Brand Ambassadors for Your Bar
The term “regulars”, used to describe folks that frequent your bar, uh, frequently is an adjective everyone understands. Another way to say this would be “brand ambassador”. While this phrase may not be as readily associated with bar fly’s, if you think about it from a marketing perspective, it makes sense. While companies like Puma pay Usain Bolt big money to be big time brand ambassadors, you can lean on your regulars to amplify the presence of your bar without breaking the bank.
Finding Them
Now, not just any patron you consider a regular fits the bill here. You need to filter a bit first. Some important qualities to look for are an upbeat personality combined with a good understanding of and interest in social media like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. If you can’t think of anyone that would fill these shoes, you could promote the fact that you’re searching for brand ambassadors via posters and word-of-mouth from your servers. We’ll talk about why someone might be interested in this role below.
Why Should They Participate
Incentivizing a craft beer fan to spend more time at your craft beer bar should be as easy as, well, the easiest thing you’ve ever done. You’re basically asking he or she to get the word out on your bar in exchange for things that don’t cost you much in the time or budget department. The options are endless but to get you started, official brand ambassadors could receive – a free pint once a week, a free meal once a month or the opportunity to choose a special beer on tap periodically – in exchange for their service which we’ll get into below. Be sure to make a big deal out of what your regulars are receiving in order to encourage participation from other, potential brand ambassadors waiting in the wings.
Their Role
Once you’ve got your brand ambassadors on board, it’s time to put them to work! Those qualities you were looking for originally will come into play here. An outgoing, bubbly demeanor combined with some social media savvy will go a long way towards you not having to spend too much time resource here. All you’re asking these “official fans” to do is share your story with their world. If you’re using TapHunter, every time you update your drinks list, TapHunter automatically posts the details to Twitter and Facebook. You could ask an ambassador to retweet it on Twitter and share it on their Facebook page. You could also ask them to take photos showing off the perks you’re giving them to encourage like-minded folks to start engaging.
If you can identify a core group of regulars that are coming to your bar already, turning them into brand ambassadors is an easy way to leverage the reasons they keep coming back. It will allow you to build your team, so to speak, without having to actually hire employees. So, look for those positive personalities with skills on social media who are likely to respond well to your bar-perks-in-exchange-for-ambassadorial-activities arrangement.
Bars and Restaurants – Want to save hours daily, drive thirsty patrons through your door and create an engaging experience for your customers? Learn more about how TapHunter can help your business today!
