Comments on: Building a Better Virtual Tasting Room http://blog.inertiabev.com/index.php/2008/10/30/building-a-better-virtual-tasting-room/ Powering the Wine Revolution Thu, 09 Sep 2010 03:42:01 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.5 by: Mary Baker http://blog.inertiabev.com/index.php/2008/10/30/building-a-better-virtual-tasting-room/#comment-58563 Tue, 04 Nov 2008 18:28:33 +0000 http://blog.inertiabev.com/index.php/2008/10/30/building-a-better-virtual-tasting-room/#comment-58563 Thanks for the mention, Kevin! Excellent advice--to be successful, maintaining a blog for commercial purposes does require more than just writing about one's business--it's important to engage and honor your readers, make them feel welcome and valued, just as you would in your tasting room. If a winery does not want to establish a blog, there are other ways to engage visitors, like sending a personal thank you to email signups, or posting visitor polls--if they're fun people tend to participate and the winery can find out more about their demographic (Vizu is a free program that we use). Thanks for the mention, Kevin! Excellent advice–to be successful, maintaining a blog for commercial purposes does require more than just writing about one’s business–it’s important to engage and honor your readers, make them feel welcome and valued, just as you would in your tasting room. If a winery does not want to establish a blog, there are other ways to engage visitors, like sending a personal thank you to email signups, or posting visitor polls–if they’re fun people tend to participate and the winery can find out more about their demographic (Vizu is a free program that we use).

]]> by: Kevin Finn http://blog.inertiabev.com/index.php/2008/10/30/building-a-better-virtual-tasting-room/#comment-58255 Thu, 30 Oct 2008 21:21:24 +0000 http://blog.inertiabev.com/index.php/2008/10/30/building-a-better-virtual-tasting-room/#comment-58255 Ben, Spot on. We have been focused on the notion of a virtual tasting room too (as stated in our joint press release). In my opinion, it's the informal personal connection offered by the tasting room that is of the most value. However, it seems difficult to me to generate this type of informal discussion via a winery website. That is why the most engaging wineries use blogs (e.g. Dover Canyon, Twisted Oak, etc.). The only problem is that a blog is a serious undertaking, which prevents many wineries from achieving this type of informal personal interaction with readers. Therefore, I think wineries are best served by participating in online discussions about their winery. Some forums may offer no tangible direct benefit, while others will. For example, our site tries to facilitate this type of discussion within arm's reach of the winery's online store. See Bighorn Cellars' profile for an example. If I owned a winery, I would set up a Google Alert with my winery's name so that I receive an e-mail every time my brand is mentioned online. Next, I would go to that site/forum/blog and engage in the discussion (or merely say thanks for the shout out). This is a little extra work, but it sure is a lot more personal! Food for thought. Kevin Ben,

Spot on. We have been focused on the notion of a virtual tasting room too (as stated in our joint press release). In my opinion, it’s the informal personal connection offered by the tasting room that is of the most value. However, it seems difficult to me to generate this type of informal discussion via a winery website. That is why the most engaging wineries use blogs (e.g. Dover Canyon, Twisted Oak, etc.).

The only problem is that a blog is a serious undertaking, which prevents many wineries from achieving this type of informal personal interaction with readers. Therefore, I think wineries are best served by participating in online discussions about their winery. Some forums may offer no tangible direct benefit, while others will. For example, our site tries to facilitate this type of discussion within arm’s reach of the winery’s online store. See Bighorn Cellars’ profile for an example.

If I owned a winery, I would set up a Google Alert with my winery’s name so that I receive an e-mail every time my brand is mentioned online. Next, I would go to that site/forum/blog and engage in the discussion (or merely say thanks for the shout out). This is a little extra work, but it sure is a lot more personal!

Food for thought.

Kevin

]]> by: The Winery Web Site Report http://blog.inertiabev.com/index.php/2008/10/30/building-a-better-virtual-tasting-room/#comment-58251 Thu, 30 Oct 2008 19:55:54 +0000 http://blog.inertiabev.com/index.php/2008/10/30/building-a-better-virtual-tasting-room/#comment-58251 <strong>Good Reads</strong> For your consideration, a nice post from Ben Chinn at Inertia Beverages, Building a Better Virtual Tasting Room, including a link to a great interview with some experts on maximizing tasting room effectiveness.Next time you're thinking about the conte... Good Reads

For your consideration, a nice post from Ben Chinn at Inertia Beverages, Building a Better Virtual Tasting Room, including a link to a great interview with some experts on maximizing tasting room effectiveness.Next time you’re thinking about the conte…

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