30 Lessons in

Wine Communication

for

Italian* Brands

A presentation at Vinitaly 2015 by Reka Haros,

Rebecca Hopkins, Cathy Huyghe,

Robert Joseph and Damien Wilson

* and not just Italian

Robert JosephEditor at Large, Meininger’s Wine Business Intl,

Director, Robert Joseph Consulting

Partner, Hugh Kevin & Robert Wines.

.

.

Social media

The 2014 US Wine Market

Volume: 341m cases

Value: $35-38bn

Imports: 78m cases

Italian Imports 27m cases

Prosecco up ≥32%

GalloThe Wine

Group Constellation

3 Companies produce and/or sell

over half the wine in the US

GalloThe Wine

Group Constellation

70% of growth

Came from top 4 companies

Trinchero

Seven brands

Barefoot, Sutter Home, Franzia,

Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi,

Yellow Tail, Kendall Jackson,

Beringer

represent

25% of all the wine in the US

The US Tobacco and Alcohol Tax &

Trade Bureau processes 130,000

applications for new wine label

approval every year.

Your wine is one in 130,000

The 10 biggest distributors

Southern, Republic, Charmer

Sunbelt, Glazers, Young’s, Wine

Beverage Group, Martignetti,

Johnson Bros, Allied, Fedway

represent 64% of the US wine market

The 3 biggest distributors

Southern, Republic, Charmer

Sunbelt,

represent over HALF the US

wine market

THE US DOES NOT NEED YOUR WINE

NO ONE NEEDS YOUR WINE

IF YOUR WINE DID NOT EXIST

THE PEOPLE DRINKING IT TODAY

WOULD HAPPILY DRINK SOMETHING ELSE

Space is Finite: Be Remarkable

Lesson 1

If you want to live with your married

lover,

do you propose to move in – and to

create a menage a trois - with them

and their current partner?

Or do you insist that your lover

chooses who they want to be with?

No retailer, or restaurant has infinite

space in their cellar and on their

shelves and/or list.

To take on your wine, they will have to

get rid of one they already have

and that their staff and customers are

used to and quite possibly enjoy

As Robert Haas of California Winery

Tablas Creek says:

Know what makes you distinctive

And focus on it.

There are thousands of wineries that

are competing in the US market.

“If you can't reduce what makes you distinctive down to a few sentences, the

game of telephone -- in which you need to educate your wholesaler's management, they need to educate their sales team, those salespeople need to sell to their

restaurant and retail customers, and those restaurant and retail buyers need to speak

to the end consumer -- breaks down”

So, what makes your wine so special

– and so much better than the one it

is going to replace?

The Journey of the Bottle

Lesson 2

Even if you have communicated all

of the precious information about

your wine to the wine shop

manager… What happens then?

Tell your customers that my wine is named

after my horse

January 1

The Loser

The manager isn’t here, but I think it’s something

to do with a horse

June 1

The Loser

Good to drink with horsemeat? I’ll give it

to George. He’s adventurous with

foodJune 2

The Loser

June 2- August 5

I wonder where I got this

strange wine

The Loser

August- 5

Don’t just think about the person

who is going to buy your wine. Think

about the person who is going to

drink it.

Even if you got the correct

information into the ultimate

consumer’s brain, how sure are you

that she’s going to remember it?.

Target

Most normal people have a limited interest in wine

And plenty of other thingson their mind

Capturing their attention isn’t easy.

Appropriate Costume

Lesson 3

Would you be happy to receive this?

Or this?

And how about this?

Words change their impact, depending

on how they are expressed

Different markets like different

packaging. Wine drinkers in Boston

may react differently from ones in

Bologna.

It may even be worth creating a

brand/label for the US

Would Italian

consumers buy this

wine?

Food is simpler than wine

We know that sandwiches are

cheap and eaten with our hands

– unlike soufflé

Two similar looking IGT

Sangioveses. One costs

over 80 times as much as

the other

In a logical world, $5 wine would come in cardboard

If you have a range of wines, reflect

the price and quality in the

packaging.

Don’t expect your customers to

remember the names and price

hierarchy of your vineyards – or the

daughters after whom you have

named your wines.

And, maybe be

adventurous

This Paperboy brand was crteated

by my business partner Kevin Shaw

of Stranger & Stranger. It’s doing

really well in the US.

This transgressive packaging

attracted interest to Piper Heidsieck.

And think of wine as

a gift

Those bottles were

on sale in

Frankfurt Duty Free

Which would

you buy?

This Penfolds

wine costs

$300 at Sydney

Airport Duty

Free

Make Yourself Clear

Lesson 4

These bottles

were on sale in

Selfridges in

London

But how much

easier is this?

Will a US consumer

know where it

comes from?

Or how it is likely to

taste like? Sweet?

Dry? Rich?

Steely?

Most Americans have probably

never heard of your region

The Back Label

Lesson 5

The

useless

back label

What is it made from?

Where was it produced?

Is this

much

better

?

Where is this?

What do these words mean?

What does it taste like?

Your URL/QR Code

Lesson 6

Have you been into the private

rooms here?

Nor have I. Because I haven’t been

invited.

Do you invite people to visit your

website?

Some people forget to print their

URL? Others print it in very small

type.

The Wine Thinker © 2013

Wine producers complain that no

one scans their QR Code. What

reason do they give consumers to

do that?

The Wine Thinker © 2013

The Wine Thinker © 2013

Where’s the call to action?

This label by Reka Haros, one of my

fellow speakers today, is much

better.

Your bottle and your label offer

free/cheap way to communicate with

consumers.

Use them

Dr. Damien Wilson BAg.Bus

BWMktg (Hons) MBus PhDAssociate Professor – Dijon School of Wine and

Spirits Business and Programme Head – MSc Wine

Business

.

.

Social media

EFFECTIVE WINERY WEB PAGE DESIGN –BY DAMIEN WILSON

Rectifying the Wine Sector's fascination with its own press…

Monday, 23 March 2015 Presented at VinItaly, Verona, Italy

OBJECTIVES OF GOOD WEB SITE DESIGN

Hardly anyone has managed to put together a good website in the wine sector…

"…It's been 15 years since wineries have started usingthe Internet as a means to communicate withcustomers, we still can't get that right"

- Mike Paul, For the argument against using Social Media in the wine sector, WineIntelligence debate, Prowein 2012

SCHOOL OF WINE & SPIRITS BUSINESS 75

GOOD DESIGN ≠ GOOD VISUAL DESIGN

Unfortunately, winery sites strongly focus on the visual design, while best usability practices are often ignored.

Your website is a tool to connect your business with the world

1. It has to represent your image 24 hours a day, across the globe

So, you also must understand

2. How it is found, and

3. How it is used

Only number 1. is done with any kind of success in the wine sector

But good webpage design attracts viewers, and encourages interaction so you can measure what your viewers do, and improve the service of your web-site over time.

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WINE CAN DO BOTH

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Here's proof. An example that conveys a clear image of the producer, and is user-friendly

1. Clear branding

2. Well linked from related sites

3. Designed for usage

From 2009!

TODAY’S VERSION

SC

HO

OL

OF

WIN

E &

SP

IRIT

S B

US

INE

SS

78

Recognisable style; Linked to related sites; More efficient for use

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YET MOST OF THE WINE SECTOR ARE DOING

THIS

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79

TAKEN FROM: MOVIESAYINGS

SCHOOL OF WINE & SPIRITS BUSINESS

LESSON 7 – DESIGN FOR YOUR AUDIENCE

Almost nobody has ever heard of you or your wine…

The Cruel fact is that almost all wine businesses have poor awareness in consumer's minds

You, have been making your network in the image of Spacey’s ‘Devil’ And you don't believe that because you are surrounded by people who know

you…

And they tell you how good, and how successful your wines are, or will be…

Just remind yourself how much of your wine they all actually buy…

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LESSON 7 – DESIGN FOR YOUR AUDIENCE

And these 'colleagues' are familiar to you

And they don't buy enough, often enough, for enough for you to sell all you need to sell, at a margin that's profitable in which to sell.

So, think about how hard it is to sell to those who don't know you

And most of you are trying to get into new markets

With different culture, and language, and time, and geography…

Good luck with that!

The way to succeed is to learn what your customers (B and C) and web-site viewers say and do that can help you appeal to them.

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LESSON 8 – METRICS

There are innumerable tools for learning about how well your web-site is working for your business.

Don’t get distracted by fancy, expensive ‘all solution’ tools

If you’re starting out, you need to identify two key benchmarks

1. What are our base-line values

2. How do we compare to others

Make it something you understand, and will monitor

The right metrics will depend on your market salience

Start by generating a set of useful metrics to help you figure out what works for you

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LESSON 9 – MONITORING

Most wine business lack any sort of market awareness

Start with your benchmark figures on your level of awareness (eg…)

# of mentions over time (google trends)

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LESSON 9 – MONITORING

Remember that these mentions are for a well-known region…

What if you come from one that's not well known?

Then there's your town,

Your brand, and/or sub-brand

And the plots of land that some of you like to add to your labels…

Each adding an extra layer of obscurity to your wine's awareness….

So, measure, and compare at all levels

The goal is to start by measuring how well this is all known, and then build from that point

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LESSON 10 – ADAPTATION

Then look at who/where/when your peer references did well

Overlay your trend with theirs

Identify the events that create spikes in mention, and assimilate into your strategy

# Chianti v Barolo mentions over time (google trends)

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LESSON 11 – CREATING AWARENESS

Without you actively creating awareness for your wines, consumers won't discover them

Learn to utilise the ‘Gravity principle’

The closer your market is to your business, the greater the effect you have on it

Gravity is increased by having a larger presence or greater influence (influence options shown)

86TAKEN FROM: CHAD BARR’S BLOG

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LESSON 12: WEBPAGES AND EMAIL ARE

COMPLEMENTS

Email, like social media, can be used to drive traffic to your webpage.

A webpage is part of a search. So you need to know how, and for what your viewers are searching.

Make it easy for your customers to find, and interact with you (in the way they want to)

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WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT

Any good marketer knows these terms, and

Your business should be recording and measuring these values over time

If you don't know what works for you, how do you know what to do to improve your business?

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TO ACTION

To conclude, let’s review the 3 key points that these lessons help youachieve

1. Despite the protests of your friends and business partners, yourbrand's awareness and reputation are substantially smaller than yourealise

2. Find out what, by who, and how frequently your brand is beingmentioned

3. Use these details as benchmarks, and monitor change over time

Implement your finding into a coherent, and consistent brand image, message, and communications strategy through your website.

This is not that easy to do, and can be time-consuming if you don't know what you're doing….

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I TWEET @WINEBUSPROF

I can be contacted via email or my LinkedIn profile in this QR code. Twitter users are welcome to contact me at the above address

Now you need to pay some attention to Réka Haros to help you with your Communication Strategy

Reka HarosEx Danone Brand Manager, ex Leo Burnett Account

Executive, now doing

wine marketing, communications and business

development at Sfriso Winery.

.

Social media

Wine Communications

&

Advertising

@RekaHaros

8 years ago “The break up” - Consumer divorces Advertising -

• This video was published by Geert Desager on May 2007, just few months after Facebook became available for the general public

• It perfectly shows the disconnect between consumers and advertising brands.

• Unfortunately the situation in the wine sector isn’t different at all.

@RekaHaros

Why do you think the consumer wanted to divorce?

@RekaHaros

My next 6 lessons will hopefully help you focus better on the

what, when, where, how and why of your wine communication.

@RekaHaros

Lesson 13: Make your communication

a conversation

@RekaHaros

A conversation is NOT the same as product broadcasting.

@RekaHaros

Glorification of the product

I wonder why wineries are still advertising and communicating as we were in the last century.

@RekaHaros

Broadcasting your product is

old fashion advertising

@RekaHaros

Now we are in the age of empowered consumers who choose the time and place of their interactions with brands!

@RekaHaros

So as a brand at a dinner party, would you prefer to be a guest speaker who walks away after their speech, or would you rather be an attendee whose interesting

conversations result in a new friendship?

@RekaHaros

This is the essence of the digital age advertising!

@RekaHaros

Advertising needs to be content that encourages interaction between brands and its consumers.

You need to join the conversation!

@RekaHaros

Lesson 14: Know your audience and go

after them

@RekaHaros

• Ask yourself what kind of customers you want to attract, and make sure your ads speak to them on a personal level

• Understand their true motivations and their “why-s” behind their actions

• Don’t create generic ads that do not speak the language or grab the attention of your potential customers

@RekaHaros

Know what forms of advertising work for them

@RekaHaros

It is useless to talk about scents and aftertastes if your consumers

are not wine experts.

@RekaHaros

Make it simple for them to understand your brand

@RekaHaros

Instead of saying why they should buy your product, you need to say why you have made your product for them.

@RekaHaros

Lesson 15: Be Authentic

@RekaHaros

To be an effective communicator, you must be believed.

To be believed, you must be credible.

To be credible, you must be authentic.

To be authentic, you must be genuine.

@RekaHaros

We live in a world where people can judge brands by

what they do. So being believed means far more than

being noticed.

@RekaHaros

Lesson 16: Engage through experiences and emotions

@RekaHaros

Consumers hate being interrupted by brands, they want to be engaged and entertained by them.

@RekaHaros

Make your ad a call for action and participation!

Like [yellow tail] asking people to tweet their toasts for their live billboard campaign (2011)

@RekaHaros

Another way to engage consumers is by telling a story to which they can relate. Push the emotional buttons of your audience,

make them have goose bumps!

@RekaHaros

Cathy Huyghe’s blog does that to me

@RekaHaros

The future of storytelling is story-making

Invite your customers to tell the story of how your

brand is part of their life story!

Enable their stories!

@RekaHaros

Barefoot Wines’ Beach Rescue Project is a perfect example

of engagement through shared values

- just imagine how many love stories, new

friendships and funny stories come out of these

events?

@RekaHaros

Lesson 17: Advertise in the right places

@RekaHaros

The right content in the right context

So you must be sick and tired of hearing “The right

content in the right context”. But if you care

about reaching your target audience you better hang-out where they hang-out.

@RekaHaros

Source: Nielsen

@RekaHaros

“Americans now own four digital devices on average, and the average U.S. consumer spends 60 hours a week consuming content across devices.”

And where you can make it work

http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2015/connecting-with-the-cosmos-the-total-audience-media-universe.html

What Nielsen’s report says about how US citizens consume content across platforms:

• The average American adult spent• nearly a week (149 hours 14 minutes) on average

watching traditional television each month

• almost 30 hours using the Internet on a computer

• over 43 hours using any app/web on a smartphone!

• listening to radio was also a resounding 58 hours and 36 minutes.

@RekaHaros

Know where you can reach your target audience!

Some platforms may not suit your purpose

@RekaHaros

At the Venice Airport right at the security check point,people are preoccupied in getting their bags and shoes back on, they will never look at these ads!

Lesson 18: You can only succeed if you have a well defined communication strategy!

@RekaHaros

It will help you stay focused on the what, when, where,

how and why of your communication, but most

importantly will help you in keeping your consumers in

love with your brand!

@RekaHaros

Without it you are just doing business as usual!

@RekaHaros

Thank you!Reka Haros

@RekaHaros

Rebecca HopkinsRebecca Hopkins is Vice President Communications

& Partner FOLIO Fine Wine Partners.

Social media

FOCUS USA: 30 Lessons of Wine Communication

Public Relations

Presented by Rebecca Hopkins | @beckhopkinswine | www.foliowine.com

Source: 2013 Tom Wark Fermentation.com

Types of US Wine Press

• Complex market with varying levels of targets & experience

• Wine Critic or Wine Reviewer (eg: Bruce Sanderson)

• Wine Author (eg: Jancis Robinson)

• Wine Writer (eg: Ray Isle)

• Wine Blogger (eg: Alder Yarrow)

• Wine Expert or Wine Authority (eg: Alan Meadows)

• Wine Personality / Influencer (eg: Leslie Sbrocco)

Importer / Agency

Press Relations

Sample Submissions

Events & Sponsorships

Story Pitching

Supplier & Press 1:1

Estate Hospitality

Trade Shows

Industry Association

Participation

What PR Does YOUR Winery Need?

Lesson 19:Relying on Scores

vs Telling Real Stories

@beckhopkinswine | www.foliowine.com

“Securing Great Scores CAN’T be that hard?!”

130,000 NEW wines in US market

2,000 – 15,000 + tasted per year

5 outlets = 90% trade voice

RELATIONSHIPS ARE KEY!

Source: 2013 Fermentation.com

• Score = One critic’s opinion | One vintage | One wine

• Scores are a tool but NOT a replacement

• Diminishing power of single critic

• Critic preferences & changing influence

• Know your magazines & submission requirements

• It takes time!

Lesson 19: Wine Scores vs. Brand Stories

Example: Scoring Magazine Submission Timeline

June ’13

July‘13

Aug.‘13

Sept.‘13

Oct.‘13

Nov.‘13

Dec.‘13

Jan.‘14

Feb.‘14

Mar.‘14

Shipment plan, COLA waiver* & air freight to US importer

Wines arrive to importer

Send request for approval to wine magazine

Attain, print & assemble vintage notes

Create SRP/contact stickers for bottles

Create freight shipping form

Make boxes, stickers, pack wines, vintage notes, & forms

Notify FedEx of pick-up needed, send shipping form. (

Wine is shipped to magazine

Score Published online & / or print 93 points

Lesson 20:Three points in 30 seconds

@beckhopkinswine | www.foliowine.com

• Press attention span is VERY limited

• Make them FALL in LOVE with you!

• Use of video & imagery

• Be concise, clear & consistent

• Be compelling, relevant & timely

Lesson 20: Three points in 30 seconds

Lesson 21:Ditch The “bcc” Pitch

@beckhopkinswine | www.foliowine.com

• 80% of PR releases are deleted without being read

• Research your targeted press

• Read their columns

• Understand their focus

• Target your communication

Lesson 21: Ditch the “bcc” Pitch

Source: http://www.1winedude.com/the-release-of-your-wine-is-not-news/ Joe Roberts 6/17/2014

Your wine isreleased

Your wine release is news! Bask in the public’s

fascination.

Your wine release is NOT news.

That press release makes you look like an idiot.

Is Your Name“Brad Pitt”

OR “Angelina Jolie?” YES

NO

“The Release of your Wine is NOT News”

Lesson 22:Sampling? Save your Money!

@beckhopkinswine | www.foliowine.com

Source: 2013 Fermentation.com

• NEVER send samples without asking

• Your agency MUST know state shipping laws

• KNOW What the writer is focused on

• Pre-screened writers = better ROI

• Price, release date & contact details MUST be on bottle

• It takes time!

Lesson 22: Sampling? Save your Money!

Case Study: Consumer Press Mailing Timeline

Apr. ‘14

May ‘14

June ‘14

July ‘14

Aug. ‘14

Sept. ‘14

Oct. ‘14

Schedule send as part of marketing activities

Agreement on final vintages, angle/theme of send

Drafts & edit pitch / letter & identify target press

Send pitch to select Trade Press list

Order wines & prepare collateral & shipping materials.

Responses collected & followed up with confirmation of shipment date.

Attain, print & assemble personal letter and vintage notes.

Create SRP/contact stickers for bottles & FedEx needs

Make boxes & sticker bottles. Pack wines, vintage notes, include copy of approval form.

Notify FedEx of pick-up needed, send shipping form. Schedule pick up

Wine sent to Press contacts

Press coverage in magazines

Lesson 23:Follow-up, Don’t Frustrate

@beckhopkinswine | www.foliowine.com

• “Please don’t call unless I ask you to & don’t be aggressive “

• Press have obligation to their readers & editors (not you)

• Do not assume your interview will become a story

• Every journalist is beholden to someone else

Lesson 23: Follow-up Don’t Frustrate

Lesson 24:Research > Relationship

> Resource

@beckhopkinswine | www.foliowine.com

• Identify a core group & NURTURE that relationship

• GOOD relationships take time

• Make the time and effort to meet face to face

• Press Relationships are not friendships

• PR is not free!

• Become a resource beyond your own brand

Lesson 24: Research > Relationship > Resource

Cathy HuygheCathy Huyghe writes about the business and politics

of the wine industry for Forbes online.

She is also working on her first book, Hungry for Wine.

Social media

Lesson 25:WIIFY

Social media

WIIFY:

What’s In It For You

The YOU is not the Winery.

The YOU is the consumer.

Put yourselves in the shoes

of the consumer.

And ask, why would I be

interested in this?

Why would I care?

That’s where Social Media Starts.

The best part of social media?

It’s SOCIAL.

Meaning the conversation

is a two-way street.

It’s a dialogue.

Not a broadcast.

Lesson 26:YouTube

Social media

For younger people, it’s often

the FIRST search.

YouTube is the second biggest

search engine on the internet.

Three Goals of YouTube:

1. Instruct

2. Entertain

3. With content that clearly

communicates what’s in it for

the viewer.

Examples of Effective YouTube Videos:

• How to make a recipe that pairs great

with your wine

• How to drive to your winery and the

landmarks along the way

• Introducing a new social media

campaign, with a Call to Action as the

last frame.

An In-Effective YouTube Video is:

• Airbrushed

• Highly produced

• Perfect pan shots of your vineyards or

someone riding a tractor

Why This is In-Effective:

• It matters to you. But it does not matter

to the consumer. (Remember WIIFY.)

• Perfection isn’t realistic.

Lesson 27:Instagram Impact

Social media

Photo-heavy platforms like Instagram

and Pinterest are enormously popular.

Use visuals – video, photos, graphics –

to tell your story.

Visuals bring people to life!

Non-wine platforms used to document wine:

• Instagram

• Pinterest

• Facebook

• Twitter

• etc.

Wine platforms used to document wine:

• Delectable

• Drync

• Hello Vino

• Vivino

• etc.

They are all:

• Community-focused

• Highly interactive

• Usable for research

Is Your Label Ready for That?

Social media

They permit you to be authentic.

As Reka Haros was when she shared

the challenges of a harvest with her

customers

Lesson 28:

Mobile Mobile MobileSocial media

The impact of mobile is only growing!

To document and share the wine

experience (as we’ve just seen).

And to influence online purchasing

behaviors.

Especially from phones.

Especially while the consumer is

standing in the wine store.

Mobile App Example: HelloVino

One of the most downloaded apps

One of the most frequent operations it’s

asked to do – often while the user is

standing in the wine store – is to

recommend a wine to go with a

particular food.

Mobile App Example: HelloVino

The most frequent food HelloVino is

asked to pair?

Pizza.

Does your wine show up in those

recommendations?

Is your website mobile-optimized?

Lesson 29:

ListeningSocial media

Use social media to LISTEN to what

people are saying about your brand.

Use social media to LISTEN to what

social communities, critics, and

bloggers are saying about your brand

and the topics that matter to your brand.

Different social media platforms are

best used for listening to different

things.

Examples:

Facebook: communities like #winelover

Twitter: individuals like Tim Atkin and

Eric Asimov

WeChat: Chinese consumers

Lesson 30:Online + Offline

Social media

Nothing Beats Face to Face

The Voice of the person who

shows up at an event has to

be the same voice of the

person online.

It’s about…

Authenticity

Consistency

Engagement + Dialogue

Thank YouReka Haros @rekaharos

Rebecca Hopkins @beckhopkinswine

Cathy Huyghe @cathyhuyghe

Robert Joseph @robertjoseph

Damien Wilson @winebusprof

Social media

Thank You

Reka Haros

harosreka@gmail.com

Rebecca Hopkins

rhopkins@foliowine.com

Cathy Huyghe

huyghe@post.harvard.edu

Robert Joseph

robertjoseph@unforgettable.com

Damien Wilson

dr.damien.wilson@gmail.com

Social media