How wine tourism can engage wine bloggers and online media to further their exposure. From International Wine Tourism Conference 2011.

1. Wine & New Media:
A bloggers perspective
TheaDwelle
Luscious Lushes Wine Blog

2. The world is changing! We are becoming mobile, and we are changing the way we communicate with
each other. Do you text before you call? Do you tweet before you email?
As evidence of this shift in communication methodologies, today, over 75% of individuals (in the US)
belong to at least one social network. Keeping in mind that social networks can be both professional, and
purely social, or some combination of each, you are opening up a widely paved path to communication.
With word of mouth marketing being the single most influential driver of purchasing, that’s a huge data
mine.
One critical factor in new media is mobile media and the use of the smart phone. One source estimates
that of mobile phone owners, 1 in 2 will own a smart phone by the end of 2011. Currently, over 1 million
iPads have been sold in the US. Not counting alternative smart tablets, like the wifi enabled Kindle or
Nook, this is market is becoming more and more savvy and requires access to data on these devices.
Users can read, edit, update and participate in social media from ANYWHERE - 30000 feet, on a boat, in a
wine cellar. This emergence of “anywhere” technology means that your customers are accessing
information 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and are seeking meaningful content during these times.

3. What is new media?
Wikipedia defines “new media” as a catch all term meant to include the emerging methods of digital,
computerized, or networked information and communication techniques and technologies. Most often, these
technologies are digital.
What does that really mean? We’re talking about Facebook, Twitter, social networks like Wine 2.0, FohBoh
(formerly OpenWineConsortium), Linked in, and the wine blog. These can also include sources such as photo
sharing services like Flickr, and streaming media sources like YouTube.
We are, at present, witnessing the fundamental shift in how we communicate. this has been on the move for
the last 5 years, and we are just at the cusp of these emerging technologies and methodologies.
Smart Phones, videos, wine blogs, oh my! Advances in technology and blogging tools have made the wine
world and open dialogue for wine lovers and related businesses everywhere.
Blogging in all forms is viral marketing at an extreme. The classic marketing statement still holds true: If I like
something I will tell 10 friends who will each tell 10 friends, etc. However, if I have a negative experience or
dislike something, that negative viral effect is even more impactful.
How do producers, tour operators, application developers and writers relate to each other and communicate?
Join me to have a discussion on one blogger’s perspective on how I navigate the winding road of blogging and
new media.
Every product is a potential conversation waiting to happen; with over 200000 active wine blogs out there,
that’s a lot of conversations! Collectively, wine bloggers have more readers than Wine Spectator.

4. So, what does it mean for the wine industry?
Is it important and effective for increasing your consumer base and increasing revenue (are you selling
more bottles of wine)?
The answer is maybe, and it all depends on you.
These channels of communication are only a portal for you to share your message. But they are important
portals. They allow you to communicate with potential consumers in ways you may not have considered
previously.
Whichever method or methods you chose to utilize, it’s important to remember the core basics:
•Engage your readers – bring interesting stories and thoughts and discussions to the table.
•Cover what won’t be covered somewhere else – be unique and be interesting! No one wants to
read the same thing 4 different times.
•Build a solid and returning fan base
•Listen to your customers – Engage them in your conversations. Don’t talk AT us, talk WITH us!
•Be authentic – it’s ok if you’re not perfect, we aren't’ either. We want to see the REAL you.

5. Twitter is one of the fastest growing channels in the social media domain. Businesses from mom and pop
shops to world wide brands like Nike utilize twitter to embrace and enhance their brand image.
Twitter is about building relationships. If you embark on a twitter adventure, be sure that you are able to
engaged with your followers in a meaningful way.
What does this mean? This means you will need to spend a significant amount of time reacting and
interacting with your followers. Companies and personalities that are successful on twitter actively
engage the consumer and begin conversations. Host a Q&A with a winemaker. Host a discussion about
the region you offer tours in.
One such successful business is Twitter Taste Live. Spawned as an offshoot of a wine retailer, TTL actively
engages bloggers and consumers by offering scheduled, themed twitter based conversations regarding
specific products. Another example is #VinQ, which is run by @Enobytes, a Pacific Northwest organization
dedicated to the education of consumers about wine. This weekly twitter based quiz allows people from
all over the world to learn and respond to specifically targeted questions regarding wine, in a fun, informal
method.
Remember, Twitter is about conversation, and engaging your followers. If you tweet WITH them they will
come; tweet AT them, and they will unfollow and possibly speak negatively of your online presence,
something you really don’t want to encourage. As it is a conversation, please refrain from scheduling
tweets and auto-messaging followers. This is a deterrent, since it defeats the purpose of Twitter being a
two-way conversation.

6. Facebook is perhaps the easiest social media outlet to become involved in. Here, you can create a page
for your company, and introduce it to people you know. In turn, people that “Like” your page, can
recommend it to their friends, thereby creating the viral marketing that is so powerful. Facebook, like
other social media outlets, is inherently viral. It is an opt-in marketing tool, where people choose to Like
your page, and then choose to tell their friends about your page.
If you create a page on Facebook, Be sure that you are actively engaging with your audience on your
page. you will need to spend a bit of time posting short, meaningful content pieces that people will be
interested in reading. this in turn, will encourage your readers to repost this content to their readers.
I also encourage you to have Facebook related contests and deals. Have a prize for your one thousandth
“like” on Facebook, or offer an extra percent off coupon for your Facebook followers.
lurbs.

7. In contrast, Twitter tends to be more personal than Facebook and requires you to have someone that
will interact with your followers. Posting meaningful content that is unique for your Facebook and
Twitter audience is key. You should NOT simply repost your Facebook or blog content on twitter. It’s ok
to cross post links to blog posts or your website, but there should be some unique content from both
areanas.
You will have a cross segment of followers on both platforms, but more so, you will have unique
followers on each platform. Part of the fun of social media is that you can create unique content to
encourage followers in each space.
Twitter is an excellent resource to promote your blog. It is also an excellent resource to promote mini
reviews of your brand. In the case of wine, bloggers and wine lovers often post mini reviews on
twitter. Using tools to search for your brand mentions can greatly impact your marketing
message. With these search tools, you can rewet, quote, and repost valuable marketing b

8. What about video content?
Video content can be an important component in your new & social media strategy. Increasingly, video
content draws viewsers from across a braoder market segment.
Some successful business that have added video from the wine industry include Gary Vaynerchuck from
Wine Library, where video is the mainstay of his blog.
Whne you think about adding video to you program, it is important to have the expertise to product
clear, conscise, quality material rather than home grown efforts. This will reflect on your brand.
In the wine business, some ideas for video content include
–Discussions with the winemaker
–Harvest videos
–Virtual tours
–Interactive video such as real time Q&A and wine tastings

9. Keeping Track of it All
Regardless of how you choose to communicate your message, it is essential that you know your audience!
The core of any new media program is to communicate with your audience.
This doesn’t mean that you have to have a complete and full demographic profile on hand to refer to, but you
should have a basic idea of who your target audience is and who you are trying to attract.
In order to have a real-time knowledge of what bloggers, as well as other people on the internet are saying
about your product, brand, or wine, setup Google Alerts. This is a simple, easy process that is and extremely
powerful tool that lets your know when your name comes up.
If you open the communication early, you will already know when blogger, as well as consumers on the web –
using services like CellarTracker and other wine sites, sare talking about you.
Use search engines on a regular basis to search for your name. This will give you a bigger picture of what is
going on.
–Social networks like friendfeed and StumbleUpon are aggregators that take material from many sources and
make it public to a personal network. This can be a great resource to spread the message about your brand.
–Finding trends and tracking back to them is the key to successful measurements of ROI. You can, and should,
track referneces to your site, including mentions on Facebook and Twitter.
–Track the use of hastage (#hastags) that mention your brand
-use coupon codes to promote your business through bloggers
–Use affilliate tracking to track sales from various sites

10. Be Consistant
Consistent branding is essential. Your message should be clear, across all social media platforms as
well as your traditional marketing materials.
Think of international brands such as Nike and Coke. Even though they have progressed through the
years, the brand images and core messages are still the same.
Coke is it. Just do it. These messages have been consistent through the years giving these brands a
core identity that is internationally recognizeable today.
By buyilding your brand, selling more tours or wine, you will increase your customer base long term.
As wine is a long tail business, building a lo9yal customer today will be a long term relationship
tomrrow.
Using these new media tools can help you do this indirectly, by building loyal followers who are
interested in your brand. Blogging, social media platforms, and social networks help you outsource
your PR and marketing to a database of bloggers who can and will build your brand by word of
mouth. For free.

11. Should YOUR business blog?
Not every wine business should blog. Sometimes it’s not appropriate. Additionally, it’s important to blog
regularly, whether that’s is once a week or once a month. Blogs are an excellent source of information for
a wider audience, and you have a powerful tool to keep people updated instantly.
You can start your blogging efforts with an update on the harvest, or your most recent tour offerings. Do
you have a mailing list? Invite them to view your blog. If these people enjoy your efforts, they are likely
to share it with their friends.
And overall social media strategy is more important than a blog. new media will give you more exposure,
word of mouth exposure, virual marketing, and new fans. Your message must be relevant. Spam is just
spam, no matter what format it’s in.
Don’t expect an immediate payoff. wine is a long tail business, and social meida is a long tale
communication technique.

12. How can I get bloggers to talk about us?
Bloggers are not such a picky bunch, but we would like to have some access that the
general public does not have access to.
•If you are a tour operator, perhaps offering a local blogger a sample day trip to write
about.
•Wine producers should allow bloggers to become familiar with thier products by
offering targeted samples.
•.Travel agents can offer bloggers who specialize n a particalr region more
information.
Make the experience personal. The best experiences a blogger has is the one that you
make unique for them.
Know your audience. Regardless of the type of blogger or media that you are working
with, you need to know your audience. Target your media list accordingly. More on that in
the next discussion point.
Spread the word - communicate and communicate wisely. Decide what your channels of

13. Working with Bloggers - It’s a two way street!
Wine producers should not be afraid of bloggers and other media representatives. While some may
worry that we might paint them in a negative light, by putting your best foot forward, you give a new
audience an opportunity to taste your wines at that own pace and formulate their own opinions. My
personally developing relationships with bloggers, you can determine who would best be served by
discussing your wines, and who might not be the right demographic.
Bloggers do not like being talked AT. We want to talk WITH you. The vast majority of wine bloggers in
particular, and bloggers in general, do it for the passion about the subject matter, not because it’s our
vocation.It’s important to open the discussion and actively participate in the community. While this
doesn’t have to be a full time enterprise, you do need to dedicate some time to communicating in your
chosen channel.
Make your writing interesting! We want to hear about your business, and how it impacts us. It is less
interesting to hear the same harvest report in a general sense, than it is to hear the specifics of what
happened in your vineyard, or what tour you led during the season and why others would enjoy it.
Bloggers and the wine industry must work together. This is not a one way street! Find your voice and
talk to us
Be creative, and be involved. It is not the best approach to blindly send emails or sample bottles of wine
if you don’t know your audience. Take the time to review the blogs that you are approaching. You don’t
want to send a sample of a dry white wine to a blogger who only does big reds for California, as that
would not be focusing your efforts on the right demographic.

14. Choose your blogger audience wisely. Do you produce wine from a specific region? Do
you offer tours in an area of interest? It is important to know who you want to talk about
your business.
A blogger who writes about cosmetics would not be the appropriate audience for a post on
a tour operator in Porto.
Likewise, a blogger who focuses on wines under $10 or a small region in California, such as
Sonoma, would not be a good audience for your wine if you produce $50 wines from
Australia.
What am I getting at? Know who you are communicating with! The most successful press
samples are sent with thought and care. Reach out to your list and ask if they are
interested in writing about your business. Doing this prevents unwanted spam and
solicitation, and also opens the doors of communication early. For winemakers, it also
prevents the loss of wine to a blogger who may never taste it because it is outside of the
scope of their business.
Take a risk and host a blogger event. Many regions get a bubble of coverage during these
events and are trending topics on social media sites. This can add exposure to your
business in a very short time period. These events may be a lunch at your winery, a sample
tour that you might offer, or a week visiting a region that you represent. These
opportunities allow bloggers to learn about your products in a personalized manner, where
they know that they will have access to the information they need without trying to
compete for attention.
Bloggers offer viral and virtual marketing. Allowing us to enter your family, however
temporarily, gives us access to information that we can share with our readers that they
might not necessary know.

15. What?! They didn’t like me?
Don’t take it personally if we don’t like, or don’t write about your wine or product.
Wine bloggers in particular often have sample policies posted on their sites for your
review, prior to sending out information or product. Again, an introduction email
will let you know if we are interested in talking about your product.
If, by chance, we don’t like a product and we do write that, don’t be offended. We
are only offering our opinion. It also a critical time for you to reach out to discuss
with us WHY we didn’t enjoy the product.
It may be a matter of personal taste, or on rare occasions, with wine – it may be an
off bottle.
If there was an issue with another product or tour for example, this is your
opportunity to reach out and correct it, thereby allowing us to write a follow piece
on how you handled the issue.
Having personal experienced one issue while tasting at a winery, my previously
terrible experienced was turned around by a few emails and a follow up visit.
Again, this goes back to communication.

16. Wrapping it all Up
• v

17. Questions & Answers
TheaDwelle
@winebratsf / @luscious_lushes
thea@lusciouslushes.com