Mug Clubs

[Sauce]

Love'm? Hate'm?

Worth the trouble starting one in a established brewpub?


Any thoughts would be appreciated before I "pitch' the idea....or launch the skeet


thanks...and bababooey to you'all

JackK

[StitchJones]

I think mug clubs are a great idea. It gives your customers a feeling of being a part of the place. Let's face it, people are "joiners" and if you give them the opportunity to feel they are members of an exclusive club they will eat it up. Guys will bring their friends in so they can show off. Having that Mug Club card in their wallet reminds them of your establishment ever time they pay for something. Plus you can charge them for being in the club! I think it's a win-win situation.

[skotrat]

Mug Clubs are a great idea

Hi,

Mug Clubs make you feel welcome as a customer... Even if you are not a 3-5 night a week visitor..

It also tends to get you better service at the bar if you are just there to eat and relax.

It really made a big difference to me on the road.

It is afterall about making the customer experience something to remember and want to come back for again and again.

-Scott

[beauxman]

I think you should do it, but do it right. Both brewpubs I have worked for did this and I have seen how it builds loyal guest and a following for your beers. It is a great way to get the guest involved, if you choose to make that happen. We have mug club parties every two months or so. We coordinate with the kitchen and produce a special meal and then do a special beer (cask, dry hop, pre-release seasonal tasting, ect). We now have to expand our club due to overwhelming demand, which is a good spot to be in, our guest demanding more! Seems like there really is no way to lose unless you don't want to fool with a few extra hours of making your "heavy users" happy! These people will promote your brewery (if the beer is good) on a daily basis, in some cases. If you get into it, they will too. If you half-ass it, then it is gonna show and the guest won't get behind it.

[CallerFromLA]

Devil's Advocate

I'll play Devil's Advocate here. I've run two brewery restaurants - one with a stein club and one without a stein club. People are not charged for being in the stein club.

The advantage of having a stein club is that people do feel like they are part of an extended family.

The disadvantages:
- Other guests may feel like they are not getting the same reception and service as the regulars
- Deciding who is in and who is out can be a hassle. ("But my brother comes in every once in a while, can't he get in the stein club?" "Hey, I know I'm not here often, but I spend $xxx, which is a lot to me - let me in the club!")
- During busy times (management transitions, holiday season), it is easy to lose focus on stein clubs, and those regulars WILL notice the lack of focus.
- Administration time to track new and old members (a small disadvantage)
- One more type of glassware you have to inventory and order (a small disadvantage) Be very careful deciding to get names printed on the mugs, as you may soon have 1/2 of your mugs just sitting around without any use, taking up valuable space.

There are other ways to make your regulars feel welcome. Knowing their names, families, and favorite drinks to setting up group dinners for them. I prefer to have some sort of 'regulars club', but I would rather not use steins or special glassware for them. But I like positioning my brewery restaurants with higher-end restaurants, and they surely do not have an equivalent of a stein club.

Another way to look at it. For regulars, think: What Would Vegas Do?


Cheers,
--CallerFromLA

[Larry Horwitz]

Just a note: lots of great software out there to manage your mug club. Ours integrates with our POS and is super...also, one of our biggest goals is to get repeat visits from current customers (easiest place to drive sales) and the mug club is perfect for that.

[RaySherwood]

Software

What software are you using for that? And what POS system does it work with?

Ray

[Larry Horwitz]

Customer loyalty add on for Digital Dinning. it rocks. install was a bit rocky, but it does tons of cool stuff....tracks customers and their spending habits. Automaticly prints rewards (pos spits out coupon when members spend a certain amount...for us it's 25$coupon for every $300 spent) also tracks guest preference, name etc. this info comes up when a server or bt swipes the guests member card at our pos. uses same card readers as cc so the integration is almost seamless. not cheap, but for us well worth it!