Brewery management software is often an afterthought in the process of how to open up a brewery. Unlike brewery cleaning supplies, getting a brewery license, or hiring brewery staff, brewery management software is less tangible, but equally important. It supports your brewery business in every area.
By now, with this BinWise blog series on breweries, you’ve learned a lot. You know how a brewery works, and how to work at a brewery. You’ve added the cost to open a brewery to your budget. You’re prepared to write a brewery business plan. You've learned about beer expiration. You even know where a brewery fits in among the different types of bars.
Now it’s time to learn about the software support that keeps a brewery in working order. Brewery management software is something that will make your daily operations easier, and boost your overall success.
Best Brewery Management Software: 7 Brewery Management Software Functions
The best brewery management software is designed to ease your workload and improve customer service, beer quality, operational efficiency, and business success. That’s effectively the function of all software, and in a brewery that software support can be applied to every area of the business.
These seven best brewery management software areas of support come together to make your brewery business better for customers, yourself, and your employees. They cut down on time-consuming tasks, ease frustrations, and make it easier to enjoy the art of the craft of brewing beer. Any or all of these are perfect for any brewery.
7. Quality Control Software
Quality control software plays the role of helping you consistently make the best beers the way you want them to be made. It gives you continuity in your flavor and substance for every brew and every bottle. There’s the old fashioned way of trial and error. With quality control software, you can get it right with ease.
Quality control software can monitor the ingredients, flavor, clarity, color, and foam of your brews. Overall, this software takes some of the weight of brewing off your shoulders, so you can enjoy the process fully.
6. Keg Tracking
Keg tracking software is helpful for your general knowledge of beer and your taproom. When you’re serving up beer on tap, you’ll need to be able to work with kegs. They can take time to get used to, and keg tracking software can get you there faster.
This software is designed to help you keep track of kegs and keep them available. Keg tracking software can make use of barcode scanning, outsource tracking, or RFID keg tracking systems. They all have different benefits.
5. Customer Data Tracking
Customer data tracking is important for any business, from a business and customer perspective. It allows you to know who your customers are, how many are returning, and what they’re enjoying. Those are some of the key factors you need to understand when it comes to mastering customer service.
For your customers, when you use customer data tracking software they’re given a more personal experience. For beer lovers, coming back to the same brewery and being remembered there feels amazing. You can provide that level of service with the right software.
4. Reservation Software
Reservation software is another part of your customer service in your brewery management software. When customers can reserve a table at your brewery, or a ticket for a special event you’re hosting, they’ll love it. It makes everything easier when planning a trip to a brewery.
Reservation software also makes it easier for you to manage the customer service of your business. Instead of dealing with your own booking, you can get the right brewery management software and ease your workload.
3. POS Systems
POS systems are vital for every business. Without them, you can’t get paid easily and your books will be a mess. There are many POS systems available in the myriad of brewery management software.
When you find the right POS system that integrates with your platform, your customers can pay you with ease. You’ll have a neat, organized interface to refer to when it comes to check receipts and receiving payments. It doesn’t get better than that!
2. Order Management
Order management software is a key feature in your array of brewery management software. It makes it easier for you to manage your products, have what you need on hand, and even send out shipments.
An order management system like BlueCart can help you manage your orders and products from one platform. It keeps track of your reorder point, so you never have to worry about having enough of the products you need.
1. Inventory Management
Inventory management pairs perfectly with order management software. BinWise Pro, the BinWise inventory management platform, pairs perfectly with BlueCart. BinWise, alongside the BinScan app, gives you control when you take inventory, and easy access to your inventory count.
Perpetual inventory is one of the best ways of working with an inventory program. It gives you constant number updates, so you have less inventory questions and more of a smooth process at work.
"Key Takeaway: The best brewery management software is designed to ease your workload and improve customer service, beer quality, operational efficiency, and business success."
Frequently Asked Questions About Brewery Management Systems and Software
There are so many options available for brewery management software of different types. The seven we’ve covered in this blog post are some of the most important and common. That said, there are areas we haven’t covered. When we dove into the frequently asked questions around brewery management software, we decided to leave some for these answers.
What Accounting Software Do Breweries Use?
Many breweries use classic accounting software such as QuickBooks and Xero. These are common accounting software options, and they work for most businesses. NetSuite is another good option. When you’re searching for the right accounting software for your brewery business, using something that works for many other businesses is a good idea.
What Technology Do Breweries Use?
Breweries use technology to measure customer satisfaction, check their brews, manage their sales, and keep their inventory program running smoothly. With advances in AI technology in a mainstream sense, there is room for breweries to expand into AI technology as well. Technology can ease the daily work of a brewery business in many facets.
What Is the Most Commonly Used Accounting Software?
The most commonly used accounting software, according to online polls and business owners, is QuickBooks Online. QuickBooks has been ruling the accounting industry since 2001, when it was launched by the QuickBooks brand. QuickBooks has many excellent options, but QuickBooks Online continues to be one of the most efficient, popular, and easy-to-use choices.
What are New Innovations In the Beer Industry?
Some new innovations in the beer industry include IoT (the Internet of Things), AI, machine learning, edge computing, virtual reality, and augmented reality. These emerging and growing technologies are showing up across many industries. They’re helping breweries improve their production and customer service.
Brewery Management Support: Finding the Right Brewery Management Software
Your brewery management software serves as the underlying backbone of your brewery business. It supports everything you do and makes it better. When you find the right brewery management software and build it into your business plan, you’ll be ready for anything. BinWise and BlueCart together can help you get there.