While fine weather drives beer sales, raising standards will make the most of the sunshine.
With no major sporting events this year the weather will be the biggest factor influencing summer beer sales. If it's good, it is the pubs which put a focus on an all-round quality drinking experience that will really reap the benefits.
That's the view of Colin Pedrick, managing director of on-trade sales at Stella brewer Interbrew UK, who urges pubs to take full advantage of the summer peak to build their business.
"Summer weather is the single biggest factor determining the performance of the beer category," he says. "Last summer was disappointing, particularly when compared with the heatwave of the previous year, and this undoubtedly had an impact on beer sales. In July 2003 the average temperature was two degrees higher than July 2004 and beer sales were seven per cent higher.
"A hot spell has an immediate and positive impact on beer because it encourages people to go out and socialise in pubs and bars."
While the Euro 2004 football tournament must have saved summer trade for many licensees last year, Colin believes that, paradoxically, the lack of a big sporting event this year may benefit pubs. "There won't be the temptation to stay at home, get in a few six packs and watch the games on the TV with your mates," he argues.
"But if the weather is good, pubs will be up against people deciding to have friends around for a barbecue at home. That is why it is important for licensees to offer their customers a quality experience, something that can tempt more people to visit their local pub on a regular basis rather than drinking at home."
Like rival brewer Scottish Courage with its Foster's barbecue initiative, Interbrew realises that by helping pubs raise their game over the summer, beer sales will grow.
"It is important to get all the elements right," continues Colin. "If pubs can't offer their own barbecue option to compete with the home barbecue they can still introduce a seasonal offer to attract visitors such as a special summer menu.
"The menu could extend to suggesting refreshing beer brands, such as Hoegaarden, to go with certain dishes, encouraging people to drink beer with their meal."
Licensees should also be using their outdoor areas to advertise certain brands. "A good example is having branded umbrellas to steer consumers towards more profitable premium beers," says Colin. "A significant proportion of customers never go to the bar so it is important to communicate with them via branded point-of-sale both inside and out."
Quality of serve
As any advertiser knows, the product you're plugging has to deliver the goods, and Interbrew is also helping licensees improve the quality of the beer it serves.
A lot of this focuses on temperature. It's pretty obvious that people like a cool drink in the summer, but the success of super-chilled versions of the leading lagers - which is driving much of the growth in the beer market - suggests that the effect of temperature on sales has, if anything, been underestimated.
Interbrew is now fitting its "cool to tap" technology whenever a new cooling system is installed. This runs cold water right through the font to the tap to ensure the beer the right temperature at dispense. The technology is now standard in all new Tennent's Lager installations in Scotland.
"Although getting the drinking environment right is vital, if the beer served isn't perfect the effect will be wasted and consumers are unlikely to order a second pint," Colin points out.
"Incorrect temperature is one of the major causes of an inferior pint, particularly during the summer."
Corky's mixes it up
Long and cool cocktails with a summer theme are a good way of jazzing up your offer. Put together a special menu and you could tempt your customers to try something refreshing and different.
Wise to the opportunity, Global Brands has launched the first Corky's Mixologists Handbook. Developed in response to feedback from consumers and barstaff, the handy guide is a working cocktail list that also illustrates the versatility of the Corky's range of vodka shots.
It incorporates all 12 Corky's flavours from White Chocolate to Apple Sour and features blend, jug, shooter, mixer and cocktail recipes.
"As Corky's has grown over the last 12 months, both in sales and flavour range, so have the ways it has been presented by barstaff and drunk by customers," says Global Brands managing director Steve Perez. "When we first launched Corky's it was meant to be a hassle-free range of flavoured vodkas. Now they are used as a base for mixing with carbonates and in all sorts of cocktails.
"These are always popular once the sun comes out and we are expecting them to really take off this summer."
The Corky's taste team will switch this summer from introducing new flavours to presenting Corky's as a cocktail base .
- The Corky's Mixologists Handbook is designed to be an expanding guide so if you have any cocktail suggestions incorporating Corky's Vodka Shots please send them through to helent@vkuk.co.uk. The best three will receive a Corky's gift pack containing four etched shot glasses and a bottle of Corky's of their choice.
RTDs are ripe for summer market
Sales of RTDs - or alcopops - have generally fallen hard after the boom years, but the drinks come into their own in the summer and licensees should be gearing up to make the most of the opportunity. According to Karen Salters, marketing director of Beverage Brands, which makes the WKD range, the weather can have a big influence on drinking habits.
"The summer offers a massive sales opportunity for the RTD sector because of the refreshing qualities of these drinks," she explains. "It's not as though everyone wants to drink lager and they may turn to the major RTD brands."
Increasingly, the RTD category revolves around the success of a handful of big brands. The top three brands - Smirnoff Ice, WKD and Bacardi Breezer - now account for 75 per cent of on-trade business.
"To maximise the opportunity , licensees need to focus on driving sales of these pillar brands by putting the display focus on them both at the bar and in the chiller," Karen says.