It’s been a year already? Wow. I guess the old adage is true that time files when you’re drinking, writing and sharing information about Indiana craft beer. Wait, maybe it’s ‘time flies when you’re having fun.’ I can’t remember. Well, for us over here at Indiana On Tap, it’s really become the same thing.
When I launched Indiana On Tap a year ago…I had high expectations. Why? I knew I’d be filling a void in the Indiana marketplace. There simply wasn’t an online resource that included all of the relevant information a Hoosier craft beer drinker would both WANT to know and NEED to know to stay informed in this exciting industry. I wanted to create a site to introduce new craft beer drinkers to our state’s great breweries and their beers. At the same time, I also wanted to create a site that catered to the smart and ‘seasoned’ craft beer drinker as well. I’m confident we’ve created the right platform for both.
And we’re just getting started.
In 12 months, I’ve grown the Indiana On Tap team to 15 of the smartest and most passionate craft beer fans I’ve ever met. And our audience? Well, our audience continues to grow as well—both the tens of thousands of unique visitors who visit the site each month as well as the 8,000+ social media followers who love engaging with us on either Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
We’ve evolved from what started as the most thorough and visual Indiana brewery directory online into a true media company that prides itself on publishing breaking news and information along with original craft beer features and editorials. We continue as well to curate select content from 3rd parties that we believe provides value to our readers. And events? We’ve got that covered better than anyone else. We’ve created the most comprehensive Indiana craft beer events page anywhere online to let you know what’s happening around the state.
What about the Indiana On Tap Writing & Reporting Community that was recently announced? Yeah, that’s pretty exciting as well. We believe the best news and stories come from our readers and our fans. All we’ve done is create a submission procedure for it and given it a name. Anyone and everyone is now just “4 steps away from instant craft beer fame.” If you’re not familiar with this new community, you can learn more about it HERE.
We’ve also created a platform for advertisers to reach our large and highly engaged audience. Through our advertising services and social media campaigns, we’ve helped companies sell out their events, raise thousands of dollars for their crowdfunding campaigns, or even just raise significant brand awareness for their products and services…products and services that we know will be of interest to our readers.
So what does our future hold? Well…a lot, actually. But I don’t want to give away all the secrets just yet. After all, the anticipation is just as fun as the outcome, right? Here is what I can tell you. We’re close to introducing a monthly event that we think will change the game here in the central part of the state. We plan to launch a new daily page that will tell you everything you need to know about what’s happening in the world of Indiana craft beer THAT day…and every day moving forward. We’ll be launching a new site altogether with a focus on the ‘visual art’ aspect of craft beer and craft breweries. We’re also going to rebrand ourselves with a logo design that’s more in line with who we are and where we’re going.
Maybe I’ve already shared too much.
The point I’m trying to make is that everything we do is done with our audience in mind. Every day we ask ourselves: What kind of value can we continue to add to keep our audience more informed? After all, our company’s slogan is more than just a slogan to us. We genuinely believe it and we’ll do whatever we can to continue to make it true for everyone: “A Smarter Beer Drinker is a Better Beer Drinker.”
Thank you for all of your support and for making our first year something we’ll never forget. Look for more exciting articles about our first year, and looking forward to next year, every day this week. As always, we’re all ears for any feedback you have for us…whether it be good or bad.
Cheers!
Justin
