The ready-to-drink cocktail industry is exploding, offering a new era of innovation for those looking for lighter, more drinkable beverages. Giving your craft cocktails a life outside the distillery can create a significant source of revenue and increase your brand awareness. And getting started is simpler than you think.
Seltzers and beer are frequently chosen over cocktails because they are available in cans, offering convenience. Using the Oktober Can Seamer, RTDs can be captured in a can in seconds. Starting to offer your craft in cans will increase your sales and empower you to take advantage of off-premise opportunities without compromising the quality of your product.
The Easy Upsell
Craft cocktails in cans are a great option for a customer who might not commit to purchasing a bottle of spirits but would be comfortable taking home something that requires no bartending skills. You can prepare popular cocktails and can them in one session, use your draft system on demand, or create those one-of-a-kind requests and can them instantly in front of the customer.
Post a “Cocktails To-Go Sold Here” sign on your door and a visible price list. Together these could pull in a customer who might not have planned to come in and sit at the bar. If your area allows public open containers in general, make sure your customers know they can take an open can with them.
Emphasize the Artistry
Make your cans stand out as a point of conversation. Can label design is a great way to highlight the handcrafted element of your product to customers. You can spotlight the intentionality and story of the cocktail through the design and can size. And unlike a plastic to-go cup, cans can serve as brand awareness at events and social districts.
Designs that soar in popularity may end up impacting your overall brand direction. Because cans are typically purchased in smaller quantities than production filled cans, it’s a great opportunity to try new things and see what sticks.
Oktober offers custom-labeled cans in low quantities, even accommodating multiple label designs in the same order. If you’re starting out and don’t want to commit to one label or type of cocktail, you could start with a label that is all about your brand story and leaves room for the bartender to write in the date, name of the cocktail, and enjoyment instructions.
You can channel the energy on social networks by posting images of your cans along with to-go deals and exclusive offerings. If there is an outdoor drinking-friendly event in your area, craft a special option for take-out only or design a limited-edition label specifically for the event. Reposting fan content featuring your cocktails increases awareness of your to-go program and your brand in general.
Canning Your Craft
The Oktober can seamer is quiet, sleek, and smaller than your commercial coffee maker. Its plug-and-play design makes it easy to operate, clean, and train bartenders to master in seconds. Most people never consider how beverages end up fully enclosed in an aluminum cylinder. Placing the machine in a visible location can attract “what does that thing do?” questions that often end in a sale. Making a show of the process can add value to an otherwise common commodity. Educating customers in real time with a unique personal experience creates an impression. Your machine can become part of the bar’s aesthetic, with custom colors and wraps available to reinforce your branding and look sleek in your online promotions.
When selecting can sizes for your take-home options, you should consider both impact and practicality. Cans like 8 oz sleeks, 12 oz, or 12 oz sleeks are ideal for last-minute impulse purchases and provide flexibility for customers who want to diversify their selections. In addition, they allow you to explore the potential of to-go packs. Create 4- or 6-packs of 8 oz sleek cans, allowing customers to curate their own selections. Many distilleries have found the 19.2 oz can size to be ideal for a two-serving cocktail, perfect for sharing the most popular offerings. The Oktober Model 8 Can Seamer, which swiftly transitions between sealing different can sizes, enables you to offer a variety of options with the efficiency of just one machine. Oktober Can Seamers offers a simple ordering guide with resources to help you choose the right can size and can seamer.
Oktober Can Seamers has all the tools you need to start offering ready-to-drink cocktails. Check out how Luna Restaurants in Grand Rapids, Michigan, has reached new customers and added revenue with their RTD canned-cocktail offerings.
Don’t limit where your cocktails can be enjoyed. Get ready to increase your revenue, grow brand awareness, and give guests the chance to enjoy your craft cocktails or zero-proof cocktails wherever their summer takes them.
Article originally posted May 23, 2024 on SpiritsandDistilling.com.