Many liquor store owners are at a crossroads.
As consumer behavior shifts towards online shopping, traditional brick-and-mortar stores must adapt to the digital age or risk being left behind.
However, selling liquor online is not as simple as setting up a website and waiting for the orders to roll in. There are many hurdles to overcome, from obtaining the proper licenses to ensuring compliance with state and federal regulations.
This post walks you through the regulations you need to understand, the tips you need to succeed, and the tools you need to manage your new online liquor store business. Let’s get started.
How To Sell Liquor Online: Benefits of Online Sales
If you want to take your liquor store business to the next level, adding e-commerce and local delivery is a smart move. But before we dive into the nitty-gritty of how to sell liquor online, let’s look at the current trends in online liquor sales.
Related Read: 8 Ways To Build Your Liquor Store's Online Presence
Online liquor sales have been on the rise since 2020, with more and more consumers choosing to order their favorite liquors and mixers to be delivered right to their doorstep. Take advantage of this growing market and enjoy some key benefits for your store, including:
- An expanded customer base: By offering online sales, you're no longer limited to serving customers in your immediate vicinity. You can tap into a new market of consumers who prefer shopping online.
- A convenient shopping experience: With online sales, your customers can browse your selection, place an order, and have their liquor delivered straight to their door.
- Valuable customer data and insights: When you sell online, you have access to a wealth of data about your customers' preferences and behaviors. This point of sale data can help you make informed decisions about inventory, marketing strategies, and more.
- Increased sales and customer engagement: With an online presence, you can use digital marketing tactics to attract new customers and keep existing ones engaged.
However, selling liquor online is not without its challenges. Some of the hurdles you’ll need to keep in mind before you get started are:
- Complex legal and regulatory compliance: The alcohol industry is heavily regulated, and selling online adds another layer of complexity. Ensure you're familiar with all the relevant laws and regulations in your area.
- Robust age verification systems: It's crucial to ensure that you're only selling to individuals of legal drinking age. Investing in reliable age verification software is a must.
- Shipping and delivery logistics: Shipping liquor can be tricky, with restrictions and requirements varying by state. You'll need to develop a solid plan for handling logistics, including packaging, labeling, and delivery.
Despite these challenges, the benefits of selling liquor online are too significant to ignore. With all this baseline information in mind, we’re ready to dive into our deeper discussion about how to sell liquor online.
Step 1: Research Legal Requirements
The first step to selling liquor online is to familiarize yourself with the legal requirements of online liquor sales.
Start by researching the laws and regulations governing online liquor sales in your state and local area. Remember, these can vary widely from one jurisdiction to another, so don't assume what's true for one location applies to yours.
Once you have a handle on the legal requirements, it's time to gather the necessary paperwork. This typically involves applying for specific licenses and permits, including an e-commerce liquor license or a delivery permit.
Related Read: ANSWERED: How Long Does It Take To Get a Liquor License?
Age verification is another crucial consideration. You need to implement robust systems for verifying customer ages both online and at the point of delivery. Consider:
- Integrating age verification software on your website
- Training delivery staff to check IDs upon delivery
- Keeping detailed records of age verification processes
With these systems in place, you are ready to move forward with your online liquor sales.
Step 2: Develop a Business Plan
With the legal groundwork laid, it's time to craft your business plan. Your business plan is the roadmap you can follow when building your business.
Related Read: Liquor Store E-Commerce 101: How To Sell Liquor Online
Start by defining your market and identifying your target audience. Are you aiming to serve local wine enthusiasts, craft beer fans, or cocktail lovers looking for rare spirits? Understanding your niche will help shape your product offerings and marketing strategies.
Next, consider your delivery area. Will you serve just your immediate vicinity, or are you planning to cover a wider region? This decision will impact everything from staffing needs to delivery fees.
You’ll also want to develop your pricing strategy in your business plan. Consider:
- Competitive pricing for your products
- Delivery fees (if any)
- Minimum order amounts
- Potential discounts for larger orders or repeat customers
Remember, your pricing needs to be competitive while still allowing for a healthy profit margin. It's a balancing act, but getting it right is key to your business's success.
Step 3: Set Up an Online Store
Once you have your business plan in place, you are ready to set up your online storefront. Your first decision is to choose an e-commerce platform. Popular options like Shopify, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce all have their strengths, so research each to find the best fit for your needs. You may also want to look for platforms like BottleZoo specifically supporting online liquor sales, as they'll likely have features tailored to your industry.
With your platform selected, it's time to build your website. Aim for a clean, user-friendly design that showcases your products. High-quality images and clear, detailed product descriptions are a must. You also should be sure to optimize for mobile, as many of your customers will be browsing and buying on their smartphones.
Lastly, integrate secure payment gateways to process online transactions. Consider offering multiple payment options to cater to different customer preferences. Some popular choices include:
- Credit/debit cards
- PayPal
- Apple Pay or Google Pay
- ACH transfers
Remember, the easier you make it for customers to pay, the more likely they are to complete their purchase.
Step 4: Implement Age Verification
As we mentioned briefly, age verification is a critical component of selling liquor in general, and this is doubly true when selling liquor online. But how can you implement reliable age verification systems for your store?
Start by integrating robust age verification software on your website. This could involve anything from a simple date of birth entry to more sophisticated ID verification systems. But online verification is just the first step. You'll also need to verify your customers’ age at delivery. Train your delivery staff to properly check IDs and refuse delivery if the recipient can't prove they're of legal drinking age.
Related Read: 5 Vital Liquor Store POS Software Features
Consider implementing a policy where delivery personnel must:
- Check the ID of anyone who appears under 30
- Scan or photograph IDs for record-keeping purposes
- Refuse delivery if they have any doubts about the recipient's age
Remember, it's always better to err on the side of caution regarding age verification. The consequences of selling to minors far outweigh any potential lost sale.
Step 5: Develop a Delivery System
Another critical process to get set up for your online liquor sales is your delivery system. Online sales won’t do your store any good if you don’t have a reliable mechanism in place to get those products to your customers.
First, decide whether you'll handle deliveries in-house or partner with a third-party service. In-house delivery gives you more control but requires more resources, while third-party services can be more convenient but may cut into your profits.
Once you’ve made that decision, you need to establish clear delivery policies. Set delivery hours, order cut-off times, and procedures for handling undeliverable orders. Be sure to communicate these policies clearly to your customers and third-party delivery services, if applicable, to avoid misunderstandings.
Step 6: Engage in Marketing and Promotion
With your online store up and running, it's time to spread the word. Start with search engine optimization (SEO) to ensure your website appears in relevant search results. This process involves optimizing your webstore content, meta descriptions, and even your product descriptions with relevant keywords.
Social media marketing can be a powerful tool for reaching potential customers. Create engaging content showcasing your products, sharing cocktail recipes, or highlighting industry news. Consider platforms like:
- Instagram for product photos
- Facebook for community building and targeted ads
- Twitter for quick updates and customer service announcements
Don't forget about tried-and-true marketing approaches like email marketing. Build a subscriber list and send regular updates about new products, special promotions, or exclusive offers.
Step 7: Invest in the Right Tools
If you want to sell liquor online, you need the right processes and tools. Step seven of selling liquor online is investing in the right tools to streamline your operations.
Start with your inventory management system. You'll need a solution to handle online sales and provide real-time stock updates. Investing in the right inventory management tool ensures you can keep customers up to date about availability and prevents you from overselling a product that isn’t in stock.
Next, focus on product organization. A well-structured catalog makes it easy for customers to find what they're looking for. Consider categorizing your products by:
- Type (wine, beer, spirits)
- Region or country of origin
- Price range
- Flavor profile or style
Perhaps your most crucial investment is in your point of sale (POS) system. Look for a POS that integrates seamlessly with your e-commerce platform and offers features specifically designed for liquor stores. Bottle POS, for example, offers inventory management, age verification, and custom label printing, along with e-commerce integration through BottleZoo.
The right point of sale system should track sales and inventory in real time, generate detailed reports, handle both in-store and online transactions, and offer customer relationship management (CRM) features.
Remember, the right tools can save you time, reduce errors, and provide valuable insights into your business performance. While there may be an upfront cost, the long-term benefits often far outweigh that initial investment.
How To Sell Liquor Online the Easy Way
In the modern market, selling liquor online is an incredible way to stay competitive and maximize your store's profits. But if you want to sell liquor online successfully, you need more than a few tips and the right attitude: you need the right tools.
A robust point of sale system with e-commerce capabilities is the most important tool in your tool stack.
Enter Bottle POS: the all-in-one solution designed specifically for liquor stores. Bottle POS covers all your in-store needs with features like inventory management, age verification, and custom label printing. Plus, our integration with BottleZoo makes it easy to seamlessly introduce e-commerce to your offerings.
Schedule a demo of Bottle POS today and take the first step towards boosting your bottom line.
