Are you looking to grow an artisan small batch coffee brand into a profitable online business?
The specialty coffee industry is booming right now. Home coffee consumption is at an all-time high, and independent roasters have a unique opportunity to capitalize on this growing market.
The challenge?
While these small batch coffee roasters understand how to roast amazing coffee… they don’t always know how to sell it online.
Luckily, there are plenty of actionable strategies that any independent brand can use to build a successful e-commerce store and start generating recurring revenue from home.
Here’s everything you need to know:
What you’ll learn:
- Why selling coffee online is the future of artisan brands
- How to build an online brand that converts visitors into customers
- The best strategies to scale small batch coffee stores
- How subscriptions can set your coffee brand apart
Why Selling Coffee Online Is the Future of Artisan Brands
Think selling coffee online is only for big-name companies?
Think again.
Coffee consumption in the US has grown by 66% since 2008 with everyday consumers craving more specialty options. This boom in coffee consumption has been great news for independent coffee brands who cater to customers searching for small batch roasts.
At the same time that more consumers are looking for artisan coffee… more consumers are shopping for it online.
Profit margins for selling coffee online have skyrocketed as e-commerce coffee sales continue to grow. Home coffee brewing isn’t going anywhere, and shoppers are going to continue to buy coffee online from the best artisan roasters they can find.
If you sell coffee online, you already have access to a large pool of potential customers.
It’s time to start selling to them.
How to Build an Online Brand that Converts
If you have a superior product… you’re half way there.
But simply roasting good coffee is not enough to scale through e-commerce.
Once you’ve laid the foundation with quality roasts, it’s time to start building your coffee brand from the ground up. Here’s how to build a strong online presence that will convert casual visitors into customers:
Focus on your story.
Coffee lovers care about the story behind their beans. This includes where it’s from, how it’s roasted, and who’s delivering it to their doorstep.
Showcase your product.
Your online store is your digital storefront. Make sure customers can easily see high-quality product images, detailed descriptions, and unique flavor profiles.
Remove friction from every step.
This includes everything from your website homepage all the way down to the payment process. Make sure your e-commerce store is simple, intuitive and fast.
When you have a strong coffee brand online, customers are more likely to take that first leap of buying artisan coffee online. And the brands that convert lead the market.
5 Strategies for Scaling Your Coffee E-Commerce Store
You’ve built your brand identity… Now it’s time to start driving traffic.
Here are the strategies that work best for artisan coffee brands looking to grow online.
Sell Coffee Subscriptions
There’s a reason every successful coffee brand has a subscription model.
Subscription coffee sales have grown 109% over the past decade, and the best part is they don’t have to take away from non-subscriber sales. Monthly subscriptions are the perfect complement to your business because they create a steady source of recurring revenue.
You’ve already done the hard part of making a quality product. Now you just need customers to keep buying it. Regularly.
Coffee subscriptions allow you to turn casual customers into long-term buyers. And long-term buyers = a consistent paycheck.
Customers love subscriptions because they offer convenience. Make sure you’re giving your subscribers plenty of options when it comes to frequency, quantity and preferences.
Create and Distribute Educational Content
You wouldn’t buy a car without doing your research first… and the same is true for customers buying coffee online.
Content marketing is huge right now for a reason. By creating and distributing high-quality content around your product you do two things:
- Attract potential buyers searching for topics your product covers
- Display your brand as a leader in the small batch coffee industry.
Buyers are constantly searching Google for brewing tips, product reviews, blog posts, you name it. By creating content that appeals to these buyers you’re getting free traffic sent straight to your store.
Bonus points?
You can use content marketing to sell coffee on social media too. Captivating content is perfectly suited for social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Twitter.
Leverage the Power of Email Marketing
The right email marketing strategy can be a coffee brand’s best friend.
Allowing your customers to sign up for your email list gives you the power to market directly to buyers without worrying about shady social media algorithms. From there you can send emails at consistent intervals to announce new products, offer discounts and tell your brand story.
Just make sure you’re not sending out too many emails or else you risk losing your subscribers altogether. Find a happy medium and stick to it.
Utilize Social Proof
Word of mouth marketing is powerful, but it’s hard to control.
That’s where social proof comes in.
By utilizing existing customers raving about your product you gain credibility with potential buyers. Asking for reviews after every purchase allows you to collect plenty of testimonials to display on your website and share on social media.
Ecommerce coffee sales are growing every year, but you have to earn your customer’s trust first.
Optimize for Search Engines
The last piece of the puzzle is making sure all of your content is search engine optimized.
The goal is to make sure your target customers can find you above competitors when they search for keywords your store covers. For independent coffee brands this includes:
- artisan small batch coffee
- single origin beans
- specialty coffee roasts
Where should you be optimizing?
Basically everywhere. Your product pages, category pages and blog content should all be fully optimized to attract free traffic from Google. Organic traffic = higher margins.
Scaling Coffee Subscriptions for Artisan Brands
Alright, let’s take a second to talk about coffee subscriptions.
Outside of simply having a subscription model, there are three key strategies that successful coffee subscriptions have in common.
- Flexibility. Let subscribers pick how often they get deliveries and easily swap out their roasts if they want something different.
- Personalization. Make subscribers feel special by offering custom roasts that fit their flavor preferences.
- Exclusivity. Subscribers should feel like they are a part of something. Give them access to limited roasts and special blends before anyone else.
When you give subscribers more control over their subscription they are much less likely to cancel. And the less churn you have, the more you profit.
Want Your Coffee Brand to Be the Next Big Thing?
The key to success with selling coffee online is consistency. There’s no get rich quick schemes in coffee… anyone who tells you otherwise is trying to mislead you.
Here’s what you need to do:
- Establish a strong brand story with quality products
- Create a coffee e-commerce store that sells itself
- Utilize strategies like subscriptions and content marketing to boost sales
- Remember… the grind never stops
Independent coffee brands that take e-commerce seriously are the ones that will continue to scale and profit. Pay attention to your data, listen to your customers, and know that you can create a successful coffee brand from home.
The coffee industry isn’t going anywhere, and e-commerce coffee sales are just getting started.
