"Get out there and get started" with Natalie Rae Jones
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Photo credit: Amanda Cleveland Photography
Natalie Rae Jones is the owner and founder of Beer Feelings. She currently lives in Denver, CO with her boyfriend, Aaron, and dog, Bucket. Natalie strives to make craft beer more accessible so no one has to fear asking a “dumb” question. She specializes in connecting brews to flavor memories and takes pride that she can always find someone with at least one beer to love.
Can you tell our readers about your background?
I feel like even though I’m only 29, I’ve lived a number of different lives already.
As an intern in college, I was a race director for a small business that puts on fun runs. Our goal was to get people moving with a smile on their faces. In my second summer with the company, we began to focus on brewery running events.
When I graduated from the University of Wyoming with a Bachelor’s in Finance (and too many minors to count), I took my first corporate job in wealth management as I thought that was the “responsible” thing to do. After a few years, I shifted to a role at a tech company that provided solutions to small fitness businesses in search of something a little more in line with my own passions. A few more years went by and I found that this company had limited upward opportunities available. At this point, I decided it would be best to go off and explore the world of entrepreneurship on my own.
What inspired you to start your business?
I had a really hard time getting into craft beer. The first brews I tried were pretty “meh” and I equated them to bread water. I wanted to figure out how to enjoy the beverage that so many around me were loving… but I just didn't know where to start. Asking for help felt like a non-starter as I was CERTAIN that if I questioned the bartenders, they would think of me as nothing more than a silly girl. It took many moons for me to get over myself and finally ask for some help. Much to my surprise, my beertender did not look down on me or over explain the answers to my questions. They started a conversation with me about my flavor preferences and showed me how to ask for a drink that I would actually enjoy.
Flash forward to the spring of 2020. I purchased the brewery running business that I interned for at the beginning of the year and was stuck at home wondering what I was going to do in a global shutdown. With a beer in hand I started making content thinking that if I could entertain my client base they would come back when it was safe to gather once more. I created videos with silly beer games and posted beer reviews with a flavor first approach - like the way I learned about the space.
I started to have individuals reach out telling me that they didn’t know beer could be so approachable and fun and they were excited to try something new because of my unique storytelling ability. I had an ah-ha that I could be the resource for all of the gals out there having a tough intro to beer like I did, and the rest is history.
Where is your business based?
I’m currently based out of Denver, CO and am hoping to move to the northeast in the next year, but we have clients that we serve nationwide.
How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?
I started by cracking open a few beers. Just kidding - well kind of. Because I was already operating in the wild world that was 2020 I felt like I didn’t have much to lose in getting products out quickly. I would come up with an idea and launch. Listen for feedback and then try again. My products and initial events weren’t always the most polished ideas, but they did get me a ton of immediate user feedback which was crucial in figuring out the direction I wanted to take the business.
The other big thing I did in the beginning was creating content. This helped me to get my name out there without much overhead and start building an audience that resonated most with my message.
What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?
Maker’s markets at breweries have been the most successful for me. I know the people walking around already like beer which gives me some common ground to start a conversation. After we chat for a bit it becomes much easier to talk about my products and the business as a whole.
I make sure to have a big stack of stickers with my logo on them that I hand out freely so even if the prospects I’m chatting with right now don’t purchase, they are constantly reminded of me whenever they look at their water bottle, beer fridge, or wherever the sticker ends up.
What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?
So far the biggest challenge has been brand awareness. Craft beer has been around for a while, as have businesses built specifically for women, but the sandbox that I’m playing in where I combine the two is still relatively new. Initially I only wanted to focus on women who didn’t like beer and bring them to the dark side so to speak. But quickly realized those prospects weren’t necessarily looking for help. I’m still working on overcoming this obstacle but have learned a lot about listening for feedback from the market and staying nimble.
How do you stay focused?
I wish I could say I’ve always been good with a plan, but this is definitely a skill I’ve had to (and still need to) work on. For now, what’s working is making an annual roadmap and then breaking it into monthly objectives to accomplish. Each month I split each objective into bite sized bits and assign them to each week. (I think you can see where this is going). Each Monday I look at the bits and schedule time to knock them out.
A big learning for me is making sure to leave space for new emergencies or ideas that come up. As much as I think my plan is solid gold, the universe always manages to throw new challenges my way that need to be addressed. Leaving space has let me not only accomplish my goals that I set out to achieve, but also lets me stay creative and take advantage of cool opportunities that I may have not dreamed up before without sidelining a task I previously planned to accomplish.
How do you differentiate your business from the competition?
I’ve built this business around being myself. My viewpoint on beer. My stories. My experiences. Others are welcome to play in the women and beer space, but they will never be able to capture the magic and feelings in beer quite like I can.
What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?
Keep pushing out valuable content. I’m still experimenting with different mediums and messages. But no matter what I try, the proof is in the pudding. If I help people, they come back. If I’m spammy or just trying to be cute, they move on.
What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?
Get out there and get started. The economy is a wild place right now. The market will tell you what it wants and doesn't want faster than you can make a plan, predict, and analyze.
What's your favorite app? Why?
I have two favorites. I really love Asana for project and task management to keep me organized and then Canva to help with all of my graphic design needs. Fun fact - the Canva pro plan upgraded its offering not that long ago and now you can schedule your social posts WITHIN the designer. Such a life saver!
What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?
I love love love my Amplify Planner. It’s a paper planner with daily, weekly and monthly layouts and gives me enough room to capture all that’s going on in my busy mind!
Who is your business role model? Why?
Such a no brainer for me - my mom. She worked in a male dominated industry her whole career and showed me that women can do anything that men can (sometimes even better). I was so fortunate to grow up in a way where my parents taught me to never think of my gender as a limitation. That in combination with watching my mom kick major butt in her own career is a huge reason why I’m doing what I am today.
How do you balance work and life?
I’m still working on this. Part of the reason why this is such a challenge is because I love what I do and how I get to do it. A few things that I’ve done to help me set some boundaries are planning a hard cut off time for when I’m stopping for the day, keeping all of my work supplies and materials in a different part of the house than whereI lounge, and limiting the amount of times I check on my work email to a few times a day.
What’s your favorite way to decompress?
Pasta making. Hang with me on this one -
When I make pasta by hand I make a huge mess and my hands (along with everything in sight) gets covered in flour WHICH MEANS I put (and keep) my phone in another room. The break from technology is such a relief. Also - the kneading of the dough is a SERIOUS workout and helps me to release some built up tension.
What do you have planned for the next six months?
Oh my, so much. My boyfriend and I are planning a move across the country which will be a big new adventure. From the business side, I have five new Beer Feelings Boxes slated to release and I plan to host a variety of different beer tasting events at breweries around town.
How can our readers connect with you?
Keep up with me on any of the socials. I’m on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.
The Beer Feelings Podcast streams on all of your favorite podcast platforms with new episodes released each Sunday.
All Beer Feelings Boxes can be purchased on our site.