Craft beer marketing idea of the week: Switchyard Brewing’s Tipsy-Grams for Valentine’s Day

I admit I am a sucker for a nostalgic idea, especially one updated to now include beer. So, shout out to Switchyard Brewing, which is bringing back the idea of the ‘candy-gram’ and promoting the delivery of Tipsy-Grams this Valentine’s Day. Customers can choose from a crowler of beer or a bottle of wine and add on a box of chocolates or a Switchyard Gift Card. The Switchyard team will then package it up and deliver it with a personalized note and carnation. My heart is melting and my mouth is watering already.

“Awesome ideas can come from anyone within our organization – in this case, the Tipsy-Gram idea came from our Kitchen Manager, Jason Tait and our Spring 2021 Private Events Intern from Indiana University, Cat Brown executed the plan,” says Kurtis Cummings, founder and president at Switchyard Brewing Co. “Our team is super strong, able to pivot on a dime, executes new ideas quickly (and well!), and is one of the reasons why we have been able to survive COVID-19.”

How are they handling deliveries? 

“In the state of Indiana, breweries are permitted to deliver beer directly to the customer, thanks to the Indiana Brewers Guild’s proactive approach to working with our state’s legislature,” Cummings tells us. “All of our delivery drivers are employees at the brewery, so they already hold a valid ATC Serving Permit, and by statute. Just like when a customer orders a beer at their table or at the bar, we physically verify ID with anyone who is accepting the beer – or in the case of a Tipsy-Gram, the delivery. 

“We have had some instances where customers thought that they could just tape their photo ID to their front door and request “contactless” delivery. Unfortunately, this just isn’t possible as we are legally required to verify that someone over the age of 21 is accepting the delivery. So it’s really no different than serving a beer to someone over the bar, we just happen to be at their front door.”