1. Communication Audit
and Communication
Plan
Brewery Vivant
Outlinedinthisdocumentisanevaluationof BreweryVivant’scurrent
communicationsandalistof recommendedprograms
2015
AjaNero-Williams
CAP423-02
4/2/2015

2. 1
Table of Contents
Objectiveand SWOT Analysis……………………………………..pg.2
Current Communications and Recommendations ………………pg.4
Reaching the Appropriate Audiences………………………………..pg. 4
Advertisements……………………………………………………....pg. 5
The Blog………………………………………………………………pg. 6
Website and Social Media…………………………………………….pg.6
ArtPrize Entry………………………………………………………….pg. 7
Tours……………………………………………………………………pg. 8
Location and Visability………………………………………………….pg. 8
Suggestions for Personal Outreach………………………………………pg. 9
Evaluation of Tactics…………………………………………………pg. 10

3. 2
Objective
The goal of this audit is to evaluate Brewery Vivant’s current programs and performance and
provide suggestions to areas that need improvement. We want to make sure that BV is
effectively reaching the targeted publics: The 25+ age group, the wood-aged and sour beer
lovers’, the “foodies”, and the environmentally conscious.
SWOT Analysis
The SWOT Analysis is comprised of analyses of over 100 customer reviews.
Strengths:
 Environmentally friendly
 Bicycle friendly
 Family oriented
 High quality food
 Great service
 Atmosphere
Weaknesses:
 Particular beer taste
 Low range of beer choices
 Limited parking
 Tours
Opportunities:
 Niche market
 Nationwide recognition
 Community involvement
 Interesting building
 WABF
 The shop
Threats:
 Hard to spot location
 More popular breweries
 Breweries with greater variety

4. 3
Strengths
These are Brewery Vivant’s best qualities and the areas that received the highest ratings. People
love BV’s sustainability niche and biker friendly support. There is nothing but great praise for
the service of the staff. The atmosphere provides a warm ambience that’s good for a casual
outing with friends or the family, and the food is critically acclaimed across the country.
Weaknesses
The main complaint of Brewery Vivant is that there are only a few choices of beer, and they are
the same style. Wood-aging is gaining popularity among craft beer, but BV’s sour style is not
widely popular.
Many people also see parking as an issue. The designated lot is usually full, forcing patrons to
find a spot in the neighborhood streets.
A number of customers felt as if the tours were not adequate, stating that “this was more like a
beer sampling, less of an actual tour.”
Threats
Brewery Vivant is located in a former funeral chapel in the middle of a residential
neighborhood. Even with GPS, the building itself is easy to miss.
Keeping the previous point in mind, it adds to the population of other breweries in Grand
Rapids as an external threat. These breweries are bigger in size, reputation, and in available
product selection.
Opportunities
The beer selection is limited and specialized, so Brewery Vivant is placed in a niche market for
wood-aged beers. BV can develop a marketing strategy that will appeal to people who enjoy
this particular type of beer.
BV has gained nationwide recognition for its food, especially their duck nachos. There can be
mention of this in promotional efforts in order to attract “foodies.”

5. 4
Community involvement and charity are a couple of principles that Brewery Vivant staff
members stand behind and practice; traits that are no doubt amiable to the general public. BV
will gain attention through involvement as well as encourage people to get involved.
WABF, or Wood Aged Beer Festival, is hosted annually by Brewery Vivant and showcases a rare
lineup of barrel-aged and Belgium sour style ales. It is one of the brewery’s biggest events and
a great opportunity to show the people what they have to offer.
Current Communications and Recommendations
Reaching the Appropriate Audiences
Brewery Vivant wants to attract a fun yet mature audience, people who are 25 years of
age or older. The manner in which BV posts updates to social media and the content they use
would suggest that they are reaching this market effectively while seldom tapping into the
college demographic, the next largest public to spend their money in downtown Grand Rapids.
However, if not for social media, there are no external outreach methods that clearly target this
market.
Also, Brewery Vivant specializes in Belgium and French inspired beer and food. The
beers are primarily “sour” and require a particular palate in order to be appreciated. BV says
makes it known they are Belgium inspired, but the actual style of the beer can be
miscommunicated this way, because not everyone knows what Belgium tastes entail. Most
breweries try to cater to all, while Brewery Vivant sticks to what they know the best. This
places them in the niche market of beer flavors.
This brewery is big on the food they create. They want to meet a middle ground and
refer to their fare as “casual fine dining.” Not many breweries emphasize their pub food. Even
if it is good, there is no focus on dining experience in a standard brewery. Not only does BV

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provide high quality food, but it’s so good that certain dishes on their menu have received
nationwide recognition. This also sets Brewery Vivant apart from the majority.
Finally, there is the environmentally conscious public. Brewery Vivant is LEED and B
Corporation certified. They take countless measures to guarantee that the customer is getting
the cleanest beer and food they can get, while minimizing their impact on the environment.
Brewery Vivant is extremely bicycle friendly, which corresponds with the environmental and
health conscious public, and they are well placed geographically to reach this public.
Advertisements
Taking all of this into account, we will design an advertising campaign that will reach
these publics. Currently, Brewery Vivant does not have a known advertising campaign, so
there is the benefit of starting from scratch. This one will be primarily web advertising due to
Vivant owners’ personal preferences. It will be a series of 3-4 advertisements specifically
designed to appeal to each specific public, while sharing the appeal of a mature audience. For
the wood-aged beer lovers and those who are curious, there will be an ad designed to draw
attention to the WABF. With the foodie designated ad, we will showcase BV’s most popular and
critically acclaimed dish: the duck nachos. Last, we will design a “Beer the Change”
advertisement that is designed to capture the environmental audience and will also draw
attention to the BV blog. For four (4) web advertisements plus two (2) revisions of each, the
cost is estimated around $250.00.

7. 6
The Blog
One way to keep the appropriate audiences informed is by maintaining a regular blog.
The blog will be designed for these purposes:
 To build a personal appeal with current and potential patrons
 To educate patrons on BV and their available products
 To promote environmental efforts
The blog is to be updated and maintained weekly. Promotion of this blog will be done by the
“Beer the Change” ad, plugging it at charity/community events, and linking posts to BV’s
Facebook and Twitter accounts. Establishment and maintenance of this blog is estimated
around the cost of $60.00 per year. There are also free options of blog hosting and
maintenance, but it would not be fully suggested. Free blogs have limited control on different
widgets and material you can place on the blog, plus there is no control over what
advertisements are placed around it. If going with the free option, we would suggest creating a
Tumblr page. Tumblr is very user friendly, widely popular with some of BV’s identified
markets, and does not plague the blog with advertisements.
Website and Social Media
The Brewery Vivant website is easy to look at and easy to navigate. It is organized well
and has some nice graphics. However there are a few areas where the photos could be better
quality. Also the website seems to stay updated in important tabs, such as the events and beer
calendar, which is great. Although, there are some announcements that are outdated, but
they’re small enough to forget. For example, it is far past Easter and the announcement that BV
will be closed that day is still on the landing page; and the new sustainability report is out, yet
the 2013 report is still being showcased in the top banner of the website. The only suggestions

8. 7
we have for the website is to be a little more on top of the updates, get a few better quality
photos, and possibly tweak the font style so it doesn’t look too plain.
Brewery Vivant is doing well as far as being current with the most widely used social
media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. All three are being updated on a regular
basis, and the interaction between users on Twitter and BV is high. What we want to do is
increase engagement on Instagram, because the Facebook and Twitter pages are doing well and
being maintained properly.
For Instagram, we can start a hashtag trend where people take photos of their time in
BV and each week BV can choose their favorite photo, “regram” it, and feature it on BV’s
Instagram. #MCM means “Man Crush Monday”, but Brewery Vivant can play on that and
make their tracking hashtag #MonkCrushMonday when reposting their chosen favorite photo.
ArtPrize Entry
ArtPrize is an independently organized art competition in Grand Rapids that’s open to
everyone across the globe. Having placement in this event, whether as a venue or an artist,
would provide great placement for Brewery Vivant. ArtPrize also holds goals and puts effort
into having a lesser impact on the environment, so involvement would create an appropriate
affiliation. Being involved in ArtPrize would also immensely increase exposure and awareness
of BV without the use of print advertising.
If BV were to enter the competition, it would reinforce the connection the brewery has
with the community. BV staff could create a piece centered around sustainability, perhaps
even something interactive that encourages people to get rid of their waste appropriately or
something of the sort. This also helps convey BV’s values to the general public. If Vivant
owners decide to have an ArtPrize entry, the cost of materials would be no more than $800.00
if gathered responsibly.

9. 8
Tours
Brewery Vivant seems to only have one internal issue, and that is the structure and
presentation of the tours that are held there. Based on customer reviews, patrons did not feel as
if they were on a tour, but more so as if they were at an informal tasting or sampling event.
From this information and Brewery Vivant’s attitude, it would seem as if BV doesn’t want to
adhere to one plan, in fear of the tours becoming dull and monotonous. However, there must
be some form of organization for the tours so that tourists can get the experience they paid for.
To reach the happy medium, we suggest setting out a planned and detailed tour
schedule, but with a rotation of areas to cover. This way there is organization, people will feel
like they are getting a tour, and it’s not the same old thing every time a tour is conducted. To
add an element of spontaneity, every other tour that is conducted should include a taste tester
game, with the prize being an item from the shop. It can be a fun way to keep people on their
toes, see who’s really been paying attention, and promote items from the shop; plus the specific
rules can be designed or changed to Brewery Vivant’s discretion. The best part about this is
that it won’t cost anything besides possibly a little extra beer, items from the shop, and extra
time for plan development.
We also want to implement a new brochure to hand out during tours or to curious
customers. This brochure will detail the core values and practices of Brewery Vivant as if the
reader is completely unfamiliar with the brewery.
Location and Visibility
Brewery Vivant’s owners love the location of their brewery, in the middle of a
neighborhood in downtown Grand Rapids. As stated on BV’s website:
“We chose to locate our business in a neighborhood as opposed to a commercial district.
We like the idea that people can walk or bike to our place from their home. We also like

10. 9
that we found a dilapidated building that was once an eyesore and we brought it back
to life to become a viable part of the neighborhood.”
With these points taken into account, Brewery Vivant’s location choice is beneficial. It is one of
the most prominent things that set this brewery apart from many others. The only issue with
this is that the building blends so well into the neighborhood that it can be very hard to find for
most people.
We suggest the Brewery Vivant invest in a large sign to sit close to the curb or the edge
of their property lines. It doesn’t interfere with the integrity of the original structure and it can
be easily installed. This is guaranteed to increase visibility for new patrons and potentials that
pass by. Design and installation of this sign is estimated to cost around $1500.00 and last for
many years.
Suggestions for Personal Outreach
We suggest two (2) tactics in order to add a “personal” touch to communicating with
customers: a direct mail piece and a newsletter.
The direct mailer will be sent to the homes or email addresses of Monk Club members.
It will encourage charitable donations while providing these members with a reward that is
only exclusive to them. The goal is to strengthen the brewery’s connection to these members
and to gain more money towards BV’s charitable causes.
The newsletter will keep customers updated on events and weekly special changes. It is
to be distributed monthly by email. We could measure this with the amount of people who
sign up for the newsletter, which can be promoted on the website, blog, and the pub itself.

11. 10
Evaluation of Tactics
Tactic Objectives Measurement Publics
Advertisements To raise awareness
about products,
WABF, and blog
Volume of website
activity, blog visitations,
and movement of sales
activity
Wood aged ale lovers,
foodies, bloggers,
environmentalists
Blog/SocialMedia Build connection
with publics,
educate and
provide
suggestions(food,
conservation, etc.)
Volume of blog activity,
hashtag activity, social
media interaction, and
movement in the amount
of followers/likes
Current fans, curious
newcomers, foodies,
environmentalists
ArtPrizeEntry Secure placement
in community,
build brand and
eco awareness
Volume of hashtag
activity in the timespan
of competition and
amount of tourist
participation
Tourists,
environmentalists, art
appreciators
Tours Educate curious
patrons
Reviews of tours online
and surveys
Current fans, curious
newcomers, wood
aged ale lovers
Visibility Make BV easier to
spot
Online reviews Current customers,
curious newcomers
Direct
Mailer/Newsletter
Strengthen
personal
connection, keep
publics updated
Amount of charitable
donations/monk club
participants and amount
of email signups.
Monk club members,
wood aged beer lovers