Denver Breweries Craft Success as Well as Beer With an FCMO

Known as the “Napa Valley of Beer,” the Denver metro is renowned for its excellence in craft brewery. Signature brews from the Mile High City deserve to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the most respected labels in the world.

But first, they must get the word out. Microbrews are notorious for pouring resources into perfecting their prized brews, but under-committing resources to marketing — precisely the effort that will bring their spectacular brew to the attention of the beer-drinking public.

A Denver FCMO or fractional CMO can help Denver breweries expand the awareness of their brand by implementing:

• Targeted Marketing Strategies
• Expansion of Brand Presence
• Digital Leverage
• Adaptation for Seasonal Trends and Industry Shifts

Curious to learn more about how the fractional CMO can do this? Let’s go!

Wondering what a Fractional CMO can do for your business? Watch this video below.

The Competitive Denver Craft Beer Scene

Since the first microbrew opened in Denver in 1988, the scene has exploded to over 60 craft breweries in 2024, with more to come. Denverites are spoiled for choice in terms of local brews.

With craft beer surging in popularity since the 2010s, brewers have a huge potential market both locally and globally. Beer connoisseurs love trying new brews.

But with so much noise in the market, it can be hard for a smaller brewery to rise above the din, especially with brands becoming louder — and in some cases more crass — in their attempts to grab market share from major multinational brewing interests.

Noise or crassness isn’t the answer. What Denver breweries need to break through is bespoke, surgical marketing strategy and execution.

How Fractional CMOs Help Craft Breweries

A Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) is a member of the executive C-suite responsible for marketing. CMOs tend to have significant experience, specialized knowledge, leadership acumen, and a track record of results, and their salaries reflect as much.

Large enterprises often have a full-time CMO, but Denver microbreweries tend to fall below the threshold of large enterprise. With resources committed to facilities, equipment, and brewing technicians, breweries can rarely commit to another full-time executive.

With a fractional CMO (or FCMO) they don’t have to. Fractional CMOs are experienced marketing leaders, but they help companies like breweries on a part-time contract basis — a more affordable option for many breweries.

During their contract, they provide the in-house or outsourced marketing team with leadership, strategic direction, and operational guidance — critical components that most brewery marketing operations lack. 

A fractional CMO will usually help multiple companies at a time, but most will not take on a direct competitor (i.e. another Denver brewer) so as to avoid conflicts of interest.

The Strategic Focus of Fractional CMOs for Breweries

The point of a Denver FCMO is not to get down into the weeds posting and writing ads — it’s to provide strategic focus for the technicians who execute the marketing campaigns. This strategic focus will usually include:

   1. Targeted Marketing Strategies

The data-driven age allows for razor-sharp target marketing. An FCMO can recommend digital tools that can help a brewery identify and deploy marketing to a meticulously targeted audience. Examples include:

• Beer-lovers.
• Sports fans.
• Residents within short walking or driving distance of the brewery, likely to become regulars.
• Tourists and festival-goers.
• Beverage and culinary influencers.
• Bar owners.

A Denver FCMO can help a brewery brainstorm fruitful markets and create strategies to target them. 

   2. Expansion of Brand Presence

Many breweries want to expand their footprint outside of the Denver metro and become national or international brands. Others may be content with their status as a local brand, but they would like to expand their presence and market share citywide and statewide.

Taking a local brand national is a big marketing challenge. Even carving out more market share in the robust Denver scene can be a challenge, but Denver fractional CMOs have faced similar challenges and have a playbook to succeed. 

A Denver FCMO can even be the “secret weapon” that gives an SMB brewery an advantage over competitors. 

   3. Digital Leverage

While traditional marketing channels and operational strategies can still work wonders, the leverage available from digital marketing and digital transformation can be transformative for even the smallest breweries.

Leverage available in the digital world includes:

• Automation of processes: doing more with less.
• Global outreach: the ability to send messages around the world in seconds.
• Economies of scale: the ability to accomplish a lot, quickly, with no additional effort. 
• Data collection: the ability to track and quantify everything and make data-driven decisions from the dataset.

Modern FCMOs often look for digital leverage opportunities even in traditional marketing campaigns, like with Denver event planning.

   4. Adaptation for Seasonal Trends and Industry Shifts

The brewery business is highly seasonal, dictated by holidays, milestones, seasonality of ingredients, and a variety of other factors.

The beer industry itself is subject to trend changes — for example, the recent trends toward:

• Taproom hospitality and cuisine offerings.
• Non-alcoholic offerings.
• Non-carbonated offerings. 
• Flavored beers.
• Importance of brand values.

A Denver FCMO can help a brewery identify those trends, take advantage of them, and craft seasonal marketing plans for sustained revenue to reduce “lean seasons.”

Cost-Effectiveness of Fractional CMOs for Breweries

Breweries are resource-intensive operations, with facilities and equipment to maintain, skilled labor required, and a constant influx of consumable materials. It’s no wonder that most Denver breweries don’t make the $240k+ salary commitment of a full-time CMO — and the effectiveness of their marketing suffers for it.

A Denver fractional CMO, in contrast, usually joins a brewery for a limited-time contract and charges by the hour — rarely a full-time workday or workweek. The brewery can get experienced leadership at the helm of their marketing team for a fraction of the investment. A good FCMO will even put processes in place so that the in-house marketing team can continue to succeed after their contract is up.

Fractional CMO Considerations for Breweries

A fractional CMO is a momentous step for a Denver brewery. The effectiveness of the investment depends on many factors, including: 

• Business Goals and Marketing Needs. The FCMO must be aligned with business goals (growth plans, brand values, etc.) as well as the specific marketing strengths and weaknesses of the brewery — able to augment the strengths and shore up the weaknesses.
• Finding the Right Fit. The best FCMO for a Denver brewery will be a Denver-based CMO who understands the unique culture of the Gateway To The Rockies. They will also have direct experience with and a track record of success in the brewing industry.
• Clear Communication and Expectations. At the C-level, effective communication is everything. The right FCMO for a Denver brewery will fit their communication style. They should also align on realistic expectations for marketing results. 
• Integration with Existing Teams. The FCMO may assume a leadership role for existing teams. This can be challenging; teams are often set in their ways. Change management is a skillset unto itself. Consideration must be given to smoothing the transition of leadership. 

Summing Up

When a Denver brewery crafts a masterpiece, the world deserves to know about it. The world becomes a little more delicious, and the brewery becomes a lot more profitable. 

A Denver fractional CMO can craft a marketing masterpiece for Denver breweries through strategic use of targeted marketing, digital leverage, and adaptability.

Still wondering how the strategic focus of a Denver FCMO can help your Denver craft brewery? Digital Authority Partners is here to help! Reach out to us today and we’ll connect you with an experienced Denver fractional CMO who can help you concoct the perfect recipe for success.

Or are you in the Centennial State but not in Denver? Find out what our Colorado Springs Fractional CMO can do for you!