Once a winery decides to take the plunge into Social Media, there are two important things to consider. First, what’s the strategy (or, as we say around here “strategerie”)? Strategy is a long conversation, but, as Larry the Wine Guy mentioned the other day, one doesn’t want to get all tied up in strategy lest one never gets off first base. But you do have to go through the exercise of who’s the target audience, what do you want to present to them, what do you hope to gain through Social Media channels, and many other check boxes. We’ll be discussing that later, many times, I’m sure. But there’s something else on my mind for today, and that’s one of the cornerstones of implementation.
At some point, you have to decide what your Social Media home base is going to be. There are a lot of elements that can be put to use, like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, webpage, blogs, and others. As you will find in the strategy session, none of these really stands alone. To best leverage Social Media, you need to use one element for a home base, and use the rest of the elements to feed readers to it.
Denise Wakeman, among many SocMed experts, recommends that your blog be your home base. You might respond that you already have paid for a nice website, so why go to the effort of a blog. Answer that question by considering how often your website is updated, not just by adding product descriptions and the “media mentions” showing that the Wine Weasel gave your Roussanne/Pinot noir blend 91 points. How often does your website provide fresh, interesting content? Probably not that often, since it’s usually a bit of work to update/tinker with web pages; not just content, but making sure all the links still work and similar irritating, techie stuff. Plus, you can’t dork with the Flash content, which is so not captivating.
On the other hand, a blog entry, whether two paragraphs or 1000 words, is readily prepared (FB4W is done in Word), loaded into your template, and push the button to publish. OK, tags, categories and such have to be done (I tend to forget these…), but that’s two minutes.
So why is this important? Your Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn profiles link back to home base, your Tweets and Facebook status updates will occasionally link back, and Wakeman suggests that articles and media releases link back in the same manner. So, do your followers, both new and veteran, land on the home page of your website (likely the same ol’ same ol’), or do they land on the blog that you posted earlier in the week, discussing something interesting along the lines of what Tablas Creek Vineyards did Friday: “Wine Clubs vs. Mailing Lists”. Given that the idea is to have “stickiness” in your home base, where followers want to return and become part of your community, which would you choose? If the home base is boring, what would compel someone who’s been there before to click on your Tweet or Facebook link?
If you agree that fresh, interesting content is essential for attracting attention and retaining followers, but you still feel tied to your website (it’s not the Flash, is it?), there’s something that could be even more important. Yes, really, and I’ll talk about it in the next post: Search Engine Optimization.
John,
Welcome to the blogging world. You add a really interesting perspective for an industry just chugging along in the social medium realm. It’s because it’s so out of the usual day-to-day comfort zone of things to do that this aspect of marketing is greatly lacking. Anything innovative is very disruptive, consequently there’s a huge burying of heads in the sand. Thank God for the early adopters, and people like you who are helping wine companies to begin to navigate.
Thank you, also, for having me on your short list of wine blog links. I’m humbled.
Thank you for the kind words, Jo. I think if the PR/marketing folks like you tell the wineries that social media is a good idea, and implementation folks like me show them that it’s not that hard to do, social marketing can catch on in the wine industry. There’s some work ahead, but that’s the challenge that makes it fun. And I appreciate the link from your page…now I just have to make sure I’m worthy!
Thanks for the links over to our site, John!
I would weigh in that, whether or not you have a good blog, you want a home base that is a Web site. And the reason is that most people who visit your Web site are not there recreationally. Most of them are there to answer a specific question, such as “what’s in the 2006 Cotes de Tablas?” or “what score did the 2005 Roussanne get from Parker?” or “what are your tasting room hours?” or “I heard something about a winemaker dinner in August, what are the details?”.
These are all questions that can be much better organized on a Web site than on a blog, which by default orders information sequentially rather than topically. What we’ve found to be the right balance for us is to have a Web site with all the basic details, that may not change all that often but which is kept up to date with new releases, events and press, and a blog for the more personal side for people who want to follow us on our thoughts and explorations. We offer RSS and email subscription to the blog. I also make sure that whenever we have a new blog post it is listed and linked (with a date) on the front page of the Web site, so people know that there is fresh content and that they can delve more deeply if they want.
Anyway, interesting post and topic, and I wanted to chime in.
Thanks again!
-Jason
Hey, Jason! I appreciate your observations. Actually, you stole my thunder from Wednesday’s post, where I start with the premise that a blog on a website could be a good thing.
My perspective is that one uses Twitter, Facebook and similar to initate a conversation with people who didn’t already know you. The cool thing about Twitter and Facebook is how status updates and tweets can go viral, or even semi-viral, to get the attention of folks a few circles away from your fans. When they decide to test the water with something more substantial, most winery websites won’t stand the test of frequent fresh and valuable information (the essential “stickiness”). That’s why I promote the use of a blog as Social Media home base.
You’re different because your blog and website complement each other; I’ll be using you as an example of how to really optimize SocMed. I agree that when people know you and are looking for you, the website, properly maintained, of course, should be the place to end up; in this case, the blog is the icing on the cake (“Lagnaippe” in Cajun).
I hope you stay tuned and provide additional perspective. If wineries can see that you can do it, and do it well, they’ll be more apt to dive in.
JD
John,
Thanks for the useful information. There is a lot to learn when it comes to the wine industry entering the social media realm…
I agree with the concept of having a home base that can be updated easily. I started a website for a wine adventure that I was embarking on and quickly learned that the home page needed to be frequently updated. I eventually changed the site architecture so that its blog page also became the home page. That way, my visitors can immediately see news and updated information.
Cheers,
Alina Brown
http://www.murphygoodemovement.com
looking for a recipe for making a cookie with grappa. the left over from the grapes to make wine.