What should we do with r/beeradvocate?

It sounds like you've already answered your own question - gain visibility in new spaces to help drive traffic back to BA. Sure, go for it. For people that are already connected either through here, Discord, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tiktok, or whatever other verticals you have already it's kind of a moot point isn't it? (I mean, ya already got us hooked LOL)

For me personally, since I am already connected through Discord for the social aspect, I probably wouldn't pursue another channel. It's hard enough to be active in even one vertical these days with the limited time I have for hobbies, ya know?

Again, just a personal take on this, but I think of the forum here on BA and Untappd as research vehicles and checking in my own beer drinking history, meager as it may be comparatively. But, for better or worse, I don't think I'm really part of the tribe or community because it's less social for me than it probably is for others. I think y'all are doing a great job through the various verticals you have already, and if you have the bandwidth to add another, more power to ya, but where to take it is another question entirely.

Asking within the community will likely garner many kinds of responses from helpful, to abstentions, to useless, and then the minority like me who just ramble incessantly because it's raining out and I had to abandon my yardwork.

As for ideas, my own ideas on how to proceed would vary based on whether it's for business or social reasons.

On the business side:
If you're really asking for help on the topic, I'd think that there must be some fans here who are social media mavens or experts that could help with the behind-the-scenes stuff. Identify them, maybe work out a deal with them (hey, for a couple bits of swag, would you help us set up the Reddit space?). Or maybe start a job posting for a social media expert to step in and help work out the details of how to get started in those other spaces you're looking to explore. Not even sure if you have a budget for something like that though, so it's hard to say what to really do next (assuming of course that this is all centered around the idea that you want to tap into Reddit - no pun intended - as a vehicle to increase traffic to the site here?)

On the social side:
Since this would be more altruistic in nature - because it's just building a community, then it really doesn't matter as much about driving traffic here then right? So, I'd say in that case, just start a few threads for discussion and encourage the existing Beer Army to start participating in there to help ya out. Maybe do a giveaway for the most active person in each space every month? Like a t-shirt in the Reddit space, a ballcap in the Discord space, or maybe a set of beer mugs in the Forum space? If it's just increasing activity, rewards often will do that, right?

Other kinds of competitive reward mechanisms could also be encouraging participation through incorporating other hobbies. For instance:

• Photography - What's your most artistic photograph of a beer that you've taken? Winner gets a free bottle opener (or whatever).
• Writing - Got a beer run story that you'll never forget, or always makes you smile? Write it up and share it in the story of the month channel for a chance to win a BA t-shirt (or whatever)
• Social - Ever have a beer with someone famous? Drop the photo and story of how it happened in the Reddit channel (or where ever) for a chance to win a year subscription to Brew magazine (or whatever)

Obviously I'm better at ideas on the social side of things. partly because I ran a photography forum community for about ten years back in the early 2000's. The other part is because I like coming up with ideas, and creative disciplines are always fun to engage in for me to challenge my brain. Plus, it's easy for me to come up with ideas because I don't have to worry about things like site costs, overhead, salaries, bandwidth, and the headaches of administering or moderating multiple social media outlets like you do. (Hats off to you for doing everything you do by the way - I wouldn't have the patience for hundreds of thousands of people like me LOL )

Lastly, I'll share what I found in my own forum administration days, though you likely already know this. The key to that photo forum success was a monthly contest. Winners got SD cards or a lens, or a ticket to some place good for photography. Their photos were featured on the main page of the forum for the next 30 days. It kind of died off after I left the area (moved from SC to Colorado.) I kind of left the space after that, because my life pivoted into a new direction and it'd just been too long since I'd even picked up a camera to really command any kind of tribe in that space (it's a very competitive space even now...10 years later)

The problem with social media buckets is that once you open the bucket, it's bottomless and constantly needs new content dumped in or it becomes a drain more than it's worth. Whether that social outlet is a blog, a forum, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, or whatever the next big thing is - I think that will always hold true. And the ROI for any given vertical will be a function of how much money and effort you can pour into that bucket.

I wish you luck, but that's about all I can offer - hope it helps

 

Very excited that you got the subreddit

My suggestion is to focus on AMA's but also have some conversation threads on the basics of enjoying and reviewing beers. I think that is the content that is most of interest to beer lovers who are not yet on beeradvocate.

 

I had one of the original subscriptions to the magazine and it was critical to my education (I forget my subscription number..but it was pretty low). I, like many of us were sad to see it go, but, I understand the cost and effort. I am thankful for the site to be functioning and people reporting; it is my go-to place for any new beer that makes it over to Hawaii's store shelves. Now the number of breweries and variety is incredible here; and I really it attribute it to you guys ...the brothers! (Asia is a hard nut to crack..but I see some progress.). In the end, the site is what is needed; the data collected there by the community is amazing. IF it doesn't drain you guys and your limited resources...I think going onto new platforms is good. .. it is our responsibility (the community) to support you guys by getting onto those platforms.

 

Reddit is great for general community chat and can also be utilized as another way to market events to the community. Mostly it seems to me that subgroups prefer certain social media over others and there is a huge reddit fan base. It depends on what you prefer to use. I use them all but seem to like discord more and more for crypto talk.

 

When will r/beeradvocate be open for posting?

 

I guess I am Too old school. Nothing negative, I just do not really understand reddit so I cannot weigh in.

 

Cracks beer to get creative juices flowing*

*no results guaranteed from consumption of said beer(s)

 

I think you've gotten a lot of good ideas. AMAs, general BA and BA fest news, highlighting reviews (I could imagine getting something like a CBS batch 1 review and a recent CBS review could make for interesting chatter).

I'd also add that it could be a place to push the idea of the consumer beer review and give some guidance on their value and how to create a good one. That seems like it is increasingly a distinguishing aspect of bas brand identity and is simultaneously dwindling among the reddit aged crowd. could be a unique way to add something different to the reddit beer scene and drive traffic because ba is the best place for storing web based reviews of beers

You could even do some AMAs with competition judges or other professional reviewers

 

Subbed.

Having built a small country subreddit myself and with others that had to grow after a sad split I would say that the key (in the early stages) is always found in this:

1. Crossposting for exposure. So crosspost from the larger subs to /r/beeradvocate, and also the other way around if possible. You want people to see that the sub exists. Also make sure to refer to the sub on other platforms, like FB, etc.
2. Maintain a dedicated userbase. This at the start demands time investment from a core group, that may be a bit cumbersome at time, but it works. An involved early userbase is of great importance. You need to keep traffic up after all.
3. Create a good environment. Note: that does not mean 'create a safe space', but a place at least in which people engage with one another in a courteous, honest way. Just think of a regular, normal conversation, and you will be more than halfway there already.
4. Do not over-moderate: moderation should be the last means at ones disposal after setting the theme for the subreddit. Moderate to guard the content boundaries, but do not overmoderate personal disagreements between users for example. If you feel like someone crosses the line, asking a few questions to that users or remarking on his / her behavior is often a good way to solve any issue.

Those are a few important things I would like to mention, also based on my own experience. Ideally you want to a create a true niche sub, that is unlike others, as that is what maintains a userbase the best. You get a very involved community that way, and my experience on Reddit is that the smaller communities with dedicated userbases are often most involved and most knowledgeable.

Some ideas for you .

 

About time. I was a BA magazine subscriber, but never have been an active forum user. The great thing about Reddit is the diversity of content. So while regional beer subreddits exist highlighting festivals and openings, r/craftbeer is just people posting pictures without industry news or trends. I look forward to a moderated beer discussion sub. The BA forum is still a good archive place and would be good to highlight older popular posts to expand the discussion within the reddit community.

 

I like everything you said, but especially the importance of moderation. The well moderated subreddits are amazing, things like "whatisthisthing"

 

I just joined. I use Reddit a number of times a week; primarily for Gaming and PC/Laptop info and some Science threads.

Question to all: Could/Should this count towards Beer Karma!

 

I would've LOVED to had a beeradvocate subreddit back in the day. Unfortunately, reddit is far too corporatized and full of ads for me to enjoy anymore. I prefer my go-to beer social media site to be right here

But to answer your question, maybe the subreddit could be a trade sub, where beer enthusiasts can trade different beer types with each other. I've seen several successful subs centered around trading stuff. But your earlier suggestion for AMA's centered around the beer industry would be interesting too.

Anyways, whatever you do, I hope it works out for you. Prost!

 

Gotcha. Thanks for the update. It's been a few years since I've been on reddit lol. Still cool that you were able to nab the sub. Will you also be willing to include some of the content from your reddit sub on this site too? Like the AMA transactions and stuff? Looking forward to seeing what you do with it!

 

Well at the very least r/beeradvocate has a new subscriber.

 

I haven't read the posts in this thread, but I just want to add one thing in case noone else has:

Reddit comes with it's own hazards and politics. There was the recent NoNewNormal thing where all the subs had to decide if they wanted to start locking their own subs until something was done about them. Over the years this has happened a lot - subs close down until some other sub of lowlifes gets kabashed. So you have to keep up on what's going on over there.

Also, there's a lot of brigading that goes on over there, especially over hotbutton issues like the discrimination and harassment situation some notorious breweries have engaged in, that either side can brigade you over. And that's one of the unsavory aspect of Reddit: there is always an 'other side' of any issue no matter how one sided you may think it is, and they'll let you know about themselves.

Maybe very narrowly define what happens there that doesn't split people between there and here, like regular posting. AMAs is a great idea because those get announced site wide and can bring new eyes in.

 

I've almost never engaged here, even though I've been a member for 10 years, since a forum like this seems clunky and outdated. I'd much rather engage on either Reddit or Discord. I imagine there's going to be a cross-over between those folk, so I was surprised to see the recent Discord channel and now a new subreddit. It might be best to establish one before trying both? I'm torn on which to start engaging on. I definitely support the other avenues of communication and community building. I think Reddit is better for quickly receiving news and updates on issues or areas of interest, but Discord is better for deeper conversations or developing personal relationships.