Hops, Barley and Tweets: How Social Media Has Changed the Craft Beer Industry

by Alex Repola
February 18, 2014

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Maryland resident and bride-to-be Kristin Mick needed a little help picking out the beers she wanted served at her wedding.

She didn't go speak to a local bartender or take her questions to a beer retail store. Instead, she logged into Twitter and went right where she knew she could get a helpful answer: One of her favorite breweries.

Mick fired off her question via Twitter to the account of Bell's Brewery in Kalamazoo, Mich. And within a few minutes, Bell's responded with some suggestions.

Bell's is just one brewery that is taking full advantage of social media in an attempt to bolster its business, and it's working.

The craft beer industry is exploding in the United States. According to the Brewer's Association, in 2012, craft brewers sold over 13 million barrels of beer in 2012, up from about 11.5 million in 2011. So, even while beer production overall is down, craft brewers are thriving.

In other words, as the craft beer landscape becomes more crowded with brewers, just producing a quality product is no longer enough to ensure success. For many breweries, that is where a social media presence has set them apart. 

New Belgium Brewing in Fort Collins, Colo. boasts a Twitter following of almost 200,000 people, and it uses that reach not only to give news about special releases and happenings around the brewery, but also to connect fans of their brews. It's not uncommon to see the New Belgium account retweeting photos of from around the country enjoying one of their beers.

To those active in social media, those kinds of interactions are what breeds brand loyalty, not the ad campaigns of years past.

Terrapin Beer Company Co-Founder John Cochran touched on this in an interview with Digital Relativity.

"I don’t think most craft brewers have eschewed marketing," Cochran said. "It’s more a case of what the old guard considers 'marketing' is not the best way to reach our core audience. Remember, craft beer is still only 5% of the overall beer market. So buying a bill board or running a TV ad are not effective ways to reach the Millennial generation. Hence the connection between craft beer and social media."

In addition to Twitter, craft brewers have been using Facebook and Instagram to build their social media presences as well.

Sun King Brewing in Indianapolis is a great example of a brewery that uses Instagram to not only show off its products, but to do it in a way that invites consumer interaction. Sun King's photo stream is filled with photos of people drinking their beer at Colts games, Pacers games and at local concerts. And the photos all have comments from other Sun King fans. Instead of just pushing their product, social media has give them the chance to build an interactive relationship with their customer.

In Chicago, Ben Finch was so confident in social media, he didn't even put a sign up at his brewery, Finch's Beer Co. Instead, he used Facebook and Twitter to build buzz, and he worked with local bars, giving the watering holes shout-outs with a "Daily Social Love" post. Even before his beer was ready to be shipped, he was building relationships with his future partners and customers. Finch told Entrepreneur that social media had to be a big focus in the craft brewing industry.

"From day one I decided that a lot of the marketing effort would be focused on social media," Finch said. "When you look at how beer brands are marketed, the big ones may do a lot through other media, but that is not an option for a craft brewery. It wasn't an economic decision--it was just the best way for us to build a hard-core following."

The craft beer industry is booming right now. In fact, as of June 2013, there were over 2,500 breweries operating in the United States. And the successful ones likely have at least two things in common: the are making great beer and they are using social media.

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photo credit: federica.piersimoni via photopin cc

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