Infront Webworks’ Wednesday blogs focus on Colorado businesses and how an online strategy could help improve their digital presence. This week’s business is Brewer’s Republic, a small bar on N. Nevada Avenue that is doing what a lot of Colorado Springs bars should be doing: Highlighting a heavily rotating tap of Colorado beers.
As most of us know, Colorado is king of beer. At last count, our fine state had 161 breweries producing the sweet nectar of the gods for citizens of Colorado and beyond. With so many breweries and so many beer choices, every bar in the state should have a rotating tap of some kind that highlights new beer. Brewer’s Republic goes above and beyond this. They offer a vast array of rotating taps so that every time you show up to their bar, you’ll have new choices. It can be a nightmare for the indecisive, but for the adventurous beer drinker, it’s a dream come true.
My last trip to Brewer’s Republic was about a week ago. Before my visit, I did a quick Google search for what was currently on tap, but all I could find was their Facebook page with an undated menu. I was expecting more. Brewer’s Republic has something rare to Colorado Springs, and something the citizens of Colorado Springs search for: rotating taps of unique, local brews.
A lot of service-industry companies have started using Facebook or Yelp as a substitute for having their own website, but websites really allow a more immersive look into a company and allows that company to optimize for keywords that they may not be found on currently.
For example: when I Google “rotating tap handles Colorado Springs”, the Brewer’s Republic Yelp page is the second result. Their Yelp page has good ratings and talks about the tap rotation, but nowhere can you find the actual beers they have on tap. Wouldn’t it make sense to leverage great Yelp placement (and great Yelp reviews) and point users to a homepage where they can see what’s on tap, what’s in bottles and have an option to make requests?
Although there is a tap list and food menu on their Facebook page, their Yelp profile doesn’t appear to link to their Facebook page. Facebook also doesn’t seem to have a bottle list (and they have a ton of bottles).
When I begin looking for “unique beers in Colorado Springs” none of their social profiles are on the first page of results. Or the second. Or third, fourth or fifth. That’s a shame because Brewer’s Republic does, in fact, offer some of the more unique beers in the city. Having a website would allow them to optimize for those types of terms rather than being at the mercy of social networks.
While social networks are an integral piece for anyone in the food or beverage industry, it’s important to remember that they are only a piece of the puzzle, not the whole picture. While your customer base can become loud, positive advocates for you through social networks, you can also help yourself by having a properly optimized site that shows relevancy to your industry. It will convey authority, help your brand recognition and ultimately drive traffic to your location.
With new competition opening their doors all the time (like Green Man Taproom & Beer Garden, who also needs optimization help) it’s important for local business owners to make sure that their physical presence stands out from the rest as well as their digital presence.
Allan Todd is CEO of Pagecafe Digital Marketing. In 2022, Allan teamed up with Infront Webworks to provide digital marketing, website design, content marketing, SEO and strategy and solutions to local businesses. Allan lives in Colorado Springs.