Should breweries invest the time to have an active social media presence? The short answer is yes.

Whether you’re a small brewery just starting up or a large recognized name, social media can be used as free advertising and is an effective and immediate way to communicate with your customers. People often want to know more about their local breweries and if you take the time to engage, you can build a loyal fanbase.

Monitoring social media can be a tedious job when you’re already pressed for time running a brewery but if you can do a couple of key things, your interaction should pay off.

• Control: ensure that your social media is managed by people you implicitly trust. One impulsive or reactive tweet can damage your reputation.
• Interact with your Fans: RT’s and Favourites don’t count – reply to their questions, comments and concerns.
• Quality over Quantity: your tweets/Facebook posts should stand out – be witty, post pictures. When scrolling through one’s timeline, people need something eye-catching to make them stop and take note. Interesting content is often shared, which translates to more free advertising.

Most importantly, enjoy your time on social media connecting with your beer fans. It may be somewhat time consuming, but interacting with them will only strengthen the goodwill.

Post by: Lynn McIlwee