25 Nov, 2013
Every fall I seemed to end up visiting my friends over at Artesa Winery in Napa, CA. The view from their perch atop a small hill is outstanding, and offers one of the most dramatic scenes in wine country. I took this photo with my crappy iPhone a few years ago, and it’s...
Local search marketing / SEO / Wine industry
22 Nov, 2013
As you might know, I work in the wine industry and spend a lot of my time educating clients about various online marketing strategies. When you operate a bricks and mortar business, one of your main goals is to get customers through the door. For a winery with a tasting room, this is...
Ecommerce / Email Marketing / Google Analytics / Wine industry
22 Nov, 2013
A few weeks ago I had the great opportunity to spend an afternoon leading a small class through a crash course on digital marketing strategies and concepts. The course I taught was an elective, and one of 12+ others in Sonoma State’s Wine Business Institute certification course. It covered five areas, including basic...
Blog / Email Marketing / Featured / List Building
22 Nov, 2013
Every single email address has value attached to it. Every email address you collect is worth something. Of course it has a monetary value, but we shouldn’t reduce something as valuable as this to just a dollar figure. Email is a deeply personal way to adopt people into your inner circle – or...
6 Aug, 2012
I have spent the past three years living in the Napa Valley, and during that time I visited many wineries. From the big names like Mondavi and St. Supery on Rt. 29 to the smaller family-run operations like Hendry and Summit Lake way atop Howell Mountain, I’ve had the chance to experience a...
Blog / Ecommerce / Wine industry
18 Jun, 2012
Last Thursday, ShipCompliant held their 7th annual direct sales seminar. This conference served as an opportunity for anyone interested in the business of selling wine direct to consumers to learn how to seize and expand upon this important sales channel. Consumer direct sales of wine have grown considerably over the past few years,...
23 May, 2012
When I first heard of Ram’s Gate in Sonoma, CA the word was that it was the new hotness – a thirty million dollar structure erected on a hilltop overlooking the Bay. My first thoughts were, “Great, another overzealous ego booster winery with no personality”. I was wrong. As you approach the winery,...
Blog / Ecommerce / Google Analytics / Socia media marketing / Wine industry
10 Apr, 2012
Direct-to-consumer sales represent an important sales channel for wineries, with 63% of those surveyed reporting it as their fastest growing source of revenue. What’s interesting is that while the medium to large size wineries enjoy growth in this channel, the smaller boutique wineries with case production under 1,000 have seen a significant drop...
Blog / Socia media marketing / Wine industry
21 Mar, 2012
One of my favorite wineries in Sonoma, Gundlach Bundschu just posted a great video called “A Brief History of Merlot” and it offers a cheeky look at how Merlot has transformed over the years. Most wineries have little experience with or interest in video production. I’ve seen some interviews with winemakers, but nothing...
16 Mar, 2012
In a recent post by the social media evangelist for the wine industry, Rick Bakas stressed that wineries should be wary of the Pinterest craze. In his Blair Witch style video, he cautions viewers about getting too involved in the site. I’d argue just the opposite. Pinterest has grown faster than any other...
