In the beginning, a
structure was haphazardly developed, whereby a winery could get the word out on
their wines. Originally, it was books or magazines. Then newsletters and review
periodicals by subscription became dominant. Publications like The Wine
Spectator and The Wine Advocate (e.g., Robert Parker) ascended in influence.
Then the internet intervened and blogs arrived. And then microblogging,
Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Reddit and TikTok, surfaced, and made it easier
for almost anyone to become influential. That’s where we’re at right now = The Era
of the Influencer.
Forget about spelling and grammar, who has time? We’re too busy taking pictures of ourselves and our covey of influencers, our food, our wine, our magnificent life? Passerina or Passerino, who gives a damn? Brunella or Brunello – don’t be so picky! You know what we’re talking about!!
And the winery owner,
faced with not knowing what to do about getting the word out, lest they do it
all by themselves (in addition to making the wine, already a big job), they
hire a PR firm or a blogger-influencer. Or maybe their importer can suss out
who’s who in the world of shaping opinion. And they design these excursions and
invite leading voices into their homes and their cellars, their kitchens and
their villages, so they can get the word out.
Does this really work anymore? Did it ever?
A fabled definition of insanity is “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Winery people – have you gone insane? These people are not influential.
They are hangers-on. A good number of them go from
event to event, eating and drinking well, staying in nice places, being chauffeured
around in temperature-controlled autobuses. And then on to the next junket. Don’t
believe me? Check out their Instagram feeds: Tuscany today, Penedès tomorrow – they
keep on truckling!
Anecdote: Years ago, a little-known wine blogger’s star was ascending. And they were invited on a press trip. This person had never been to this region, it was new to them. But they informed the trip organizer that the only way they were going to get them there was to supply a business or first-class airline ticket. When I was told this story, I was dumbfounded. I had recommended this person.
I’m a numbers person – the era of the blogger has waned. The metrics just aren’t possible, like they were 5-10 years ago. Bloggers are telling their tales to an insular group of, usually, like-minded folks. And on already over-saturated platforms like Instagram. There is little or no growth there. You need action that can be measured on substance greater than likes and hashtags.
The progression from the era of the blogger to the era of the influencer is not long term, and any strategic effort to magically grow your business with the mavens of the moment will give you a poor return on your investment.
To anyone in business who is planning growth of their brand, micro-bloggers, or influencers, in the real world, are hard-pressed to provide rock-steady data to verify their tenability. They will not move your needle – there’s more babble than benefits. They cannot help you move your boxes. You might as well throw a big party for your village, wine ‘em and dine ‘em, and everybody goes to sleep in their own beds and wakes up the next day and goes back to work. As the French might say, “Les junkets sont démodés.” In other words, Passé – not Passerina.
I cannot for the life of me imagine why hard-working, honest, hands-on, salt of the earth winery folks let these faux adulators into their orbit?
Look, I get it. It is hard to differentiate yourself and your product in our world which has been radically disrupted. Did we not learn anything from our shared Covid experience? Doing the same thing, over and over – as was done before Covid – is not going to get you over the hump. When that PR firm promises you to fill the seats, that’s what you get. Because that’s one of their objectives. But you’re trying to build and expand your brand awareness. That’s also a tacit aspiration of too many in the micro-blogger/influencer set – building “their” brand – not yours.
It’s a waste of time and money, and it does a disservice to the already enlisted multitudes all over the world who are legitimately trying to put your bottles into the hands of loving customers, day after day.
Not all PR firms are just out to take your money. But if they are part of your strategy, they must feel your pain as well as your joy. It’s not just about filling a hole, or sharing their mailing list. There has to be a more organic attachment to your process. You are the customer; they must provide a service to you. They must be there to serve your interests, not theirs. Their interest must be in getting you success. Not in just finding bodies.
Oh, that PR firm that invited me to California? Seeing as they sent me an invite that needed immediate action, as the trip was less than two weeks from the time they invited me, I sent them a speedy reply. I never heard back from them. I guess they must have filled their hole.
This isn’t working, folks.
OK, so this is the problem. What is the solution? To be continued…
Here: How to Optimize Your Wine Brand ~ A Press Junket Punch List
