What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Dublin, Ireland? Guinness beer? The Jameson’s Distillery is also in Dublin. So what would you guess I did on my one day in Dublin? Of course I toured both the Guinness Brewery and the Jameson’s Distillery. Both tours were good but the Guinness tour was definitely better.

In addition to the free pint of Guinness, the tour offered several marketing lessons that could make you rich. They’re expecting nearly 1 million visitors this year. At about $20 per head, that’s almost $20 million and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. What if you attracted 1 million visitors to your websites this year and made $1 per visitor? If you only made a dime per visitor, you’d make six figures.

Even an offline business recognizes the value of building a list (and a relationship with the list) and that’s exactly what they did. About half way through the tour, there are three computer screens with cameras mounted on the wall. The irresistible offer is a chance to become an Honorary Apprentice Brewer…but only if you’ve got what it takes. The camera snaps a photo for your membership card…say “Guinness.” Provide your email address and the photo is sent to your emailbox along with a quiz. If you pass the quiz, you’ll get a certificate proving you’re an Honorary Apprentice Brewer. You can also send the photo to two friends by providing their email addresses. Jameson’s made no effort to build a list.  I haven’t taken the quiz yet so I’m not sure if I’ve got what it takes.

The debate between markets and niches is ongoing and probably doesn’t have a definite answer. I’d say it depends on your goals and the market. If you’re a proponent of markets, Guinness is a good example of how to make a fortune in a niche. Guinness is a beer…but more specifically it’s a stout. Guinness doesn’t make lagers, ales, or any other type of beer like other brewers. They only make stout. Like the big sign at the beginning of the tour says: There is beer and there is Guinness. I’ll say. 10 million pints of Guiness are consumed each day throughout the world. At about $5 per pint, that’s $50 million in gross revenues every day. If you don’t think there’s money in niche markets, you’re wrong.

Guinness may be a quality stout but it wouldn’t be so popular without all the clever advertising campaigns they’ve run over the years. Campaigns like “The Man with the Guinness,” “Guinness. Pure Genius.”, “Guinness is Good for You,” and several others. Guinness is good for you? Well, they have a letter from a doctor who recommended Guinness to his patients so they have some basis for making that statement. The artist who created many of the popular Guinness ads, John Gilroy, was so good that Walt Disney tried & failed to hire him away. Guinness has a great business because they have a great product and great advertising. It wouldn’t be so great if one or the other was lacking.

There are three of the many lessons to be learned on the Guinness brewery tour that can make you rich.  If you’re ever in Dublin, I recommend the Guinness tour even if you don’t drink beer. Take the tour and look at it from a marketing perspective. There’s a lot to learn.

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