frequently on social media

Close-ups alone won't do the trick and don't worry about picture quality obsessively. While we sell high-end video and photographic content we have also observed that candid cell phone pictures of the regular happenings in your establishment have great engagement and click-through with certain segments. This is especially true for the broad market segment that typically visits your craft brewery. Posting all high-end content might make your genuine craft brewery feel less genuine, especially if your brand is warmer and down to earth. While a combination of highly polished content and lower-quality candid content is our usual recommendation, this isn’t one-size-fits-all. Your market needs are unique to you and we are ready to explore and address those needs.

Host local events to expand your reach:

Opening your craft brewery to tours, setting up a run club, or letting the local chess club play at your brewery are all ways to form a stronger community around your brand. Plus as an added benefit, scheduling these at slower times of the day will help sales. Trivia, local artists, yoga events along myriad other events are all excellent ways to keep customers coming in as well. Events form a feedback loop of social media activity, give you an opportunity to capture your customers' interaction with your brewery, and are melting pots for new ideas in community involvement. While the craft beer market continues to grow it is hard to grow your business solely relying on a great tasting brew. Events also help embrace the local uniqueness and offer the opportunity to invite partners to boost your geographical reach whilst making stronger bonds with other small businesses.

Highlight what makes your brand unique:

There are two main ways to highlight the uniqueness of your brand, gain trust and establish your message. These are content marketing and branded content. Knowing the basic differences between these two will help your overall marketing strategy by making your vision more focused and easier to communicate.

Branded Content:

Branded content is rooted in storytelling as a tool to immerse your audience by demonstrating interactions with your brand or demonstrating how the product feels entertainingly. This results in the audience thinking about the brand and typically results in immediate action from the customer. It feels less like a sale and more like watching your favorite TV show or an entertaining video on social media. For example, we produced this video featuring Salty Turtle’s Manila Mango to reflect the boldness of this IPA.

Content Marketing:

Content marketing by contrast is a long-term strategy that aims directly at loyalty by helping customers find a solution to a problem. Content marketing is a multi-pronged approach that uses articles, videos, infographics, webinars, and events to build trust. For example, the clip below is the first episode of a series that we are producing for Quiet Waters Realty Group where they highlight businesses. This video is informative and positions Quiet Waters as a local guide. This video is also a part of the broader marketing ideas described above where collaboration expands your reach. This series will also function as indirect content marketing for the businesses being interviewed.

How can I increase my brewery sales with video marketing?

You’ve got events, a great community presence, your Facebook and Instagram pages show good responses, and you have a clear goal. You produce fine brews and have the main ingredients to tell your story. The camera on your phone is producing impactful and captivating content daily. You are using all the backstory from building a small business as an integral part of your marketing story. You are hitting all the basic checks and it looks like you are trending upwards but, you know there is still more market to be acquired and more potential in the future if you do so. A powerful and unique video campaign showcasing your brand, the character of each delicious brew you produce, and your continued involvement with the very community that brought life to your craft brewery is undoubtedly, a powerful next step in the life of your business. Today you might be starting off your journey into the growing market of craft brewing or well on your way to building a bigger production facility, perhaps even past that point. If you are ready to push your craft brewery to the next level with an engaging video or a long-term video campaign, reach out now!

Please check our portfolio out here, and if you are interested in some of the behind-the-scenes or inner workings of producing and advertisement related to craft breweries please check our blog out.

If you have any questions about this or other works leave a comment below, we would love to start a conversation. Please check out our Facebook, Youtube, and Instagram. Stay creative!