The global outbreak of the COVID-19 virus has caused a huge setback in the lives of everyone, including businesses. The virus is taking a toll on businesses, and breweries are no stranger to this. A lot of breweries don’t have a retail presence. That means that they only sell their beer at their taproom, or other bars, restaurants, hotels, taprooms, etc. However, due to the closure of on-premise establishments, the sale of beer in the on-premise sector has come to a pause. Yes, the off-trade market is booming right now, but as we mentioned, not all breweries have a retail presence.

For breweries that don’t have a retail presence, it’s time for you to look ahead and plan things to sustain your business. There isn’t a lot you can do right now, but what you can do is focus on direct to consumer channels.

Direct to consumer channels have gained a lot of profit in recent times, even before the pandemic. Why? Well, it’s simple really - DTC channels are easy for the consumer. Consumers are always looking for easy ways to do things, and if a click of a button online, or a simple phone call can get their favorite beer delivered to their doorstep, then that’s what they’re going to go for.

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During this time, one major way to try and get your sales back up is by switching to DTC channels. DTC channels are what will help you boost your sales, especially for those breweries who don’t have a retail presence. Even for those brands who have a retail presence, getting onto DTC channels is still the best thing as e-commerce is becoming the main screen for the alcohol industry as well.

According to Statista, in 2019, online sales of alcohol in the United States grew by 9.3% - and this number is only going to increase.

Focus on getting onto DTC websites

Online shopping has come into the limelight for a couple of years, and is now only increasing. A lot of people are shopping online right now, even for basic things such as groceries. A lot of retailers have also started delivery options. In the drinks industry, there are websites such as TapRm, Drizly, BeerExpress, and others that deliver beer straight to the consumer’s doorstep.

Of course, not all breweries have a license to sell their beers themselves, you do need a mediator, and these websites are the perfect mediator for you. Right now, when customers are going full throttle on online orders, it’s the perfect time to sign up your beers to DTC websites.

This way, you can inform your already existing customers that they can order your beer online through those websites, and with your beers being up there - you might also gain a new customer base. This will help in increasing both your sales, and your brand’s visibility (which is also a main thing to focus on right now).

So get your beers up on DTC websites, and get your sales going.

Here are a few DTC websites for your beers

• Drizly

• Bevv

• TapRm

• BeerExpress

• Craft Shack

• Tavour

• Saucey

• The Beer Connect

See if you can deliver

Self deliveries have always been a way to connect to the customer, however, in the world of beer, the right license is required. However, if you can get your brewery to deliver to your customers, then there’s nothing better than that.

In the olden days, brewery staff used to deliver beer to their customers - and maybe that’s the time that you need to go back to right now. Talk to your staff and see if they are up for making a few deliveries. If they are, then you’ve got the perfect outlet to sell.

You definitely have some loyal customers, tell them you’re offering same day delivery. When they see that their favorite beer is easily accessible to them, without them having to step out, then of course they’re going to be ordering a ton of it.

You can also spread the word of your deliveries on your social platforms, which will help in attracting customers who probably don’t know of you, or those who haven’t been ordering. Think about it this way, with your deliveries, you will be giving your customers what they want - and along with that, you will be doing relationship building as well.

The bottom line...

The bottom line is that breweries now need to focus on direct to consumer channels. Of course, one of the major reasons is the pandemic. You need to keep your sales up as none of us really know when all of this is going to come to an end. Moreover, even after your on-premise sales start going up again, people are still going to be shopping online. So, DTC channels are your saviour now, and also a solid plan for the future of your brewery/beer brand as well.