Some roasters owning a coffee shop often complain about how complex it is to make a bar customer become a grain customer. What does that mean? A bar customer comes to the coffee shop to take a coffee and then leaves without buying a bag of coffee for home. How can we make this client become a house coffee drinker? We will give you some advices that we think might work… and of course, we will also be happy to read any of your tactics you might share with us;) !

Espresso loyalty card finishing on grain

In coffee shops, you often have a free drink offered for a number of coffees consumed. That’s the loyalty card principle. Why not changing it a little by offering a freshly roasted grounded/grain coffee for loyalty? You can consider it as a waste, but it’s not true. Your client is a bar costumer who likes your coffee, and he is also a potential house coffee consumer. Some might think that there is a risk to make a bar customer become a house consumer, but not at all. A customer knows that it is cheaper to take a coffee at home than in a coffee bar but he doesn’t come at your place for the price but for the taste, the atmosphere of the place, … A customer that drinks coffee at your place and buys coffee to take away would certainly be one of your most loyal clients !

Packs coffee – coffee makers

One on the main issue is also that a lot of customers think they can’t make a good coffee at home. This idea appears when a customer sees your magnificent espresso machine and imagines his small electrical filter coffee. Why would Schumacher compete in a boogie kart competition? How can we change this idea? It’s simple and it’s up to you: you need to convince your customers that they can have a small “Ferrari” at home. What would be a home Ferrari when we talk about coffee makers? Do the brands Hario, Chemex or Aeropress sound familiar to you? How can you promote these coffee makers? The effect of showing and using them in your coffee shop is the first step. It is also imperative to include them in your coffee menus. But you need to go further to for make your customers buying them for home. The coffee+coffee maker packs for home are a great option. These packs will allow you not only to make a combo (V60+ grinder + Kettle + Coffee …), but also to show your expertise and know-how to your customers: “I included in this pack my beautiful Salvadorian coffee which is quite fruity, because it would be great in V60. Having a professional kettle will allow you to master your extraction, and buying a grinder to keep your coffee on grain which certainly preserves best aromas …”

Average price

It is quite hard to imagine an average price for all coffees in a coffee shop, but it is maybe a strategy to think about. For example: You have an espresso blend with 2 coffees for 4.12 euros/kg, a premium blend with two coffees for an average of 6.50 euros/kg and, besides, a single origin “coffee of the month” for 5 euros/kg. Do you think it is possible to make an average price for the 3 of them? Can you make a unique price per kg for your coffees or not? For some roasters it would be possible, for others certainly not. But for those who could do it, having an average price will allow them to support any future price increase for their first price blend and, at the same time, it will allow their customers to taste of all of their coffees, even those they never had before mainly due to prices. We are not talking about earning more money from the most expensive coffees or less from the cheapest, but to have a regular and global gain and a better rotation of all the coffees! This is certainly an idea to discuss… nothing but an idea!

Do you have any other ideas? Don’t hesitate to share them by commenting this post!

 

Until the next one, The Belco team