Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss their experience at the 2024 Craft Brewers Conference.

Points of discussion:

1. Leverage your brand or start a new one? (CODO’s CBC presentation)

Cody and Isaac sit down to field subscriber-submitted questions on our 2024 Beer Branding Trends review.

Points of discussion:

2024 Beer Branding Trends Report

—

1. Can a smaller brewery actually pull off a craft lager brand?

2A. What’s the best packaging format for Hop Water?

2B. Why hasn’t ABI released a Hop Water?

3. What does the beer industry look like in 2030? (Hot takes only.)

4. Is fudging a beer’s style as a positioning tool disingenuous? 

5. Do you have any thoughts on the Bud Light controversy?

6. Should we feature awards (GABF, World Beer Cup, etc.) on our packaging? 

7. No mention of Cannabis in your report???

8. What are the downsides of building a contract brewed / lifestyle brand? 

9. Do you think we’ll see more private equity in the beer industry over the next few years as there are deals to be had?

10. White Claw NA: Stupid or brilliant?

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss craft lager and how your brewery can nail this positioning challenge.

Points of discussion:

1. 2024 Beer Branding Trends Report

2. How we built the Cold Drinking Beer brand

3. Time Traveling with the Beer Can Archaeologist

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss Co-branding in craft beer, and why this is such a fun strategy right now.

Points of discussion:

1. 2024 Beer Branding Trends Report

Cody and Isaac sit down with Jacob Virgil to discuss their recent rebranding project with NoDa Brewing.

Points of discussion:

1. Rebranding NoDa Brewing [Case study]

2. NoDa Brewing

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss what they’re seeing in their Regional Brewery branding work.

Points of discussion:

1. 2024 Beer Branding Trends Report

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss how to actually frame your visual and Brand Equity

Points of discussion:

1. 2024 Beer Branding Trends Report

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss CODO’s 2024 Beer Branding Trends review.

Points of discussion:

1. 2024 Craft Beer Branding Trends

2. Join the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter to receive exclusive insights

3. How to design better merch

4. How to scale the Sub Brand Ladder

5. Modular Brand Identity Systems

6. Hop Water

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss all things Hard Cider.

Points of discussion:

1. Our wonderful travel experience headed out to CiderCon.

2. Hard Cider segment overview

3. There are several multi-regional cideries that would land in the top 50 breweries by production volume

4. All eyes on Angry Orchard (and Boston Beer’s quizzical lack of investment in the brand)

5. Defining Hard Cider

6. Should your brewery launch a Hard Cider?

7. Brand Architecture & Fourth Category beverages we’re seeing in cider

8. How far away from apples can you get and still claim to be a cider?

9. Parallels between beer and hard cider

10. NA cider’s are an interesting positioning challenge

11. Exploring cider’s halo effect (an inherent naturalness that comes from being tied to agriculture)

12. Gluten free as a secondary benefit

Cody and Isaac sit down with The Virginia Beer Co. to discuss their recent collab: Cold Drinking Beer.

Points of discussion:

1. Building the Cold Drinking Beer Brand. [Case Study]

2. The Virginia Beer Co.

Cody and Isaac sit down to field our latest round of listener-submitted questions.

Listener submitted questions:

1. Can a brewery handle its rebrand in-house or should this always be outsourced?

2. Does CODO prefer branding new breweries or rebranding established ones?

3. Did CODO ever considering opening a brewery? Plus, what beverage category would we launch right now if we were in the market to?

4. Do you think it’s worth putting the Brewers Association’s Independent Seal on packaging these days?

5. How should we deal with a delicate IP / beer naming situation?

6. What are some tips for how to be a terrible client? (???)

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss qualitative and quantitive reasons for rebranding a brewery, and why all roads ultimately lead to increasing revenue.

Points of discussion:

1. Should all brewery rebrands lead to growth?

2. On Fat Rare and Samuel Adams’ recent rebrands.

3. Various reasons for rebranding we’ve heard from our clients:

– “Our packaging is all over the place visually. And with 25+ new releases per year, it’s always getting worse.”

– “We’ve got multiple locations now and want to develop a consistent look and experience that spans the entire company.”

– “We’re not really sure what our story is. Sure, we’ve grown a lot and people love our beer, but I feel like we could be so much further along if we actually spent time dialing in our marketing and branding.”

– “We’re shifting to a new format (moving from 12oz to 16oz cans) and want to make everything hang together on shelf.”

– “We’re buying a brewery and, other than the name, think everything about the existing branding and packaging needs to change.”

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the merits of a Branded House Brand and why this could be an important part of your brewery’s portfolio.

Points of discussion:

1. What is a Branded House?

2. In defense of the Branded House [BBT Newsletter]

3. Beverage Brand Architecture Continuum

4. The Branded House for the new brewery

5. The Branded House for an established brewery coming out of a rebrand

6. Mission Brewing’s rebrand as an example

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the nuances between a rebrand and a brand refresh (and why your intent matters more than anything).

Points of discussion:

1. “Do you think this will be a rebrand or a refresh?”

2. Craft Beer, Rebranded

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss action items to set yourself up for a strong 2024.

Points of discussion:

1. Cody is too jacked. It’s distracting.

2. Start building your email newsletter list.

3. Start emailing your list. (Revelatory!)

4. Build a *rough* content marketing plan.

5. Build your media library

6. Intellectual Property hygiene

7. Take care of yourself

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss Legacy Breweries: What are they and what unique challenges do they face today?

Points of discussion:

1. What is a Legacy Brewery? [BBT Newsletter]

2. Traditionally defined as ~25+ years old

3. CODO defines a Legacy Brewery as any group that came to market around the start of the craft beer boom in 2010

4. The amount of breweries that opened in your market after you is more important than your overall age

5. Advice for Legacy Breweries

6. Lean into your historicity

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss why the way we help our clients launch their rebrands has shifted so dramatically over the last few years (and how to best announce yours moving forward).

Points of discussion:

1. XX

2. XX

3. XX

4. XX

5. XX

6. XX

7. XX

8. XX

9. XX

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss how to design better merch and make millions of dollars along the way.

Points of discussion:

1. How to design better merch [BBT Newsletter]

2. Your merch is a direct reflection of your business

3. Your merch can reinforce your positioning and brand story

4. So what style of XYZ (a shirt or hat) should you offer?

5. Think beyond your primary logo (give your fans winks & nods)

6. Create merch drops & scarcity

7. Create a beautiful retail footprint (please exit through the gift shop)

8. Should you sell your merch online?

Cody and Isaac sit down to field questions from in-house designers, freelancers and marketing pros from around the beer industry.

Points of discussion:

Cody and Isaac remark on CODO’s 14th anniversary without much fanfare.

—

Q1: Did design school prepare you for running a business?

Q2: I just got done listening to your podcast episode on naming a brewery. My question to you is how many names do you provide a client? I recently provided 35 to a client for their own personal brand. Do you think that’s too many or too little? I personally think I probably could have gotten away with just providing 15-20 But I’m just curious to hear what your thoughts and approach to the amount of names provided are.

Q3: Wanted to ask a business question (sorry, this isn’t beer related!) Do you enjoy sales? I struck out on my own back in 2020 and it’s been going fairly well since then. But I find sales to be the hardest part of growing my practice. Any help here would he appreciated.

Q4: Do you ever worry that by releasing books that deep dive into your process, breweries will no longer need your services?

Q5: Do you find that your team ever gets tired only working on beer branding projects? I run a small agency myself (currently 3 people) and we have an ongoing debate about whether or not we should focus on one particular industry like you all have.

Q6: How important has writing books been for your business?

Q7: What are 3 design/business books that every recent grad should read?

Q8: I’m an in-house designer at X. I recently brought an idea for a new product to our marketing director and head brewer and they basically laughed it off without any consideration. I won’t get into specifics, but I believe it’s a smart move based on what I’m seeing around the industry (including reading in your newsletter). So my question is, how can I get my team to listen to my ideas? I’m young, and new to this position and the beer industry (coming up on my one year anniversary), but I’m passionate and learning as much as I can. I figured you might have some insight here since you’ve previously talked about showing work and selling your ideas when you were a younger designer.

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss timeless brands. What makes a brand timeless and what lessons can we can apply to new branding projects?

Points of discussion:

1. How to future proof your brand. [BBT Newsletter]

2. Consistency, Relevancy and Advertising $$$ [BBT Newsletter]

3. A compelling point of view and immutable cultural relevance

4. What dragon are you slaying?

5. Cody rocks a grim reaper air freshener?

6. On simple, iconic marks (+ a limited color palette and consistent iconography)

7. And then spend hundreds of millions of dollars on advertising (easy peasy!)

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss best practices for getting the most out of your in-house team and external agency relationship.

Points of discussion:

1. How has the in-house vs. external agency dynamic evolved over the last decade.

2. Why are designers such assholes? (Were we born this way?)

3. Why we advocate for breweries to build in-house teams.

4. “Look how the massacred my boy.”

5. A few common arrangements between in-house groups and an external agency (strategy + execution, strategy + some execution, all strategy and no execution, no strategy and all execution).

6. How we work with an in-house to team to get the most mileage out of a clients budget.

7. The power of building guidelines together.

8. Post-project After Action Reviews (AARs).

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss best practices for remote work with a branding agency that might be a state, a time zone or half a world away.

Points of discussion:

1. Why are people historically apprehensive about working with an agency that isn’t local to them?

2. The biggest concern—how will we learn about your brewery’s culture and market if we’re not from your state?

3. This begin with thorough kickoff homework—art direction, competitive set audit and possible brand audit work.

4. Travel us the easiest way to navigate this issue. But what if we can’t travel?

5. Why collaboration and upfront brand strategy is even more crucial when working with a remote branding firm.

6. Stick. To. The. Agreed. Upon. Timeline.

7. Meetings are important (unless they aren’t). How do you know the difference?

8. Do you have to wear pants for a video call?

9. Specific communication tools make the process run smoother—Drive or Dropbox. Slack, etc.

Cody and Isaac sit down to introduce their “Sub Brand Ladder” framework. Are you interested in building a Sub Brand at your brewery? Start here.

Points of discussion:

1. How to Scale the Sub Brand Ladder [Newsletter]

2. Your Band Architecture isn’t a static thing.

3. You can scale up and down the Beverage Brand Architecture Continuum over time.

4. How to develop a fanciful brand name [Podcast]

5. Fernson Brewing’s package refresh

6. Sub Brands vs. Endorsed Brands [Newsletter]

7. Common Line Extensions (in 2023): IPA > Hazy IPA > Imperial Hazy IPA — or — Lager > Light Lager > Lime Lager > Mexican-Style Lager

8. On variety packs [Newsletter]

9. KettleHouse & Cold Smoke

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the subtle (but important) differences between Sub Brands and Endorsed Brands.

Points of discussion:

1. Sub Brand Summer, Pt. 1: Sub Brands. So hot right now. [Beer Branding Trends Newsletter]

2. Sub Brand Summer, Pt. 2: Sub Brands vs. Endorsed Brands (a closer look) [Beer Branding Trends Newsletter]

3. CODO’s 2023 Beer Branding Trends Review

4. The role of the parent brand in Brand Architecture

4. Beverage Brand Architecture Continuum

5. Beverage Extension Assessment Tool (B.E.A.T.)

Cody and Isaac sit down to introduce CODO’s Sub Brand Summer Series and answer the question: “Why are Sub Brands so hot right now?”

Points of discussion:

1. Sub Brands. So h0t right now. [Beer Branding Trends Newsletter]

2. CODO’s 2023 Beer Branding Trends Review

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss package refreshes.

Points of discussion:

1. Evolution vs. Revolution

2. What is a package refresh?

3. Why (and when) do breweries do this?

4. Common pain points that lead to package refreshes

5. Common goals and objectives in these projects

6. On hierarchy and packaging hierarchy

7. What if a brewery has a terrible logo and wants to keep it?

Cody and Isaac sit down with Fernson Brewing to discuss their shiny new package refresh.

Points of discussion:

1. Fernson Brewing

2. Beer & Loathing Across the Lonesome Prairie

3. How has Fernson’s identity shifted over the last 8 years?

4. Fernson’s thoughts on Brand Voice

5. Monolithic naming vs. Fanciful Names and Sub Brands

6. Why Fernson started naming beers

7. How this move sets Fernson up for future Line Extensions and Sub Brands

Points of discussion:

1. What is a Modular Brand Identity System?

2. The “Facebook Problem”

3. Primary vs. Secondary vs. Tertiary components

4. Brand Identity vs. Brand Strategy (upstream vs. surface level)

5. Brand Guidelines

6. These are great for quickly rolling out merch programs.

7. Modular Identity Systems require a deft hand and hawkish editing to be built correctly.

Cody and Isaac sit down to field community-submitted questions on CODO’s 2023 Beer Branding Trends review.

Points of discussion:

Read the 2023 Beer Branding Trends Review

Q1: I asked this last year and am curious again, were there any sections / ideas that didn’t make it into the final draft? Thanks again for putting this all together. Love these reports.

– Burt Reynolds and Tom Selleck founded Casamigos Tequila

– Fingers Newsletter

Q2: On the idea of releasing a budget beer option… Let’s say that, hypothetically, you could get the COGS to a place where this was actually a feasible option. Would you still advise against this from a branding and reputation standpoint?

I’m picturing a compelling use case for something like this where someone might enjoy 1 or 2 great craft beers and then finish the night with a High Life or Banquet, etc. Could this be an opportunity to still offer a craft beer to those consumers?

– On the perils of releasing budget beer brand

Q3: Is hop water design really a blank canvas? Are there cues that consumers are already expecting? What should people be doing to fit it neatly outside of NA / Seltzer / Sparkling Water?

– Is Hop Water the next big Beyond Beer trend?

Q4: I looked up hop waters after reading this newsletter last year, and was blown away by how expensive they are. The few brands that I found locally are as expensive if not more so than actual beer. How do you think these brands can justify such a high price point at retail, and do you still think that this category is going to see a lot of growth in the short term given how expensive these products are?

– Doug Veliky’s COGS breakdown on Hop Water vs. Beer

Q5: You joked about hand waving and pearl clutching in the podcast about alcohol & minors, but do you really think anything is going to happen legislatively on this front?

I see so many actual problems facing our country (income inequality, gun violence, attacks on women’s rights and on LGBTQ communities) and just can’t see lawmakers doing anything to even attempt to address this issue.

I agree that it’s getting kind of ridiculous—Hard Sunny D, c’mon!— I just don’t think anything will come of this. That’s not to mention how powerful the alcohol lobby is.

– Joe Camel vs. JAMA

Q6: I know you explicitly said you’re only focusing on branding and marketing for this piece, but I have to ask about specific beverage trends in your work, COLD IPA is big (maybe?), RTDs are on fire, and Non Alc beer seems to be catching on… Are there any other categories or beer styles that people are sleeping on?

Q7: My partner sent me your paths to market email. It was reassuring to see that we’re doing at least a few things right. I’m curious, out of everything you wrote about there, is there any valuable marketing activity a new brewery should consider as they get closer to opening their doors?

RAPID FIRE!!!

Q8: What is your boldest prediction for the beer industry by 2030? Spicy takes only?

Q9: You’ve written a lot about Hop Water, but no love for Hard Tea?

Q10: Where do you guys fall on Fat Tire’s latest rebrand? Good idea or complete disaster? I get why they would update the packaging, but to change the liquid itself seems extremely risky. I’ve been expecting a newsletter on this topic for months now!

Q11: What do you make of the super high ABV beer trend we’re seeing right now? I’ve seen a lot of reporting about how this can be explained as a “Bang for your Buck,” in other words, this is driven primarily by the recession. But I’m not sure it’s that simple. Why is this such a big deal right now?

Q12: Given everything you wrote about hard seltzer in this report, would you try to dissuade a small brewery (say, yours truly here in Texas hill country), from releasing one in 2023?

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss an important, looming issue in the Bev Alc world.

Points of discussion:

1. 2023 Beer Branding Trends Review

2. New York Times article

3. Some Brand Architecture solutions: The Beyond Beer Handbook

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss what we’re seeing in our brewery in planning and startup branding work so far this year.

Points of discussion:

1. 2023 Beer Branding Trends Review

2. Brewhouse sizing

3. The evolving role of packaging for the startup brewery

4. An increase in food and hospitality in craft beer

5. M&A activity (buying breweries and/or forming joint ventures)

6. Where are people building breweries?

7. Lifestyle Brands

8. Reviving Heritage IP brands

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss CODO’s 2023 Beer Branding Trends Review.

Points of discussion:

1. Read the 2023 Beer Branding Trends Review here.

2. Good George Brewing’s rebrand

3. The Beyond Beer Handbook

4. BBT Issue on Hop Water

5. BBT Issue on breweries building budget brands

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss how to position and brand a seemingly “unremarkable” brewery.

Points of discussion:

1. Branding a startup brewery, feat. Lost Nomad Brewing

2. Name vs. No name

3. Identity vs. Story & Strategy

4. Positioning (What do you do? For whom? How are you different?)

5. Brand strategy drives the design train (always)

6. What is myth making? And why can’t Isaac settle on one definition for it?

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss brand guidelines. What are they (and why does no one read them)?

Points of discussion:

1. How many people actually read brand guidelines?

2. Guidelines should be all killer, no filler tools.

3. There are two core components to brand guidelines—visual style guide and brand messaging guide.

4. These are important because you can reference them when working with other partners and onboarding new employees.

5. Are brand guidelines the same thing as an employee handbook?

6. Brand guidelines are a great way to protect your branding investment, provided you read and honor them.

7. Don’t stretch your logo, folks.

8. Bonus Content: Cody & Isaac discuss the Pepsi Brand Guidelines

Cody and Isaac sit down for some Q&A on the topic of audience definition within the beer and beverage industry.

Points of discussion:

BBT 016 – Defining Your Brewery’s Core Audience

1. How do you prevent customer personas from becoming overly stereotypical? Seems like this would leave the door open for any number of sweeping generalizations and maybe not be that valuable as you begin to work on brand strategy? And secondly, do you find that most brewery’s customer persona exercises tend to be similar?

2. Do you use Brand Archetypes for your brand strategy or do you think it’s total bullshit?

3. I read the Rabobank Report you linked to in the Lost Nomad issue of the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter… The most interesting thing about that report was how much more women are drinking than men. What do you think this means for the future of the craft beer industry? It has traditionally been a male-dominated space (something I’ve been keenly aware of over the last 5 years as I’ve carved out a career in it). Do you think the beer industry, as it is today, can survive as we move into a more diverse, women-led future?

Cody sits down to discuss the CODO’s recent rebrand for Good George Brewing out of New Zealand.

Points of discussion:

1. Good George Brewing’s rebrand case study (via Beer Branding Trends Newsletter)

2. Brand Architecture as a deliverable (and to guide new product development)

3. What does the New Zealand craft beer scene look like?

4. How do Kiwi breweries trend forecast?

5. What did the Good George team want to achieve through this rebrand?

6. On Good George’s diverse portfolio.

7. On the ‘F*ck Off’ 2020 Gin and finding a new brand voice.

8. On non-alcoholic beers and NA products in general.

9. On cider.

10. Advice for any brewery considering a rebrand.

Cody and Isaac sit down for a frank, somewhat productive(?) conversation on project timelines.

Points of discussion:

1. What leads to unrealistic timelines?

2. What, if anything, is driving this deadline?

3. Common deadlines we see

4. “Delays are temporary. Mediocrity is forever.” – Cody Fague?

5. Why sticking to a schedule is important

6. What are some realistic project timelines?

7. Can we rush a project? “What if we pay you more?”

8. Can you, dear client, hold up your end of the bargain?

9. Big takeaway: proper creative work takes time.

Cody sits down with the team at Birdsmouth Beer Co. to discuss what went into naming and branding their craft lager brewery in New Jersey.

Points of discussion:

1. Read the Birdsmouth Beer branding case study here.

2. What is Birdsmouth Beer Co.?

3. Why craft lagers and why New Jersey?

4. What was it like building a brewery during the pandemic?

5. What was it like developing a name for a brewery?

6. What was the brand identity and package design process like?

7. One beer for the rest of your life: Pils or Dunkel???

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the Hop Water category, and why they believe it could be a big trend in 2023.

Points of discussion:

1. Beer Branding Trends Newsletter Issue on Hop Water

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss their recent trip to speak at the Ontario Craft Brewers Conference.

Points of discussion:

1. Ontario brewers are cautiously optimistic (despite being a bit beat down)

2. Adam Brož’s Keynote + “Craft” vs. “Industrial” lagers

3. Discussing the LCBO (Liquor Control Board of Ontario)

4. Professional selling within the craft beer industry (KPIs, salary vs. commission, etc.)

5. Website tactics and breweries moving their main sites over to eCommerce platforms (e.g. Shopify)

6. Poll 1: Has your brewery produced (or thought about producing) a non-beer product? (40 yes / 31 no)

7. Poll 2: If you were to launch a beyond beer product in 2023, what category would you get into? (NA everything, Hop Water, RTDs, Kombucha, Cider, Cannabis & Canned Air?)

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the importance of a perfect (re)brand rollout in a post-pandemic landscape.

Points of discussion:

1. The original question: You guys have been a thought leader in craft beer branding and package design for a while now. What have you either gotten wrong or changed your opinion about over the years?

2. On rebrand rollouts (why they’re important)

3. Why full rollouts are so complicated, if not impossible, in 2022 (and likely beyond)

4. Supply chain woes

5. Drip campaigns are still a great idea

6. Staggered launches are the new normal

7. F*ck it, we’ll do it live.

Cody and Isaac sit down to field Beer Branding Trends Newsletter subscriber-submitted questions.

Points of discussion:

1. What are some common problems you see with the executive team during a rebrand? Our brewery is planning to undergo a brand refresh, and we’re planning to try it internally, at least at first. I want to make sure we go into this with eyes wide open so we don’t sabotage ourselves.

2. We’re a brewery in planning and we don’t have much money budgeted for branding. Maybe 5–10k at most. Is this enough to actually get anything good done, and if not, what should we do?

3. You write about signaling a lot. What’s your favorite book on this subject?

4. Does CODO ever work under noncompetes? I’m a creative director at a larger agency that works primarily in CPG / FMCG and that’s the norm in our industry? I’ve seen your work with several breweries in specific markets, like Georgia, for example. Curious how those individual clients feel about this?

5. How do you guys handle client requests, revisions, etc. that you know won’t be good?

6. We’re almost 90% certain going to be switching our annual barrel aged release from bombers to 16oz cans. Do you have any thoughts on whether or not this is a good idea?

7. What do you think about putting IBU / SRM on a can label? As a brewer, I want to include as much info on the beer itself as possible, but the rest of my team disagrees and only thinks it will clutter things up.

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss some options for how to handle a brewery’s brand post acquisition.

Points of discussion:

Points of discussion:

1. When (& When Not) to Rebrand Your Brewery [Podcast]

2. Brewery Rebrands vs. Brand Refreshes [Podcast]

3. Rebranding Mission Brewing [Newsletter]

4. Rebranding an Iconic San Diego Brewery (feat. Dan from Mission Brewing) [Podcast]

5. Three Questions to ask ahead of a brewery purchase

6. What are you actually buying?

7. Is there any visual and/or brand equity to maintain?

8. What is your vision for this brewery?

9. Email Isaac to discuss your brewery’s rebrand.

Cody and Isaac sit down for some Q&A on Brand Architecture and The Beyond Beer Handbook.

Points of discussion:

1. What are the differences between Brand Architecture for a new brewery vs. during a brewery rebrand?

2. When can you spin out a Sub Brand into its own family?

3. In making this, did you consider distributor interaction as part of the rubric?

4. Does the B.E.A.T. apply to beer and breweries specifically or can I use it to figure out how my distillery can release a line of RTDs?

5. What is the utility in keeping the parent brand on a wildly successful Endorsed Brand (like New Belgium’s Voodoo Ranger) long term?

6. What are the downsides to releasing a budget offering under my parent brand (cheap domestic lager, etc.)?

7. What will your next book be about?

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the Beverage Extension Assessment Tool (B.E.A.T.) and how you can use this to scale your brewery’s brand.

Points of discussion:

1. Beverage Extension Assessment Tool (B.E.A.T.)

2. Why 14 questions?

3. How does the scoring work?

4. Why was this so challenging to build?

5. Results = Choose Your Own Adventure Novel

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the Beverage Brand Architecture Continuum.

Points of discussion:

1. Beverage Brand Architecture Continuum

2. Branded House / Brand Extensions (pros & cons)

3. Sub / Endorsed Brands (overview)

4. I’m just new boot goofin’

5. Sub Brands (pros & cons)

6. Endorsed Brands (pros & cons)

7. House of Brands (pros & cons)

8. Which CODO employee housed half a box of Hard Mountain Dew?

9. Hybrid Brands

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the role of the parent brand in Brand Architecture.

Points of discussion:

1. The Beyond Beer Handbook

2. What is your parent brand?

3. Why is your parent brand so important?

4. Does this new extension carry the same values and promises as your brewery’s parent brand?

5. Does it mesh comfortably with the same activity or occasion as your parent brand?

6. Does it speak to the same people as your parent brand?

7. Does it make sense for your brewery to be releasing, or to be associated with, this product?

8. How will this extension add value to, or detract from, the parent?

9. How can you protect your reputation and positioning?

10. To what degree should the parent brand be present on this new beverage?

11. How can your parent brand give credibility to the extension?

12. How many categories can you credibly expand into?

13. What is a “Main Purchasing Driver?”

14. The Beverage Brand Architecture Continuum

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss CODO’s new book, The Beyond Beer Handbook.

Points of discussion:

1. The Beyond Beer Handbook

2. The Beyond Beer Handbook

3. The Beyond Beer Handbook

4. The Beyond Beer Handbook

5. The Beyond Beer Handbook

6. The Beyond Beer Handbook

7. The Beyond Beer Handbook

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss CODO’s recent rebranding project with Mission Brewing + a conversation with our FIRST EVER guest, Mission’s CEO, Dan Partelow.

Points of discussion:

1. Rebranding Mission Brewing [BBT Newsletter]

2. Cody steps out on Isaac. Breaks his heart.

3. Cody and Dan discuss Mission’s rebrand, including: Dan’s background + Mission’s history and project context

4. Weighing different types of brand equity

5. Evolution vs. Revolution [Podcast]

6. Defining Mission’s audience [Podcast]

7. Important format changes, SKU rationalization and distribution shifts Mission is making

8. The design process is iterative.

9. Process management is just as important as great work for complex projects to be successful.

10. How to organize your internal team ahead of a rebrand [Podcast]

11. Dan’s point about not being too precious

12. How to be a great client [Podcast]

13. How do you handle history and provenance in blurry situations like this?

14. Put (two red) birds on it.

15. Email Isaac to discuss your brewery’s rebrand.

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss CODO’s 13th anniversary, and how the beer industry has evolved along the way.

Points of discussion:

1. The Gold Rush years (2010–2016)

2. On dealing with bullshit artists and degenerates (mostly in cannabis)

3. Craft Beer Branding Guide

4. Rebrands!

5. Craft Beer, Rebranded

6. Beyond Beer

7. Where does the industry go from here?

8. What does Craft Beer mean to you?

9. Is the craft beer industry, in fact, 99% asshole free?

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss what makes for a great brewery name and how to actually find one.

Points of discussion:

1. Criteria for a great brewery name: able to be trademarked, tells a story, fun to say, flexible and portable.

2. Shoutout to Roachdale, Indiana?

3. Can you just make up a word?

4. Make sure you’re not using some horrible slang term.

5. How to include your clients in the process.

6. Different idea buckets to get you started—your town’s history, landmarks, anything that speaks to your differentiator.

7. How to narrow your list from hundreds of ideas to 20 or so.

8. How to save money by pre-vetting names before sharing with your IP attorney.

9. A super suspect explanation of the trademarking process from Cody Fague, Attorney at Law.

10. Do yourself a favor and hire a lawyer for this.

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the differences between a brewery’s Mission and Vision, why this matters, and how it can help you build a more purposeful business.

Points of discussion:

1. Your Mission is your brewery’s immediate, day-to-day marching orders.

2. Your vision is future-facing and tells the world where you’re going.

3. Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle (Start with Why).

4. Who would win in a no holds barred fight between Simon Sinek or Cody Fague. Simon is in better shape, but Cody has nothing to live for.

5. Intrinsic reasons that drive entrepreneurs vs. public-facing stories.

6. How do we frame your vision?

7. Examples of a Mission and Vision statement from your friends at CODO Design.

8. The best scene from the Sopranos? “Is this about the Easter baskets?”

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss audience segmentation, customer personas, and why you don’t see more fistfights in craft breweries.

Points of discussion:

1. The “traditional” craft beer audience

2. Why craft breweries haven’t had to focus on defining their audience

3. Shifting demographics (and industry trends) that will lead to this becoming more important

4. A primer on audience segmentation

5. How to define your audience (with internal research)

6. How to gather external context to define your brewery’s audience

7. Customer personas: cheesy, but effective process tools

8. An ongoing (unnecessary?) tirade against ESB beers

Cody and Isaac sit down and discuss everything covered in this year’s Beer Branding Trends review.

Points of discussion:

1. Read the piece here.

2. Join the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter to ask questions for our next podcast

3. Reinvention (rebrands, refreshes, packaging formats in flux, SKU rationalization, a shift back to bottles?)

4. Why are lifestyle brands a smart play right now? (Also, what is a lifestyle brand?)

5. eCommerce (the real adventure was in the consumer data we gathered along the way)

6. Beyond Beer (yet another plug for our book that we’ve been talking about for two years. is it even real?)

7. CODO with the hot takes!

8. Day parting (how can breweries open up new morning, afternoon and evening occasions?)

9. Cody is all in on nootropics, mushroom coffee and cocaine. (is there anything more functional than cocaine?)

10. Revisiting the Law of Category

11. Some thoughts on seltzer (going premium, categorical differentiation, seltzer-izing other categories)

12. Brand Architecture

13. The accidental hospitality group

14. Fanciful names vs. monolithic brand-forward names

15. Package design trends + expert opinions

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the common goals we see breweries set at the start of their rebranding projects.

Points of discussion:

1. The most common goals we’ve seen breweries have for a branding or rebranding process

2. Qualitative vs. Quantitative goals

3. The most important goal of any rebranding project. Period.

4. S.M.A.R.T. Goals (Specific, Measurable, Action-Oriented, Realistic, Time-Limited)

5. Common qualitative goals we see

6. How to defeat a grizzly bear in hand to hand combat

7. CODO’s 2020 CBC Presentation

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss how you can be the best client your design firm has ever had.

Points of discussion:

1. Trust the process?

2. Understand that the design process is iterative.

3. Thoughts on the big Don Draper reveal.

4. Why you need to stick to your timeline.

5. Why is giving great feedback challenging for non-designers?

6. Candor is king. (Don’t worry about your designer’s feelings)

7. Keep feedback focused on specific project goals (and the defined strategy) and not personal tastes.

8. Keep your customer in mind.

9. Is it necessary for a client to personally love the work a design firm develops?

10. How many concepts should a branding firm share? 25? 5? 1?

11. Paul Rand’s work for Steve Job’s NeXT Computers.

12. We’ve decided to record future episodes shirtless.

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss what a branding project kickoff looks like. Plus, art direction homework, organizing internal and external partner interviews and thoughts on remote vs. onsite work.

Points of discussion:

1. You’ve worked through the proposal process and now have a signed contract. What is our next move?
2. Email handshake = let’s get after it!
3. Pre-project art direction homework. (Art direction, competitive set audit, brand audit, if applicable)
4. Tools and software for onboarding clients.
5. Beyond the Executive Team, who do we need to talk to during the kickoff?
6. How do we organize, prioritize and schedule all of your brewery’s internal stakeholders? (Sales, Marketing & Design, Front of House, Brew Staff)
7. What external partners will we need to interview? (Distributors, Large Chain Retail Partners, Field Reps, Market Managers, etc.)
8. Thoughts on in-person vs remote work. When is travel necessary and when can we run everything remotely
9. What does an in-person, onsite kickoff itinerary look like?
10. Sample 2–3 day itinerary.
11. One-on-one conversations vs large group “discovery” sessions. When is each one appropriate?

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss how your brewery should vet and hire a design firm for your rebrand—what should you expect from this process, what are some land mines to watch out for and why you should work with an expert.

Points of discussion:

1. Give us an eagle eye view of the business development process, from a branding firm’s perspective.

2. How much should a brewery prepare ahead of your initial conversations with a potential partner?
3. What subjects will you discuss in your early exploratory meetings? (timeline, budget, project goals, project context, business objectives, etc.)

4. What is project “fit” and why is it so important at this stage of the process?

5. Differences between contracts and proposals.

6. Always Be Closing?

7. How often does CODO pass on a project because of poor fit?

8. What should a rebranding proposal outline?

9. What is an RFP and why is Isaac always cursing about them?

10. How important is it to like your design partner? What is the role of chemistry in this process?

11. That time a brewery hired CODO because Isaac was “…not some skinny hipster asshole.”

12. What should your branding or rebranding budget look like? How much will this all cost?

13. Why your budget should be tied to business objectives and the value this project will create.

14. Cody presses Isaac for a firm number. Isaac relents with a figure he’s seen cited in several business books.

15. Why work with an expert?

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the different types of creative partners a brewery can hire to handle their branding or rebranding project.

Points of discussion:

1. What is a Freelancer? Pros and cons?

2. What is a small to medium size firm? Pros and cons?

3. What is a Big agency? Pros and cons?

4. What does “Full Service” actually mean?

5. Why you never want to be an agency’s “cool” client.

6. Why we believe mid-size firms are taking over the world.

7. What should your partner be able to handle in order to be a great fit?

8. Let’s open up a can of worms! Should you hire a partner based solely on their personal or house style?

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the finer points of announcing your brewery’s rebrand without confusing (and alienating) your current customers.

Points of discussion:

1. Why is this important? What are some of the moving parts and logistics that need to be organized ahead of a brand launch?

2. Gird yourself?

3. A proper brand launch start internally by getting your team on the same page. How do we get everyone marching in the same direction if we’re spread out over several states?

4. What is a Master Campaign Timeline and what are some of the key benchmarks to base this on as we build out our schedule?

5. Why we like a launch week (or month) instead of one specific day.

6. Packaging logistics are often the most challenging issue to manage during this process. What are some tactics we can employ early on to make sure we’re not setting ourselves up for failure later on?

7. In the real world, a “staggered” release is often called for. Is this the end of the world?

8. What is a “Teaser” Campaign and why is it so valuable for announcing a rebrand?

9. How soon should you start promoting that a change is coming? Can you be too early?

Cody and Isaac sit down to introduce themselves and CODO Design… 7 episodes in. Better late than never?

Points of discussion:

1. CODO Design overview

2. Cody and Isaac introductions

3. We founded CODO the Monday after graduating from college in 2009

4. Internship experiences that galvanized our decision to start our own firm right out of school

5. How we began to focus on the Food and Beverage space

6. Our work in beer, starting 2010 and leading up to current day.

7. How did our Craft Beer Branding Guide come to be?

8. Why did we write Craft Beer, Rebranded?

9. How have we seen the beer industry shift and mature over the last 11 years

10. We’re working on our third book?

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss Brand Essences—what they are and what role it plays in the branding process.

Points of discussion:

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the various people and stakeholders groups you’ll need to organize ahead of your rebrand. They also touch on some important process nuances like gaining consensus amongst large groups and emotional intelligence tactics for wrangling all the different personalities you’re sure to run into throughout this work.

Points of discussion:

1. Who comprises the Executive Team throughout a branding project.

2. How many people should actually be involved in decision making throughout this process?

3. How do we organize and prioritize other stakeholder groups beyond the Executive Team?

4. How (if at all) do we bring customers into this process?

5. Why CODO prefers one-on-one intimate conversations over beer to the dreaded large group “discovery” session.

6. What’s the magic numbers in terms of interviews? Where do we start to see diminishing returns?

7. Some emotional intelligence tactics for engaging with folks who *need* to be involved, but that might not be on the same page as the rest of your team.

8. Always assume the person you’re talking to knows something you don’t. (Important life lesson as well)

9. How can we avoid the dreaded “Swoop?”

Points of discussion:

1. Isaac is leaving CODO to open a brewery?
2. What is positioning (3 Core Questions) and why does this matter?
3. How to use a matrix to get a quick eagle eye view of your competitive landscape.
4. Categorical Differentiation as a positioning strategy.
5. What is the “Positioning Trap?”
6. Can a specific a theme or differentiator be too limiting on a day-to-day brand building basis?
7. How to write your brand positioning statement.
8. Okay, Isaac is not starting a brewery after all.

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the various types of brand values a brewery can have (Core, Pay-to-play and Aspirational), why they’re all important and how to frame them.

Points of discussion:

1. What are core brand values?
2. Why frame your values?
3. Are brand values public-facing or an internal tool and rallying cry for your team?
4. Quick run down of the most common values we hear over and over again, from breweries all over the world.
5. ‘The Advantage’ book by Patrick Lencioni *quick note: Isaac’s an idiot. The author of ‘The Advantage’ is PATRICK Lencioni. Not Paul. Isaac said Paul Lencioni with such confidence at least 6 times during this episode. Great job, Isaac!
6. Core values vs. Aspirational values vs. Permission-to-play values.
7. Two methods we use for framing core brand values.

Cody and Isaac sit down to discuss the subtle differences between a brand refresh and a craft brewery rebrand. Plus, how to make sure you’re making the right decision in the first place.

Points of discussion:

1. Differences between a refresh and a full rebrand.
2. Where does a package refresh fall into this?
3. Why is this all so confusing?
4. What is brand equity?
5. What is a brand audit?
6. How do you interpret all of this research?
7. Can you rebrand and keep the same logo?

Points of discussion

1. Overall look is dated and inconsistent (And no longer reflects your core values and current version of your business)
2. You’re making major changes within your company. You are repositioning and/or specifically making major changes to your portfolio with new extensions, sub brands and other brand architecture restructuring
3. You don’t know how to tell your story.
4. You always feel like you’re reinventing the wheel. (For you in house designers and marketing directors out there)
5. Some tactical project—e.g. new website, format change—reveals larger messaging issues that need to be resolved.
6. You’re self conscious of your branding.
7. When not to rebrand: If there are deep, intrinsic problems with your business itself that have not been fixed, then a rebrand is a waste of money.