It's the little things

We went up to the Olympics for biking and paddle boarding. On the way up we stopped at one of those little motels, probably from the ‘50’s or ‘60’s that had a good review on TripAdvisor and to be honest, as long as it is clean I’m good. However the place was so nice and comfortable, we stayed there again on our way back to Colorado.

How many of these motels are out there across our large country? Thousands I’m sure. And I would also bet that most barely break even, and are pretty sad. Yet this one was busy and we were lucky to get a reservation on our return trip. The reason I suspect is the owners attention to detail, creating return customers, and also positive reviews. It’s not like they did a major remodel with all the latest things we have come to expect when we travel. No, it was still an old motel, but spotless, and in good repair. I think however, it was the little things the owner did that stood out.

Fresh flowers picked from their own rose bushes. That cost zero. What got my attention was the coffee set up. Typically it is those plastic packages with weak coffee and the little made up packet with napkin, sugar, fake creamer, and a stir stick. Here there were filters, a cleaned jelly jar with fresh ground coffee and a scoop, two nice coffee mugs, napkins and two. real spoons. Oh, and real half and half. This set up was also less expensive than the pre-packaged stuff.

What little things can you do in your tasting room to set yourself apart from your local competition? Customers expect good beer, good service, good value, but what can you offer that is extra?

Crooked Roots Brewing has a 32 seat theater with a 20 ft. screen they let people use for free. Another, Coal Mine Avenue Brewing, has a dog park. Azalia City Brewing in Florida does the simple touch of fresh flowers in a beer bottle. See? You don’t need to do anything elaborate. Sometimes something as simple as a shelf by a toilet where a patron can place their hand bag is a nice touch. At Colorado Boy we have a gold gilded picture frame with a white screen and project onto it old commercials for toys, beer, even cigarettes, which is fun for people sitting at the bar to look at. During Halloween season, we show bad Sci-Fi from the ‘50’s.

Here are some other simple things that change it up a bit

• Make your open and closed sign on a small chalk board hung on the door, instead of a boring production sign. Add sayings to it.

• Learn your customers names. Sounds simple, but most businesses don’t emphasize this simple thing to make your regulars happy.

• Make it a rule to pick up the phone by the 2nd ring.

• Thank people for their business. Does this even need to be said? Next time you shop, see if. the person at the register says “thank you”. I bet they won’t and people deep down crave that.

• During Fresh Hop season, serve a hop leaf with your Fresh Hop IPA.

• Mini Etch-a-Sketch on a table. You can’t resist playing with it.

• Offer a Birthday Beer. We give away a 1 liter stein of beer to a customer for their birthday.

• Use your grain bags as trash bags and let your customers see them in use as an example of re-using instead of throw-away trash bags.

I will always be on the lookout for the little extra touches businesses use, so that we may steal those ideas and keep the brewery fresh. Customers appreciate the effort.