Understanding and Maximizing Winery Public Relations

1
Understanding and Maximizing Winery Public
Relations

• Product, Place, People, Partners
• PERSONALIZE
• March 2009

2

• What is Public Relations?
• Earned media vs media exposure that is bought
  through advertising
• Specific messaging to promote your product, place
  and people
• Positioning/controlling your message
• Building positive relationships with media and
  public
• Establishing and maintaining credibility
• Educating

3

• Advertising and Public Relations fall under
  marketing
• Work closely with marketing for their support
  to leverage PR initiatives
• Must have clear and consistent messaging
• through brand image, logos, sponsorships,
  slogans, advertising, packaging design

4
Who does PR at your winery?

• A PR Director/Manager
• Marketing Manager
• Contracted Communications Firm
• Winemaker
• Winery Principals/Executives
• General Administration
• Hospitality Managers
• One person who is all of the above?? YOU???

5
How do you achieve strong PR presence?

• PERSONALIZE your product, people and place
  through involving the media in many different
  ways,
• -Press releases media visits (single, group)
  one on one interviews tours and tastings
  events staying in touch creating trust and
  relationships.
• -Put yourself out there and be flexible
• Morning, noon and night weekdays and weekends
  regular days and holidays

6
Tourism

• How does all this relate to Tourism?
• Your product, people, and place are the three
  core reasons why people want to visit your
  winery.
• GIVE THEM A REASON TO VISIT
• PERSONALIZE IT--they will come, and they will
  come back because you have created a great
  experience and comfort zone.

7
PRODUCT

• Our core product is wine
• What is it? DOES IT HAVE QUALITY, AUTHENTICITY,
  UNIQUENESS VQA SUB APPELATIONS
• Grape variety wine process/style (oak, non oak),
  vintage, tier, taste profile, food pairing,
  price, availability
• Packaging-name, label, outer package
• Endorsement-winemaker, wine writer, sommelier,
  celebrity, awards
• Personalize it back to the winemaker.
• EXAMPLE-Commemorative Olympic Icewine

8
ICEWINE-Maximizing

• Maximize beyond the obvious-Reasons for media to
  cover
• -process winter harvest netting birds risks.
• -harvesting hand, mechanical, Celebrity, night
  time
• -type of grape/styles white, red, oak aged,
  sparkling
• -weather extreme global warming
• -lifestyle luxury item, decadent,
• -unique food pairings
• -Icewine martini
• -Icewine Glass
• -awards Legacy
• -Asian interest
• EXAMPLE Commemorative Icewine Paintings Below
  Zero

9
Paintings Below Zero

• Connection of both-fascination of ice
• Initial meeting via the Torino Olympics-Donald
  Ziraldo and artist Gord Halloran
• Led to exhibit at 07 Icewine Festival NOTL
• Led to 08 collaboration for Olympic Icewine with
  artistic PBZ label
• Canadian art combined with a great story
• Collectors wine.

10

11
(No Transcript)
12
People

• Identify your key people
• PERSONALIZE their story, career experiences
  connect them to their product
• Always have updated bios, images, quotes
• Put a face to your product and place
• Full circle stories
• -Bruce Nicholson Donald Ziraldo Karl Kaiser

13
(No Transcript)
14
Place

• Winery, vineyards, countryside
• History, features, layout, uniqueness
• Sense of place/neighbours NOTL, Niagara Falls,
  Ontario, Canada, Wine Country, Wine Route
• Daily events, Tours Tastings, Tasting Bars,
  Shopping, Food Pairings, Festivals
• Whats unique to your place?
• EXAMPLE-Icewine Tasting Bar

15
(No Transcript)
16
Partners

• Align yourself with key partners who can magnify
  your impact
• Utilize your surroungs
• Tourism Partners become your ambassadors and use
  you in their media coverage
• -Source of media-Wine Council OTMP CTC LCBO
  Chambers Hotels BBs Transportation Companies
  Concierges Sommeliers
• Corporate Partners become endorsements
• EXMPLE-Riedel Crystal

17
(No Transcript)
18
Who are you targeting?

• Internal
• -your own immediate staff at the winery (Front of
  house admin production part time, full time)
• -arms of your winery (sales staff mktg execs
  admin retail stores head office board members)

19
More Contacts

• External
• -Types of Media wine, food, travel, business,
  social, FREELANCE, design, lifestyle,
  architectural, fashion, Duty Free etc.
• -Organizations Chambers, Government Tourism
  Groups Golden Key Concierges Wine Clubs
• -Websites, newsletters, syndicated columns,
  features,

20
DATA BASE

• Categorize W-P-O W-P-C W-P-I
• Keep your files current
• Continually expand your base
• Dont overlook unusual media outlets-dental,
  medical, automotive, University College alumnus
  etc.

21
TIPS

• Keep it focused, meaningful, accurate,
  interesting and PERSONAL
• What makes your winery unique, stand out??
• Do your homework be prepared.
• Stay away from the fluff (credibility)
• Dont be pressured for an immediate answer-GET
  THEIR DEADLINE
• Source out your best and most qualified
  spokesperson

22
MORE TIPS

• Identify your go to people to PERSONALIZE
  through quotes and comments winemaker,
  president, viticulturist, principal,
  environmental expert, owner, marketer.
• Clothing-subtle logo placement (Marketing)
• Follow up Say thanks via phone or email copy
  key executives.
• Podium time grab it when you can dont
  commercialize leave a broader message (2007
  harvest)
• Track your media and reuse (DVD, Scrapbook)

23
MAKE IT EASY

• The easier you make it for the media the more
  they will come back to you as their best
  resource
• -return their call/email promptly (deadlines)
• -product releases (price, availability, image,
  awards)
• -back up reference documents and charts
• -current websites with info easily found
• -IMAGES Media Centre with easy access, hi and lo
  res, seasonal, not posed, action shots (barrel
  sampling checking grapes, interacting with
  guests) PERSONALIZE a pix is worth a thousand
  words
• -make sure you have images to match your media
  type (travel, environmental, lifestyle, culinary)
• -B roll readily available (Travel pieces
  Icewine) ,
• BE PREPARED especially with seasonal coverage
  (harvest, green vineyard scenes, winter )

24
Tell Stories

• Facts and figures are not as interesting as
  stories
• People remember and retell your stories at their
  dinner parties, etc.
• Media love the underdog stories-against all odds
  everyone said it couldnt be done
• Keep them PERSONAL

25
Catchy Headlines

• The Worlds First Icewine Glass Arrives
• Popping New Sparkling Icewine on Whistler
  Mountain
• Celebrity Icewine Pick and Roots Fashion Shoot
• Moose Presides Over 2000 Inniskillin Icewine
  Harvest
• Inniskillin Beats El Nino and Picks Icewine