The Beer Now Conference has been around since 2010 and has traveled to over ten cities including Boulder, Boston, San Diego, Milwaukee, Tampa, Great Falls, and Asheville. It has undergone name changes, from the Beer Bloggers Conference to the Beer Bloggers & Writers Conference to Beer Now. We ran and then stopped a sister European Beer Bloggers Conference. We have had half a dozen different staff work on this conference over the last 11 years. We have had thousands of Alumni, speakers, and sponsors and want to thank you for your support over the years.
Our Current Status
The pandemic was extremely tough on events. We canceled all our 2020 events once the pandemic hit and are only running two of our five conferences in 2021. We lost two of our three conference staff – Reno and Sara – whom we still miss.
We did successfully run a Wine Media Conference in August with 144 people and no community transmission, so we are confident events can be held safely. But interest in events has fallen as people have curtailed travel, reduced indoor gatherings, or simply changed their lifestyle or life trajectory due to the pandemic. In 2021, Beer Now is full steam ahead for November 10 – 14 in Austin. We have an awesome outdoor location at a ranch/brewery, strong sponsor support, and excellent speakers. Plus, we are in one of the best beer cities in the country.
Unfortunately, our attendance is low and not enough to justify us running the conference beyond 2021 if things don’t change. We have 66 registered attendees at this point.
The Future
First off, we are posting this as a plea. If you have never attended Beer Now, please consider doing so! If you are an alumnus but not signed up, please consider doing so! We would love to double or triple are current numbers. If you are already registered, we hope you are still planning to attend. Small conferences are just as great, and in some ways better, than larger ones.
We are also open to future solutions that would give Beer Now a bit more solidity. That could include partnering with another organization, combining with another event, finding a fixed location, or signing on a multi-year title sponsor. Please reach out!
We honestly would be in attendance if it weren’t for the time of year. We’re all comfortable with travel again and Austin is very high on the list of places to travel for beer. I agree with Ron also, if there is a beer fest (even a small one) going on in conjunction with the conference or something similar that would be a huge draw too. We strongly support Beer Now it just didn’t work out this time around.
I certainly hope that Beer Now does not go away. I had registered for the August 2020 conference but cannot make the November 2021 due to proximity to the Holidays and other family obligations. Travel during Covid is of some concern but I’ve been traveling otherwise, so that really is no reason for me. I agree that a summer date will be more appealing and increase my availability. Also, if there were a virtual registration I would certainly be interested in attending that way. While it’s not the same as exploring a local beer scene and sharing a pint with fellow attendees, the agenda is certainly appealing that I would register. Thanks for putting this out there for discussion and feedback.
Look back at previous well attended events. Why were they well attended. What was offered that would enhance the ROI of every attendee. If there is nothing spectacular offered why would anyone spend their profits and time out of their operations to go? Sometimes we don’t see the Forrest through the trees because we are so close.
I agree with Michelle that having the conference during the summer will help attendance.
Also, many people are still not traveling due to the pandemic.
Here are some thoughts about improving attendance un the future:
1) Encourage bringing spouses through some activities specifically designed to include spouses.
2) Think about timing Beer Now with other major beer events. For example, the Great Falls Beer Now coincided with a Montana Beer festival. Being able to attend both was a great motivator.
3) Try to expand your relationship with the NAGBW and the Brewers Association.
I feel like if this goes back to summer time frame you’ll have much better attendance next year. You’re losing a whole group of people with kids in school and teachers by using anything outside of late June through mid August. In addition you have to consider that the world changed and people are still in some situations struggling at this time. I think if you market to bloggers and have a stellar location next year you’d find a change in attendance. I almost backed out because of it being within the holiday season and how very busy things are for myself this time of year.