If you’re in the business of selling wine, you probably have -- or are seriously considering -- a wine club. Reaching your customers directly with automatic shipments of wine is a great way to build your business and your profitability. In this free 30-minute webinar, we will explore the best ways to build your wine club and share proven strategies for making your club attractive to your best customers. We'll also review the key components of a successful wine club and tips for continued success once your club grows.

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Key Strategies To
BuildYour Wine Club
Business

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Fred Dilkes, VP
WineWare Software
Introduction
• Serving wineries since 2003
• WineClub, E-Commerce & Tasting Room POS Software
• Hundreds of wineries nationwide use our solutions

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For most small wineries, Direct-to-
Consumer sales represent nearly
70% of all case sales.
Why A Wine Club?
That’s why 75% of
wineries have a wine club
Source: http://www.winebusiness.com/wbm/?go=getArticle&dataId=89075;
http://www.winebusiness.com/wbm/?go=getArticle&dataId=99945
70%
75%

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DTC wine sales expected to rise this
year
Why A Wine Club?
While other wine sales
may fall
Source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/100966091
13%
-8%

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Club Benefits
Source: http://www.winebusiness.com/wbm/?go=getArticle&dataId=99945
2/3
It’s estimated that the wine club
contributes 2/3 of the profitability at most
wineries.
• Guaranteed, reliable income & Cash flow
• Direct access to end consumers
• Higher margins
• More likely repeat purchases
• Loyal Advocates = New Customers

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Emotional Benefits:
• Enjoy a treat
• Have something special
• Easily entertain
• Impress your friends
• Be part of a community
• Bring friends to events
• Use wine as gifts
Member Benefits
Intellectual Benefits:
• Discounts
• Free Tastings
• Exclusive Events
• Exclusive Wines
Appeal to both sets of benefits when
selling your club!

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Create A Club
Source: “Using Data for Better Decision Making” presentation at the Unified Wine
& Grape Symposium, Jan 28, 2014
59%
Of wine clubs offer the guest a
choice of clubs to join
Consider:
• Reds / Whites / Mixed
• Price point – entry level, premium
• Quantity of bottles (2, 4, 6)
• Frequency (Quarterly, Semi, Yearly)
• Personality / themed clubs
• 1 to drink, 1 to share, 1 to collect

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Shipping Strategy
Source: http://simplehedonisms.com/archives/4353
Consider subsidized shipping to boost volume
& stand out
Example 1:
Customer Pays Shipping
100 customers, 4 bottles ea.
Avg. $20 per bottle
30% margin
Net Profit: $2400
Example 2:
Free Shipping on 6 bottle club
100 customers, 6 bottles ea.
Avg. $20 per bottle
23% margin
Net Profit: $2760

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Create A Club
Do:
• Reflect Your Brand
• Think “Value Add”
• Personalize
• Have Fun
Don’t:
• Let Customers pick the
wines
• Dump overstock or excess
inventory
• Send the same thing each
time.

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Create A Club
Source: http://www.winebusiness.com/wbm/?go=getArticle&dataId=75974
$25 and less
4%
$26-$50
19%
$51-$75
27%$76-$100
12%
$101-$150
19%
$151-$200
5%
> $200
6%
Don’t Know
8%
Average Price of Wine Club Shipments 2010
Most
Popular
Also Good!

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Boost Your Club
Creative Ideas:
• Exclusive wines
• Discount on wine purchases
• Member events
• Added benefits for higher club tiers
• “Velvet rope” club-only tasting area
• Concierge services in area – help with trip planning
• Pick up parties for members
• Pairings with artisan cheese, chocolate, olive oil
• Lifetime tasting pass
• Refer a friend promotion
• Wine Seminars
• “Education” such as science of wine or aromas
• Organize a wine tour or vacation for members

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New Competition
• Winery Growth
• Web-based multi-winery clubs
• Magazine, Hotel & other branded clubs
• Chain tasting rooms (Vino Volo)
Interactive Small Sample Bottles
Vote For Favorites
Feedback from customers
“Customized” shipments
Focus on education
Vertical tastings / regions / flights
“Competitions” & “Status”
Source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/100966091

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Brand Your Club
Your club should be a unique reflection of your
brand!
• Think about what makes your winery unique
• Structure your club around your brand
Be sure you can continue to offer the promised
benefits when your club grows in membershipTIP

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Promote Club
Source: http://www.winebusiness.com/wbm/?go=getArticle&dataId=75974
1084
Average number of members in a
winery’s club
10%
Average conversion of tasting
room visitors to club members

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Promote Club
Source: http://www.winebusiness.com/wbm/?go=getArticle&dataId=46704
http://www.winebusiness.com/wbm/?go=getDigitalIssue&issueId=6633
In the Tasting Room:
90%
Of club members are signed up
in the tasting room
34%
In a 1000 tasting room visit study,
only 34% mentioned the wine club

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Promote Club
In the Tasting Room:
• Train & Script Staff
• Provide proper incentives: Cash, gift cards,
logo apparel, merchandise, team & individual
• Brochures & Signage visible
• Show club prices on wine lists

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Train Staff
Uncover hidden objections:
• Do they know why the club is important?
• Do they feel the club is a hassle to manage?
• Do they feel it is a benefit to your guests?
• Do they understand your brand’s story?
• Do they understand the structure of the club?
• Do they have materials to present?
• Are they incented properly?
• Are you keeping score and celebrating success?
Do a tasting before each shipment so staff can answer
questions and promote reorders
TIP

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Promote Club
Outside The Tasting Room:
• Outside events, tastings.
• Cultivate your e-mail list
• Social media
• Target customers who have purchased a case
• Refer a friend promotion
• Promote Gift Memberships
• Work with businesses who send customer gifts

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Manage Your Club
The Power of Wine Club Software
• Easy to process shipments
• Complete customer history
– purchases & interactions
• Manage compliance issues
• Inventory Tracking
• Easy, secure credit card
processing

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What to Look For
Flexibility
• Multiple club types
• Configurable pricing tiers / discounts
• Customizable Reporting

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What to Look For
Integrations
• Integrate with your tasting room POS
• Share inventory info
• Share customer data, pricing
• Ship Compliant integration
• Shipping software integration
• Easy print of labels, pack slips, etc.
• E-Commerce integration

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What to Look For
Customer Service
• Member self-serve form
• Join or update profile from tasting
room or website
• Complete customer tracking
• Pre-paid, gift, no charge memberships
• Skip shipment for vacation or absence

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What to Look For
Credit Card Processing
• Security – PCI Standards!
• Decline Minimizer:
• Automatically updates expiration & new card
number
• Reduces need to call / potential cancels

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What to Look For
Communications
• Always get an e-mail!
• Segment “E-mail only” customers &
recruit them
• Stay in touch with club members
• Easy integration from club software

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What to Look For
Cloud vs. Local?
• Our software keeps data locally in your winery.
• Reliable access to data – many wineries are in
remote areas with unreliable internet.
• Cloud Outages
• Ownership / control of data.

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Tracking Results
What to Track:
• Membership Growth – new members added
• Membership Attrition – members who cancel
• Sales per Member – above & beyond club
• Conversion in tasting room – for email & club
Graph Courtesy VingDirect

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Improve Retention
Average member lifespan is 18-24 mo.
What is yours?
18-24
mo.
30-60%
You may experience 30% -
60% attrition per year!

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Improve Retention
Communication:
• Welcome members to the club
• Special thank you on anniversary of club
membership
• Communicate between shipments
• As members get close to average drop-out
time, reach out, give extra benefits.
• Escalate benefits in 2nd year.

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Improve Retention
Connection:
• Encourage members to share with social
media
• Issue a membership / loyalty / gift card
• Encourage guests at events
• Foster community
• Make it fun – surprises, gifts, treats

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Improve Retention
Flexibility:
• Offer a lower priced option or
less frequent shipments
• Allow a 6 mo. Hiatus from
shipments while keeping other
benefits

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Improve Retention
Follow Up:
• Survey customers who leave – why?
• Stay in touch after they leave – keep
marketing. They may still purchase a gift
membership or wines.

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Conclusion
Make Your Wine Club Shine!
Great Club
Benefits
Great Promotions
Great Technology Great Follow Up

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Can We Help?
SmartPOS
Tasting Room Software
Tablet or Traditional POS
SmartClub
Wine Club Software
+More
E-Commerce
Website Hosting
Marketing Solutions
Payment Processing
www.winewaresoftware.com
805-227-0202