Recently, a major brand ambassador stopped into our establishment, as he was in town promoting a new product in their line. I will not say which one, as it is irrelevant. The host venue for his product demo was a new ‘hot spot’ in a trendy, developing district. From a short-sited marketing perspective, I can quasi-justify why this venue was chosen for the demo: It is a new, hip place with a comparatively large capacity for our market, so the opportunity to maximize exposure seems plausible. The problem is that the target demographic of the host establishment is a bunch of college-aged hipsters who, demographically speaking, will never turn around and call out (or purchase off-premise) a premium, craft spirit.

Our establishment, on the other hand, only seats 25. I can certainly understand why we are not even on the radar of major brand promotion tours. The irony, however, is that on any given night, our place is filled with a clientele that is extremely likely to call out for premium brands, and purchase premium spirits off-premise. I voiced my curiosity about why a major brand would want to just show up and hand out free drinks to a large number of people who will never actually purchase their product vs. focusing on target consumers, albeit in smaller numbers. The brand ambassador was extremely professional, and equally frustrated with the same issue. I see this as a tremendous opportunity for USBG chapters to initiate a dialog that transcends the three-tier system for everyone’s benefit.

I encourage all chapters to aggressively invite reps to meetings. Give them the advantage of knowing who is good (and passionate) at selling what. Discuss events that have real, exponential power to boost sales, as opposed to just showing up an giving away free product with no future return. Take time to understand their structure, and the pressures that they deal with to appease their superiors. If there is opportunity for improvement in reaching a consumer base, communicate that to your reps, and encourage them to communicate those ideas to those above them. Will every idea be followed up on? No. Are there a lot of deaf ears in every industry, including ours? Yes. Regardless of those facts, the process of change starts with conversation.

As bartenders, we are the conduit between producers and consumers. We are an incredible resource for producers, as we are the gatekeepers in introducing new products (and how to use them) to our respective markets. In many ways, however, the three tiers are operating independently with ideals and axioms that don’t necessarily align. This results in an industry that is functioning far below its potential, especially when it comes to premium spirits. If you have an idea for an ad campaign for a brand, pitch it. Share how you are using products with your reps. Be part of a collaborative, educational effort that creates a rising tide that lifts all boats. Not only will this strategy help to create a more cohesive effort between the tiers, it will also necessarily result in making connections that will expand individual, professional networks.

Here is one idea for an incentive program:

As bartenders, many of us share a competitive spirit. What if, instead of crap swag that we are all too familiar with, major brands offered one large prize per market (or region) based on sales? To make it fair, the contest would have to be based on a sales to capacity ratio. So…for example…instead of Brand X wasting serious money and product on demos and swag, they pool those funds to purchase a fun and educational trip for the bartender in the market (or region) who, per-capita, sells the most of their product? Not only do you create incentive for your most powerful sales people (bartenders), you reward them with a trip that makes them even better at selling your product (to the distillery, or brewery, or sugarcane plantation, or agave field, or whatever). Thoughts?

What ideas do YOU have? Cheers!