5 Major Benefits of DTC Alcohol eCommerce Platforms
Alcohol brands no longer have to rely solely on physical retail stores and third-party distribution systems. DTC alcohol e-commerce platforms offer a new avenue to reach consumers, and they are changing the landscape of alcohol sales in groundbreaking ways.
As the holidays approach, expect an influx of gift purchases across the next few months — an annual event that’ll only be heightened by the post-COVID e-commerce shopping boom.
Even more so, broader delays in global supply chains are trickling down to affect availability and shipping for e-commerce brands across all segments. Our recommendation? Beat this year’s slowdown by getting a head start on your seasonal campaigns, promotions, and more.
We’ve laid out four steps below that every alcohol brand should take to beat the annual gift rush, while also maximizing the profitability and potential of this concentrated shopping period.
Step One: Time Blocking
First, you can start building out a major messaging campaign by looking ahead on your calendar and selecting key dates to lay out a time frame from early November up until Christmas.
Specifically, we recommend blocking out three primary phases for your campaign delivery.
Pre-Black Friday
By pushing messaging campaigns out as early as mid-November, you’re gearing folks up for the holiday season around the corner, as well as letting potential buyers know to keep an eye out for a promotion in the works.
More importantly, you’re setting your brand up to start the season on a strong note — and to not get caught unprepared by the sudden arrival of Thanksgiving crunchtime.
Thanksgiving & Late November
From Thanksgiving onward, particularly that first weekend including Black Friday, you’ll want to host and advertise some kind of actionable event, i.e. a special release or promotional discount, to jumpstart customers into their seasonal shopping cycles.
Cutoffs for Christmas
Finally, you’ll want to round out the season by selecting a cutoff date for placing new orders.
Seven to 10 days before December 25th is a safe bet for buyers to receive a bottle at their door by Christmas Day, and reminders should be sent out in the days leading up to this cutoff.
In terms of the broader time crunch that’s anticipated due to global supply chain slowdowns, you should emphasize the convenience of purchasing from a domestic brand paired with the reliability that you offer for a timely, safe delivery of your product.
Step Two: Spice Up Your Specials
Once you’ve laid the initial groundwork, it’s time to elevate your campaign by crafting it into something creative and exciting for the spirit of the season.
In other words, your buyer’s inbox may be flooded by holiday deals, but you can capture their attention and help them recognize the thoughtfulness through your core brand messaging.
For instance, Far North Spirits is offering a holiday two-pack for drinks that’ll warm you up in the colder months. Imagine a whiskey, rye, or bourbon for your spicy cocktail or mulled wine.
Ultimately, you’re working with the inventory you have and considering which themed products can play into people’s holiday spirit — even better if it’s in a bundle to boost your AOV.
On the other hand, this period offers a practical opportunity to look back at the year’s releases and offload any remaining inventory through a unique discount or exclusive holiday promo.
Step Three: Ramp Up Your Promotion Game
Next, consider the tactical logistics of your promotions. After all, it can be tricky to time promo launches, depending on whether your customer pool skews toward early or late gift grabbers.
There are two general approaches you can take: 1) offering enticing deals early on to preempt other sales or 2) holding off until late in the buyer’s window to pull the trigger on your promo.
The former can snag early shoppers, or at least convince late shoppers to try an early purchase, but could also lose its appeal by mid-December when fresher deals are dropping every day.
The latter can appeal to buyers who play the long game and wait it out for the most optimal deal, but can still ultimately result in you losing out on early or average shoppers.
Ultimately, there’s no gold-standard method and you’ll need to use your judgement depending on what aligns with your brand’s target demographic, metric goalposts, and even inventory.
For instance, returning to your campaign calendar, you can skew discounts away from marking down products and toward offering cheaper, faster shipping as Christmas creeps closer.
Step Four: Email Marketing On Deck
As we pointed out in our advice for email marketing, setting up your email flow so your comms can run seamlessly is a simple yet essential step of the process that’s easily overlooked.
We recommend starting with a quick info sweep: pull last year’s seasonal purchase data and make sure that customer cohort is consistently re-engaged early on.
In turn, your team won’t be stressed out and frantically attempt to piece together the perfect layout in MailChimp just a few days before Thanksgiving — which circles back to our larger point: the holidays are a time of year with promise of high ROI for your alcohol brand.
You can utilize this opportunity to the max by planning thoroughly and creatively, not stressfully executing a last minute, makeshift campaign.
If your brand has these moving parts staged within the first weeks of November, you should be ready to hook the earliest seasonal shoppers and take full advantage of the holiday rush.
Sit Back and Enjoy the Holidays!
Once you’ve got these steps locked in — a killer campaign calendar, creative promos, and ready-to-launch email marketing — you’ll be the one leading the holiday rush, not falling behind.
Whether your user base is composed of individuals shopping for friends and family or corporate customers with high-volume needs, Accelpay is the platform of choice for your alcohol brand.
To get access to our instant storefront setup and stress-free bulk ordering, get started here.
The way we buy and sell products is rapidly changing. For the alcohol industry, one of the most significant transformations is the emergence of Direct-to-Consumer alcohol sales technology. Alcohol brands no longer have to rely solely on physical retail stores and third-party distribution systems. DTC alcohol e-commerce platforms offer a new avenue to reach consumers, and they are changing the landscape of alcohol sales in groundbreaking ways.
Building Direct Relationships with Consumers
Having a direct line of communication with your customers is invaluable. We'll explore how DTC alcohol e-commerce platforms make it easier than ever to establish and nurture these relationships.
Personalized Customer Experience
In a crowded marketplace, what sets a brand apart is its ability to offer a unique and personalized customer experience. DTC alcohol platforms make it easy for brands to understand their customers on a deeper level. In capturing and analyzing consumer data, alcohol companies can offer customized recommendations, create bespoke offers, and even suggest drink recipes. As a result, customers feel more connected to your brand, increasing not just immediate sales but long-term loyalty.
Quick Feedback Loop
Another essential advantage of direct-to-consumer alcohol sales is the speed of communication between the brand and the consumer. Traditional retail channels often create a lag in customer feedback, making it challenging to respond to consumer needs in a timely manner. Direct-to-consumer platforms for alcohol sales minimize this barrier. Brands can quickly gauge customer reactions and adjust their products or service accordingly.
Obtaining Better Data Analytics and Insights
Data is the new gold, especially in e-commerce. Leveraging direct-to-consumer alcohol sales technology, brands can mine this gold more efficiently and use it to build smarter, more effective strategies.
Customer Behavior Analysis
One of the most compelling benefits of using software for beverage companies in the DTC alcohol space is the depth of customer analytics available. Platforms are equipped to capture every customer interaction, from browsing to purchasing. Brands can gain valuable insights into customer behavior and preferences, which could be like gold dust when it comes to making informed decisions.
Real-time Data for Real-time Decisions
Alcohol e-commerce is not just about selling; it’s also about agile decision-making. When you employ a DTC alcohol e-commerce platform, real-time data becomes readily accessible. This immediacy allows your brand to adapt various strategies—from inventory management to pricing—almost instantly. Gone are the days of waiting for quarterly reports to make crucial business decisions.
Enjoying Higher Profit Margins
Profit margins are crucial for the sustainability and growth of any business. Profit isn't just about how much you earn from a sale, but also at what price you're selling. Another significant advantage of direct-to-consumer liquor sales is the ability to have full control over the product's price. In traditional sales models, brands often find themselves at the mercy of distribution channels.
These channels sometimes impose certain price points, which can restrict how a product is priced in the market. This limitation can be a challenge, especially when brands want to adjust their prices based on changing market conditions or strategic decisions. With DTC, brands aren't bound by such constraints.
They have the freedom to determine their pricing strategy, which provides them with much-needed flexibility. In essence, DTC not only lets brands react swiftly to the market's pulse but also ensures they're in the driver's seat of their financial journey.
Tailoring Marketing Strategies More Effectively
With the wealth of data at your fingertips, personalizing your marketing strategies becomes a walk in the park. Let's discuss how e-commerce solutions for alcohol brands allow for more nuanced and effective marketing campaigns.
Targeted Marketing
Remember when advertising was just one big message sent to everyone? Those days are behind us. Today, with e-commerce platforms, especially for alcohol brands, there's a goldmine of information about customers just waiting to be tapped into. These platforms provide valuable data about your customers.
This data can tell you things like where they're from, how old they are, or even what they've bought in the past. With this information in hand, you can break down your audience into smaller groups or "segments." Then, you can design marketing campaigns that are specially crafted for each group. Instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, you're communicating directly to what each segment of your audience cares about most.
A/B Testing
Have you ever had two ideas and couldn't decide which one might work better? This is where DTC platforms come into play, especially for beer sales. These direct-to-consumer beer sales platform often include a tool known as A/B testing. This tool lets you try out two different marketing messages or approaches and see which one gets a better response from your audience.
Think of it as a mini competition between two ideas. You're not just making a wild guess anymore; you're using actual data from real customers to make informed decisions. It's a practical way to refine your marketing messages and strategies, ensuring you're always putting your best foot forward.
Bypassing Traditional Distribution Channels
Traditional distribution methods are often slower and less responsive. In contrast, DTC alcohol sales technology allows for faster and more agile business operations. Here, we’ll look at the benefits of bypassing traditional channels.
Faster Time-to-Market
In a rapidly changing market, speed can be a decisive factor for success. Traditional distribution channels can slow down the process of getting a new product to market. DTC alcohol sales technology eliminates this problem by giving brands a direct line to their consumers, significantly speeding up the time-to-market for new products.
Niche Market Exploration
Traditional distributors may be wary of taking risks on niche or experimental products. However, alcohol e-commerce companies provide a unique opportunity to test the waters with smaller target markets. By taking the DTC route, brands can explore niche markets that would otherwise be overlooked, offering a pathway for innovation and new revenue streams.
Importance of Payment Processor Services in Direct-to-Consumer Alcohol Sales
Importance of Payment Processor Services in Direct-to-Consumer Alcohol Sales
Payment processing is an integral but often overlooked aspect of the Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) alcohol sales model. As more alcohol brands transition to online platforms, the need for efficient, secure, and user-friendly payment solutions becomes increasingly critical. Payment processors act as the gatekeepers between the brand and the consumer, facilitating the transaction and ensuring a smooth shopping experience.
- Age Verification - In the DTC alcohol market, age verification is a key concern. Payment processors that incorporate age-verification mechanisms not only help brands comply with legal requirements but also add a layer of credibility and trust. Customers are more likely to complete a purchase when they perceive the transaction process as secure and compliant with the law.
- Scalability - The scalability offered by payment processors is another crucial advantage. As alcohol brands expand their market reach, they need a payment system that can adapt and grow with them. Payment processors that offer multi-currency support and integrated financial reporting tools can dramatically simplify the complexities involved in international sales.
- Security - Security is a top priority for consumers when purchasing online, and this holds true in the alcohol industry as well. A payment processor that employs state-of-the-art encryption techniques ensures that sensitive customer data is protected, reducing the risk of fraud and boosting consumer confidence.
Payment processors play a critical role in the efficacy and integrity of the DTC alcohol sales model. They not only handle the financial transaction but also influence customer satisfaction and brand reputation. In an industry where credibility and compliance are of the utmost importance, choosing the right payment processing service becomes a strategic decision for any alcohol brand.
The DTC revolution in the alcohol industry isn't just a fleeting trend; it’s a fundamental shift in how alcohol brands can operate and thrive. Whether it’s building a more direct and personalized relationship with your customers, gaining access to invaluable data analytics, enjoying higher profit margins, or having the ability to tailor your marketing strategies more effectively, the benefits are manifold.
Alcohol e-commerce is no longer just an option; for brands looking to stay competitive, it’s an imperative. Embracing DTC could be the key to unlocking your brand’s full potential in the modern marketplace.
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Braxton Freeman
Grolsch
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