Tag Archives: online wine

Drive DTC Wine Sales and Keep ‘em Coming Back!

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In 2013, 3.4 million cases of wine shipped in the United States (ShipCompliant 2014 DTC Report). Online sales are growing at the fastest pace in history and staying connected to your customers is critical. Here are five customer touch points that will drive DTC wine sales and keep your biggest fans coming back:

 

1. Give them what they want
In some cases, your e-commerce website is the customers first touch point with your brand. Analyze your data to better understand the top varietals customers are purchasing and display those first. Make it easy for customers to shop by setting up your website to cater to the interests of your top-tier customers and providing easy drill down tools by category.

Know your customer demographics and ensure images and content on the homepage are relevant. For example, if females represent your highest demographic, add teasers and event announcements for fashion shows, cooking classes, Pinterest parties and so on. Keeping customers connected beyond the initial purchase will build brand loyalty.

2. Be sure to say thank you
This customer touch point is first and foremost. Customers want to hear from you and it isn’t always the first sale that’s the most important. You want to drive repeat sales, so focus on the second sale. When the second sale happens, you’re doing something right. You’ve converted a first time buyer to a repeat customer. Set up an email that is sent following every online or tasting room transaction that includes a personal note from the winery staff, order confirmation, maybe a few notes about the wines purchased, and an invitation to connect at an event or through the wine club. Communicate your brand story in all customer interactions.

3. Map out the tasting room experience
Many of us have had an unfortunate tasting room visit that has felt more like a cattle call on a busy weekend. By mapping out the tasting room experience, your team can better serve customers at the tasting bar, in private areas, or at seated tastings. Add advance reservation tools to your e-commerce website so that first-time visitors are given choices for the type of tasting experience they prefer. Do visitors want a sit down wine and food pairing, a descriptor tasting, or are they celebrating a birthday or anniversary with friends? By offering 3-4 tasting options by price tier, your winery can better qualify visitors and provide personal service upon their arrival. Cross reference reservation information in the e-commerce system to understand if visitors are club members or have previously purchased. Have a birthday gift or decorations set up if a club member or large group makes a reservation to celebrate their birthday with friends. This customer touch point gives your staff the tools needed to have meaningful conversations and establish long-term relationships.

4. Dazzle the customer with a mobile POS
In the tasting room, at a sit down tasting experience, or outside at a member pick up party, the use of a mobile POS has improved customer service. In many cases, it has even increased the average spend per customer. Not having to wait in a long line to check out in the tasting room makes an incredible impression. Carrying the purchase to the customer’s table is an excellent customer touch point. Mobile POS tools give winery staff the information needed when interacting with members and first-time visitors. By recording customer preferences, future communication can be tailored and better received.

5. Personalize club member experiences
Your club members are your biggest fans and continue to reinvest their time and money in your brand. Wineries have the greatest opportunity to grow DTC wine sales and expand reach through the club sales segment. Set up an annual member touch point plan to include a mix of phone calls, emails and hand written correspondence. Don’t make the club shipment the only time a member hears from your staff. Revisit each member touchpoint quarterly and improve messaging, recommendations and personalization whenever possible. Use social CRM tools to better understand your club members by interests, hobbies, job titles, affiliations with charitable organizations and community groups. Include custom messaging in the member portal and update bi-monthly to keep surprising with thoughtful touches. Set up alerts within your e-commerce and CRM systems to notify staff of customer birthdays, club anniversaries and important member milestones. Create VIP touch points for the top 30-40% of club members by lifetime value and treat them well. Showcase your members through social outlets and club newsletters. Let members shine and help share your brand story!

About the Author:

Sandra Hess, Founder of DTC Wine Workshops, supports wineries large and small in the areas of technology and process improvements to grow DTC sales and retain loyal customers. DTC Wine Workshops is a consulting company serving wineries throughout the United States.

From Abandon Cart to Conversion (White Paper)

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“Why Shoppers Abandon Carts and What Merchants Can Do About It” - this white paper produced by BRONTO is a must read for any winery selling online, direct to consumer.

All online retailers experience shopping cart abandonment. In fact, with rates averaging between 60-70%, marketers know that the majority of shoppers who start the checkout process will leave before completing it. Those departing shoppers represent a significant amount of revenue. To recapture as much of that revenue as possible, you need to be aware of reasons for abandonment and the top strategies for bringing those shoppers back. For this white paper, BRONTO examined the carting experience and follow-up email strategies of 100 retailers. In it, you’ll discover:

  • Top reasons shoppers abandon online purchases
  • Analysis of key variables from a study of 100 shopping carts
  • Post-abandonment email campaign strategies

Download the white paper here: BRONTO WHITE PAPER

If you would like to schedule a workshop session or gather more information about how to improve your wineries website shopping experience, contact: sales@dtcwineworkshops.com

Are you going to DIRECT 2014 in Napa?

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Are you going to DIRECT 2014 in Napa?

Ship Compliant is hosting their 9th Annual DIRECT conference at the Napa Marriott on May 8th and 9th. This year’s conference has an incredible line up of speakers and sessions around direct to consumer sales and shipping best practices. Sandra Hess, Founder of DTC Wine Workshops, will be speaking in a break out session on DTC Marketing best practices using demographic data. Check out the event and get in on EARLY BIRD registration at: http://www.shipcompliant.com/resources/direct-2014

DTC Wine Sales Webinar Series

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DTC Wine Workshops presents a six-month DTC Wine Sales webinar series taking place over six months on the second Tuesday of each month beginning March 11th at 10:00 a.m. PST.

3.47 million cases of wine shipped in 2013, a 9.3% increase over 2012. In 2013, wines priced $15 and less increased 21% in volume shipped. Total sales of winery-to-consumer shipments increased 7.5% to $1.57 billion in 2013*. Do you have the right blend of technology and process in place to increase direct to consumer wine sales? DTC Wine Workshops helps wineries grow direct wine sales, build brand awareness and retain loyal customers. Over the course of six months, you and your winery team will gain the skills necessary to:

1. Build and cater to a Loyal Wine Club and online fan base using the right combination of tools and process
2. Configure DTC e-commerce technology and tools to best SERVE your customers
3. Use Preference Based Marketing tools within CRM to create customer profiles and more intimate relationships
4. Grow and Expand direct to consumer wine channels through online and in person DTC sales strategies
5. Use your Customer Data to your advantage through Data Mining, drip email marketing and call campaigns

REGISTER at: Eventbrite

A bit about the presenter:

Sandra Hess, Founder of DTC Wine Workshops, supports wineries large and small in the areas of technology and process improvements to grow direct to consumer wine sales. James Morrow, E-Winery, has called her a “business leader with ready wit and customer rapport.” Sandra presented a session on DTC Best Practices to the marketing students at Fresno State Winery in September, 2013 and also co-moderated the Wine Club Manager Workshop at Direct to Consumer Wine Symposium, South San Francisco January, 2014, Recognized by Alf Nuciforo, Chairman of the Luxury Market Council San Francisco for her contribution in the DTC E-Commerce Technology Panel at DTC Done Right conference, Hall Wines, February, 2014, Sandra continues to share latest trends in DTC wine sales with the ideal combination of technology and processes. “Sandra, the scorecards are in and the verdict is unanimous. Your panel discussion was a huge hit. We’ve had rave reviews about the information you conveyed and the candor of your comments.”

DTC Wine Workshops shares best practices for building customer loyalty and translates a wine brand into effective DTC sales programs by making the customer the focal point. Sandra has been a guest speaker in the “Wine Biz Cast” series and has also produced direct to consumer Road Shows throughout the West Coast for The Winery CRM (Microsoft Dynamics CRM product), e-Winery Solutions, WineDirect, Vin65 and VinTank. Prior to joining the wine industry, Sandra sold compliancy management software to global corporations and law firms.

“DTC Done Right” event at Hall Wines

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The Luxury Marketing Council of San Francisco, in partnership with Napa Valley Vintners, Sonoma County Vintners and CANVAS hosted a one-day Boot Camp for sales, marketing and hospitality personnel yesterday at Hall Wines in St. Helena. A little over 300 … Continue reading →

Wineries socially share the LOVE this Valentine’s

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It’s a week before the big day and I was curious to see how wineries are leveraging social outlets to connect with fans and share the love. Does your winery have a social content calendar in place to capitalize on … Continue reading →

DTC Expert: Cater Outreach to Winery Customers

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Tammy Boatright, Founder of VingDirect did a great job in her presentation this past week, offering valuable statistics and information shared around various DTC wine sales channels and the importance of paying attention to each one. Customer service is key to creating memorable experiences and building long-term customer loyalty. From the moment a potential customer calls a winery to the day they visit for the first time, consistency is needed in delivering a WOW experience. Great stories are shared when customers are dazzled and delighted. Is your winery ready to deliver an exceptional customer service experience in 2014? Check out the article at:

DTC Expert: Cater Outreach to Winery Customer - Wines & Vines - Wine Industry News Headlines.

DTC Wine Sales CHECKLIST

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What is your ONLINE STRATEGY?

ONLINE STRATEGY

There were 245,203,319 Internet users in the US (representing 78.1% of the population) at mid-year 2012, according to Internet World Stats, December 2012*. The amount of time spent online rose about 20% to more than 30 hours weekly. Affluent Millennials, defined here as those aged 18 to 29, spend more than 40 hours a week online, essentially a full-time job. (Ipsos Media, October 2011). $1.35 billion in wine was shipped in 2012*.

  • Are you using your website as an e-commerce tool and providing an informative, fun and easy to navigate shopping experience?
  • How are you engaging with your biggest online Fans and Followers?
  • How are you monitoring online mentions of your brand? How are you responding?
  • How often are you updating blogs, content and online news and promotion boards?
  • Are you using Online Marketplaces to expand reach and visibility?
  • Who is creating your online content? Is content relevant and being refreshed regularly?

What is your BRAND EXPERIENCE?

SENSES

What is a brand without a story? It’s just another brand that will get lost in the crowd. Think about your brand as it relates to the five senses.

  • Sight: How does your logo, labels, packaging, website design and tasting room look to your loyal followers? Have you asked? Now that you know who your loyal customers are, is it time to revisit your branding to create an experience that is more appealing to your buyers?
  • Taste: Are you using preference based marketing tools to maintain an up-to-date profile for each of your customers? Are you using this valuable data to market your varietals based on taste preferences? Are you designing events and club shipments with the customers taste in mind? Wineries have the ability to understand customer preferences in a very detailed and intimate way – take advantage of this power by using a proper combination of technology and best practices to cater to your customer’s tastes.
  • Sound: What is your brand story? What does it sound like? What stories are your biggest fans telling others about your brand? Are you delivering fresh content every month that reinforces your brand story? Are you using video to create a more familiar experience on your website? Who is telling your story – winemaker, owner, operations manager, tasting room manager? Does the story sound genuine and consistent? Wine is more than a beverage - it becomes an experience through tasting, smelling, exploring and story telling.
  • Smell: Are you tantalizing the taste buds? Does your staff educate every sipper about the unique characteristics of the wine they taste and how smell plays a big role? Do new customers leave your tasting room with an Aha! feeling after discovering something new? You have the ability to convert each taster into a club member, online shopper and fan if they had a truly memorable tasting room experience.
  • Touch: What are your DTC customer touch points? Have you taken time to identify all touch points? The greatest opportunity to interact with a customer is in person. Are your tasting room and events staff members delivering high impact customer service experiences? Is your brand experience being reflected through their knowledge and customer interactions?

How is your brand CONNECTING WITH CUSTOMERS?

CONNECTING W CUSTOMERS

Identifying where your customers are spending their time online is essential when staying connected. Understanding who your biggest online fans are will help your brand managers stay current with online conversations. At a bare minimum, connecting through Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest will keep your brand in front of your online buyers. Setting up a daily online monitoring task will instantly improve your online visibility and keep you informed of both positive and possibly negative conversations. Writing a blog post on a regular basis will keep your customers informed and interested.

  • Are you monitoring online conversations about your brand daily? If you don’t have the time to monitor all social outlets daily, let technology do it for you. VinTank is a social monitoring tool that informs you of all online conversations about your brand so that you can interact in a more timely and effective manner.
  • Beyond social monitoring, how easy is it for your customers to find your wine online, at the store or at a restaurant?
  • Are you giving customers enough online information and the ability to connect with you?
  • What do your wine club shipments look like? Are club members WOWED when opening up their club shipment? Are they telling their friends about their club shipment experience?
  • Can your fans easily find your wine online, at the store or at a restaurant based on brand recognition?

What is your MOBILE STRATEGY?

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Check out the FACTS about mobile shopping in the U.S.! Mobile commerce sales hit $24.66 billion in 2012, up 81% from $13.63 billion in 2011, research firm eMarketer says. EMarketer counts sales made on smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices such as Apple Inc.’s iPod Touch. It excludes travel and ticket sales. U.S. m-commerce sales will rise 55.7% to $38.40 billion in 2013, 35.8% to $52.17 billion in 2014, 30.9% to $68.29 billion in 2015, and 27.2% to $86.86 billion in 2016, eMarketer forecasts. Retail sales on smartphones and tablets accounted for 7% of U.S. e-commerce sales in 2011 and 11% in 2012, eMarketer finds. They will represent 15% of e-commerce sales in 2013, 18% in 2014, 21% in 2015 and 24% in 2016, the research firm predicts. Vin65 recently announced the release of their new iPhone POS product and their Mobile POS on the iPad has been in high demand this past year. Wineries now recognize the need to provide the level of customer service that luxury brands offer in their retail locations. Mobile POS tools are no longer a luxury but a necessity when remaining competitive.

  • Have you shopped your brand using various mobile devices?
  • Is your website optimized for mobile devices? Is your designer using responsive design processes?
  • Are you using an e-commerce solution that provides a secure, one-page check out process?
  • How many clicks does it take for a returning customer to make a purchase with a mobile device?
  • Is your e-commerce provider offering statistics around AB testing so that you are constantly refreshing your website and mobile shopping experience based on ease of navigation and check out?
  • Are you using Mobile POS solutions to improve purchasing process? You can have more meaningful conversations in the tasting room and at events when customers aren’t waiting in line to check out.

Is your brand an EVENT DESTINATION?

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In 2012, there were 3,754 bonded wineries just in California alone*. Wine buyers are sophisticated online buyers who work hard and play hard.

  • Are you working with local tourism agencies to become a destination visitors must visit the next time they are in your community?
  • How are wine lovers discovering your brand? Do you know where your customers live? Are you running monthly reports to identify growing markets by state and inviting those shoppers to become club members? Do you offer shipping discounts by state to growth markets?
  • Are you creating exciting and original events that appeal to your customers?
  • Are you providing lodging and dining recommendations on your website and in person?

To schedule a complimentary DTC Sales Check Up, fill out the contact form below.

*http://www.newmediatrendwatch.com/markets-by-country/17-usa/123-demographics
*http://www.winesandvines.com/pdf/2012Direct-to-Consumer-Shipping-Report.pdf
*http://www.wineinstitute.org/resources/statistics/article124
*http://www.internetretailer.com/2013/01/10/m-commerce-sales-near-25-billion-2012-81