Publisher’s Toast: A Word from the Crawdaddy

The year 2022 is off to a promising start. The optimism I hear in every conversation speaks volumes. Sales are up, innovation forges ahead and marketing initiatives are back on track. I couldn’t be happier for each and every brand. I think the year could bring the industry back to those glorious days before the scourge of COVID-19 took over the world.

Since it’s the new year and I didn’t watch the ball drop or otherwise do any other kind of New York thing, I had a little time to get reflective with regard to the beverage business. Sometimes, things get stuck in my craw, and I can’t stop myself from thinking about them. (Side note: I don’t know where the phrase “stuck in my craw” comes from – I’ve never actually seen a craw and my knowledge of human physiology, while limited, did not include a diagram of the craw).

My first craw-driven reflection: the quality and taste of most brands coming out today is terrific. That’s great, because one of my most persistent concerns over the years has been the taste – or lack of taste – characterizing the new offerings that appear on our landscape. There were some dark years when product innovation far outpaced enjoyability. I believe strongly that the most important aspect of successful beverages is taste, taste and more taste. That still applies. Too often that has been lacking, going in cycles until either innovation, formulation, and taste finally meshed. This is such a time. I don’t know if the down time due to the pandemic gave marketers the time they needed and sparked a drive to create healthful, and functional brands that wouldn’t offend the craw, but recent products that have crossed my desk are truly fantastic. They are true to their mission to create great brands, hence, the very good.

While our ability to communicate through taste might be improving, however, we’re falling apart when it comes to communicating interpersonally, and that’s really got me searching for my craw so I can show you how much this miscommunication is stuck in it. Here’s the deal: We all look at brand web sites for research, but no matter how well constructed those sites are, how well they help deliver a brand story, I can’t for the life of me find a company’s address or phone numbers. They’re harder to locate than the craw! Why? It makes no sense for you to make it impossible to reach out to your company. Why do you consider it an intrusion? Should the rest of us, say, at BevNET, keep our phone numbers a secret? Of course not! We want you to contact us. And we want to contact you! It boggles the craw.

My e-signature lists several ways to contact me: my phone number, my cell number, my email address. Please, offer me the courtesy and respect to make it easier to reach you. We’ve been away from each other for far too long. I crave contact.

In exchange, I’ll offer some advice: I’ve just looked up the term “craw” and found that it’s really a kind of organ in a bird or insect where food is stored before it moves on to the stomach. Ew. Do NOT make that part of a beverage. It would be crawful.