Boonville Beer Festival – Steve Miller – BB007

Branding Brews Podcast

Boonville Beer Festival and Branding at Festivals with Steve Miller of Anderson Valley Brewing Co. Steve Miller is the "Steinber Kimmie" (or "Beer Guy") for AVBC. He handles marketing, advertising, social media, and sales for the brewery. Find Steve online: Twitter: @SteinberKimmie // Email: socialbrew[at]avbc.com Anderson Valley Brewing Co.: www.avbc.com // Twitter: @avbc // Instagram: @andersonvalleybrewing Beer festivals are a great opportunity for any brewery to spread and strengthen their brands. It really gives you an opportunity to talk one-on-one with beer lovers that may not have had your beer. One of the "bucket list" beer festivals is the Boonville Beer Festival set in the beautiful Anderson Valley, CA. Steve has worked with Anderson Valley Brewing Co. and the beer festival over the years to help promote it and help make sure many festival things run well. Here are some key takeaways for running a beer festival, or participating in a beer festival Have someone knowledgeable about your beer pouring, if at all possible. If you can tell folks about your beer it will be much more memorable and interesting. Be aware of how many breweries you have in comparison to attendees. Too few breweries will result in long lines. Unlimited tasting, if possible, is much easier for the breweries pouring and the attendees. No need to worry about tracking or selling drink tokens. Get a good variety of food. People will want to eat! If you can, get a variety of good vendors selling other goods. Make it the best possible experience for the breweries and other vendors attending. Consider how people will get to the festival or event. Can you provide options for camping? Transportation to and from the festival? Make sure you have plenty of ice!! Warm beer is no good. Catching attendees attention - having a sign with special beers being tapped at certain times, it will bring people back to your booth. Bring special beers for anyone that might ask about beers you may not have tapped. (for the beer nerds) Collaborations can be a great way to get people excited and start some buzz around an event.