4 out of 5 Taprooms Aren’t Doing This

In an era where hospitality is a buzzword and every business is fighting for your dollar, loyalty matters. Many breweries once saw big beer as the competition. Then other breweries. But today, your competition is anywhere a guest could choose to spend their time and money.

So what can you do to consistently become their top choice?

Despite loyalty being a vital ingredient in a brewery’s success, taproom staff are not doing a good job of making guests aware of their loyalty programs. Only one in five staff members asks guests if they would like to join a brewery’s loyalty or rewards program. Only twenty out of 100. That means 80 out of 100 guests leave without even being invited to become a super fan.

And it should not just be about asking guests to sign up. It should be about giving them a reason they want to sign up.

Let’s think about how we may have been framing it, and then how we could be:

Scenario 1
“Hey Andrew, would you like to sign up for our loyalty program?”
Not very compelling. Most people already know what a loyalty program is, but asking like this does not tell me why it matters to me. I give you my email and get nothing special in return. The brewery is the hero. I am just completing a form.

Scenario 2
“Hey Andrew, if you sign up for our rewards program today, you will get $5 off your next pint, an exclusive brewery shirt, 15 percent off future purchases, and invites to special releases and events.”
Much more exciting. Now I see how signing up benefits me. I get to save money. I get access to perks others do not. I get to unlock something. I become the hero of my own taproom experience.

The difference is simple.
In Scenario 1, the brewery is asking for something.
In Scenario 2, the guest is winning something.

Take a quick 30 seconds to review the benefits guests receive by joining your loyalty or rewards program. Then build a short pitch that makes it hard for them to say no. Give your guests a clear win and they will want to come back.

We see it every day in Secret Hopper data. Guests who join a loyalty or rewards program are more likely to visit again, tip more, and spend more. When you give guests a clear win, they give you another chance to serve them. Invite them to become the hero and watch what happens next.

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¹ The data was collected from a set of 1406  unique taproom visits from January 1, 2024 to August 23, 2025. Each tab represents 2 guests and includes tax and tip.