Credit card processing fees can eat away at your brewery's profits, but expert Patrick MacLellan from Merchant Cost Consulting shows how you can save an average of 20% on these costs without changing your current processor or disrupting operations.

Summary
• 3 main fee components: interchange charges from card brands, processor markups, and miscellaneous fees
• Why most businesses are overpaying – processing statements are deliberately confusing and contracts often allow price changes without notice
• How processors typically adjust pricing three times per year, slowly increasing your costs
• The truth about POS systems that bundle processing with their software solutions
• How to identify bogus fees like non-PCI compliance charges that can be eliminated
• Pros and cons of customer surcharges and how to implement them legally
• Contract considerations including early termination fees and auto-renewals

Visit merchantcostconsulting.com to learn more or request a free statement analysis to see potential savings.

Sign up for the FREE brewery financial training newsletter.

Today on the podcast we hear from Michael Ly, CEO of Reconciled accounting services. 

Michael and I talk about why bookkeeping is so important to your brewery business and how to evaluate outsourcing this key function.

Key Points

• Pricing and process for outsourced bookkeeping
• Common pitfalls with brewery bookkeeping
• Software tools to keep the financials running smoothly
• Financial standard operating procedures

Resources

• Learn more about outsourcing your brewery bookkeeping with Reconciled
• Get the FREE brewery financial training newsletter

Today on the podcast you'll hear the audio version of our brewery financial round table meeting. 

Our financial round table is a place to ask questions, get answers, share ideas and best practices.

In this episode, we explore tactics, tips and strategies to increase customer traffic, grow average check size, and encourage repeat visitors.

Key Points

• 5 specific action steps taproom staff can take to increase profits (with special Guest Star Andrew Coplon from Secret Hopper)
• 5 things you could be doing to grow the bottom line (but probably aren't)
• Taproom key metrics scorecards and best practices to transform financial results

Resources

• Join the network of brewery owners and managers focused on improving financial results
• Get the FREE brewery financial training newsletter

Jon Reynolds from Brew Plan joins us today to talk strategic planning and keys to marketing success for breweries. 

At Brew Plan, Jon works with brewery owners on pricing strategy, market analysis, concept development, and sales forecasting.

Summary

• Biggest brewery marketing mistakes...and how to avoid them
• Customer buying trends and how breweries can position their brands for success
• Specific marketing tactics that really move the needle for small/mid-size breweries

Resources

• Connect with Jon Reynolds, [email protected]
• Get the free brewery financial training newsletter

Today on the podcast you'll hear the audio version of our brewery financial round table meeting. 

This month we focus on how to how to analyze your financial statements to unlock profitable opportunities.  

In our monthly workshops, brewery owners and managers share ideas and best practices to improve profits and cash flows. To join our membership or learn more, visit the Beer Business Finance Association. 

Summary

• How to use financial trend analysis to spot problems with gross margins
• Simple break-even analysis tools
• Tactics to present the income statement on a "per barrel" basis

Resources

• Get the free brewery financial training newsletter
• Learn more about our network of brewery owners and managers

Today on the podcast we reveal the Secret Formula to Create a Successful Brewery with Jake Lohse, founder of Presidential Brewing Company. 

Jake is the author of the book Shifting Gears, and founder of the Legendary Success Academy. 

Summary

• The 4 key factors to a successful brewery
• Creative funding for a start-up brewery
• Strategies to bring guests back to your taproom again and again

Resources

• Connect with Jake, [email protected]
• Listen to the first podcast with Jake: Ultimate Road Map to Create Your Legendary Brewery
• Grab the FREE brewery financial newsletter

For the first time, in a long time, more breweries are closing than opening. 

One of the success factors for breweries that survive and thrive vs. those who do not, is a feasibility study. 

Jon Reynolds from Brew Plan Marketing specializes in feasibility studies, market research, and data gathering. 

In today's podcast, Jon shares trends, growth areas, and the details of how to build a feasibility study for brewery success.  

Summary 

• What a feasibility study is and why it's important
• 7 benefits of market analysis
• Resource run-down of brewery data to make informed decisions

Resources

• Connect with Jon Reynolds from BrewPlan Marketing, [email protected]
• Grab the FREE brewery financial planning newsletter

Today on the podcast we hear from Bob Higgins of P3 Cost Analysts. Bob and his team specialize in identifying and reducing over-spending in your business. 

We talk all things expense management, cost reduction strategies, and share ideas on how your brewery can save money.  

Highlights

• Bob's process for identifying and eliminating unnecessary expenses 
• Biggest cost-saving opportunities that companies commonly overlook
• The most surprising savings P3 has been able to secure for clients
• Trends in business expenses today, and where breweries will need to focus their cost-saving efforts in the future

Resources

• Connect with Bob, [email protected]
• Get the free brewery financial training newsletter

This month in our brewery financial round table meeting we take a deep dive into financial standard operating procedures.

Financial SOPs help you create complete, timely, and accurate financial statements so that you can make better business decisions.

Highlights from our session:

• Use this hack: Rather than writing out a long SOP, use a screen recorder and show how the process is done
• Follow a simple SOP template: Define the goal of the SOP, define how success will be measured, identify a responsible person
• Grab this Inventory Management SOP template

Join the conversation with your membership to the Beer Business Finance Association. Monthly financial workshops, access to a library of financial training courses, and network with owners and managers in the beer industry. 

In today's podcast we review the Top 12 Financial Challenges facing Craft Breweries. 

This list was assembled by our network of brewery owners and managers in the Beer Business Finance Association.

In the podcast, I review each challenge and provide one thing you can do right now to help overcome the difficulty in your beer business. 

The Top 12 Challenges:

1. Cost management. How to implement cost controls and identify areas for cost reduction
2. Benchmarking and KPIs. How do we measure up against our peers?
3. Budgeting. How do we help managers own their budget?
4. Employee retention. What can we do to provide more competitive wages and benefits?
5. Succession Planning. How do we thoughtfully implement a succession plan?
6. Gross profit management. What are best practices to actively manage margins?
7. Mergers and acquisitions. How do we evaluate a potential acquisition? 
8. Sales compensation. How do we "re-imagine" sales comp to create a system that rewards the right behaviors?
9. Operational efficiencies. How do we achieve improvements in this area and what are best practices?
10. Financial planning. What are the best tools to automate the process?
11. Building a better culture. How do we break down silos across locations and departments so we can operate as one company with a common vision?
12. Financial training. How do we increase financial literacy and understanding of the business?

Resources

• Get the free brewery financial training newsletter - financial tips and tactics to help you run a successful beer business