Shared Spirits, Author at Liquid to Lips Marketing.

Live music, comedy, and craft spirits lovers are target of new entertainment collaboration

Nextupatthemic.com recently announced the launch of a series of virtual events and live music, comedy, and craft spirits lovers are target of new entertainment collaboration. The new effort is an online platform designed to continually provide attendees fun, memorable, and most importantly, COVID-Free evenings of entertainment. Included in the ticket price? Great drinks (direct shipped to each Attendee), music, and comedy all while enjoyed safely in the comfort of their own homes. From the Founder Nextupatthemic.com CEO and Co-Founder Kevin Caron described the purpose of the virtual events this way. “In the age of COVID-19, there are 250 comedy clubs and 2500…

By Shared Spirits

Would 150 Bottles Sold Next Month Matter to Your Craft Brand?

Seems like an obvious answer would come from this question. Would 150 bottles sold next month matter to your craft brand? It doesn't seem to matter to many online retailers this writer is contacting? Shared Spirits is heavily involved in a significant new virtual (online) entertainment project involving spirits, music, and comedy. I'm seeking on behalf of the project interesting craft expressions of whiskey, rum, bourbon, tequila, and perhaps gin. American scotch types are an option as well. The problem? I can't seem to get online retailers with the ability to ship to my future 150 plus monthly customers to…

By Shared Spirits

A Look at Online Cocktail Competitions

Many of us in the spirits, wine, and beer marketing world are taking a look at online cocktail competitions. We have had talks with hospitality and entertainment pros. There is a consensus. Large group gatherings are a year away. After doing some research, we found there is a shortage of virtual events featuring bartenders. Agencies should be promoting bartenders in virtual contests as part of the promotion of liquor and wine brands. In most cases, online events appear to be outgrowths of organizers being forced to move a previously scheduled event into a virtual format. Here's one example. The bartender/mixologist…

By Shared Spirits

The Future of Virtual Tastings. My top five predictions.

Many of us have taken part in what I call the future of virtual tastings. These online experiences, primarily on Zoom, are sometimes informative, fun, and a welcome diversion. It's time to share the future of virtual tastings and my top five predictions. Do they take the place of being side by side and across the table from someone interesting? Not yet. That may come. My best online experiences around cocktails and wine have been the impromptu "happy hours" arranged with another couple. We FaceTime or Zoom and have a fun conversation like we would at one another's home or…

By Shared Spirits

Build Your Brand With Strategy, Not Tactics

Strategic frameworks around brand building are more important now than ever before. The questions you ask are more important than the answers. You must build your brand with strategy, not tactics. As a spirits, wine, or beer brand owner or supplier, you need to pivot in today's marketplace. The six-paths framework from Blue Ocean Strategy will be helpful in your product and market development. “Note the objective is to adopt trends and then ultimately SHAPE them.“ In looking at trends across time let us first qualify what constitutes a trend. A trend will significantly shape what buyers value over time.A…

By Shared Spirits

Meet the Founders of Kentucky’s First Black-Owned Spirits and Wine Distributorship

Liquid to Lips Marketing CEO and Co-Founder had the honor of chatting with Kelvin Young Jr. and DJuan Ditto, the founder of Kentucky's first black-owned spirits and wine distributorship. You read it right. It took till 2020. I've known Kelvin for some time now and have tracked he and his business partner Djuan's incredible journey through building a company that qualifies for licensing. This is a federally and state level regulated industry. It's complex. The grit it takes to form a business and meet certain requirements well before one can expect revenue opportunities of any kind is commendable. Check out the…

By Shared Spirits

Does Your SWAG Spend Lead to Real ROI?

Not a complicated question really. Does your SWAG spend lead to real ROI? Do the hats, drink holders, bottle openers, and bar tools your agency convinced you to buy actually lead to measurable sales for you? In 2011, 29% of $3.45 billion in marketing dollars went to point of sale promotional items. In today's world of COVID-19 do you even have accounts that want the stuff? Learn more about our TAG for SWAG Points Program. We have technology and systems that add your merchandise into an online inventory. We share a portion of that in visible ways in a SWAG…

By Shared Spirits

You May Want to Run a Virtual Cocktail Club?

How do you grow influence, build connections, and reinforce relationships during COVID-19 and after? You may want to run a virtual cocktail club. Many of us were doing networking luncheons, going to after work happy hours, and attending post workday networking events prior to March 2020. Those things are so 2019! The networking world is more viable via virtual meetings than you may realize. Liquid to Lips Marketing is a spirits, wine, and beer marketing company. We have been coordinating spirits, wine, and beer club type events for years. So, why would you want to run a virtual cocktail club? If…

By Shared Spirits

Writing Bartenders Wanted

Why would a spirits, wine, and beer post writing bartenders wanted? Creative bartenders should spend this time in history to build a personal brand. Liquid to Lips Marketing has invested heavily in technology that will serve bartenders with brands well when on-premise spirits, wine, and beer spending starts again. What opportunities exist now? Virtual events are significantly growing. Some agencies that served brands on key on-premise campaigns have been slow to navigate these new opportunities. For the writing bartender, posting thoughtful content on our platform, opportunities will come. Brands are showing a willingness to support bartenders in creative ways. How so?…

By Shared Spirits

Campaigns for Spirits Brands Should be Measurable

When Shared Spirits sought to bring technology to the market, we felt campaigns for spirits brands should be measurable. It's interesting. Brands have known about our work but still found it difficult to justify measuring their campaigns in truly accountable ways. It's as though decision makers in the spirits and wine world don't really want to know the truth about their marketing activities. Marketing in the spirits space hasn't been strategic. It's been more of a carpet bomb philosophy. "If I spend it this way, the brand's case counts will go up." The real definition of success? Shouldn't the real…

Author: Shared Spirits