Two (or More) Brewery Social Media Feeds Are Better Than One

This month, Starbucks announced that it is piloting a new program that further incentivizes employees to share social media content around the brand. In 2024, the company unveiled its Green Apron Creators program to highlight their team members’ expertise. And now, beginning in August, selected applicants to their custom Creator Network within TikTok’s Content Suite will receive briefs and compensation through the sharing of ad revenue.

The move responds to the continued rise in performance and efficiency of organic social media content. In Starbucks’ case, consumers are often more likely to engage with a video created by a Starbucks barista than with produced content from the brand’s account. With hundreds of thousands of employees, Starbucks is tapping into a more authentic and cost-effective way to gain attention by rewarding the creativity of its workforce.

I believe the era of asking one social media account to tell every story about a brewery is coming to an end. Social media no longer rewards brands the way it once did, and Starbucks may be previewing what comes next. For breweries, I think that opens the door to a completely different way of thinking about content, one that’s already hiding inside most taprooms and brewhouses.