The Winery Web Site Report

Catching Up: New Winery Blogs

Here are some new winery blogs that have been added to our comprehensive list of winery blogs:

• Farella Vineyard
• Jorian Hill Vineyard
• Kosta Browne Winery
• Notaviva Vineyards
• Pepper Bridge Winery
• Segue Cellars (Big in the Mouth)
• Six Strings Winery - no RSS feed
• Zabibu

This brings the number of winery blogs that we know of to 46 - let us know if we've missed yours!

I'd really like to encourage these all winery bloggers to write at least once a week.  Established winery bloggers like Dover Canyon, Twisted Oak, and others have seen real value from the effort that they put into their blogs.  But it does take small, regular efforts.

If your winery blog is on our list, and you haven't posted in a while, maybe it's time to come back.

If you've given up on blogging, take a moment to tell us why in the comments.  Thanks!

Lazy Sunday: RSS in Plain English

If you are a winery that blogs, you should probably point people to this quick, fun, and informative video: RSS in Plain English (which clearly needs a better title)

I suspect that many of your regular blog visitors don't know about RSS, readers, or subscriptions, and this is an easy way to spread the word about the advantages of reading by subscription.

If you do blog, it's probably worthwhile to see how your posts appear in the major readers (Google, Yahoo, Internet Explorer 7, and Bloglines).  It's not always the way your posts appear on your blog.

Moreover, the appearance of this video is worth looking at.  With paper, a whiteboard, and some markers, a boring, geeky subject like RSS comes alive.  As hard as it is to imagine, some people find wine boring and geeky, too.  I'd love to be pointing to a Wine in Plain English video like this.

Tagged: Why Do I Blog?

Thanks to Mary Baker at  Dover Canyon for the tag.  I am quite flattered that she thought of tagging me, given the number of exceptional wine bloggers to choose from (e.g. the other 4 she chose).  Here are my 5 answers and 5 new victims tag-ees.

1. Initially, I blogged to promote The Winery Web Site Report,  and received a nice pre-launch comment from Seth Godin, who I really admire and respect.  Unfortunately, things didn't turn out quite as planned, and the Report is on hiatus.  But the blog lives on because...

2. ... now I blog because I am fundamentally interested in the community of people that I have met and learned from.  Hopefully, something I blog pays down a little of the debt I owe them.  Blogging is very much a "pay it forward" universe.  One thing I try to take seriously is my comprehensive list of winery blogs (which has several additions needed), even though many wineries still don't see the value of a blog.

3. I blog because it's a chance to share the knowledge that I have from over 30 years in the technology business as it relates to the business of selling wine.

4. I blog (and write) because it helps me think more clearly.  And I need all the help I can get.

5. I blog because I fundamentally enjoy the process of having words move from my brain through my fingers and onto the Web.  If anyone reads them and finds them interesting, informative, or useful, so much the better.

6. (bonus) I blog because I like to get comments. <grin>

And the five lucky folk I will tag are

1. Paul Mabry at REthink
2. Tom Wark at Fermentation
3. El Jefe at El Bloggo Torcido (who was also tagged by Winehiker - Jefe is a popular guy!)
4. Josh at pinotblogger
5. Amy at la gramiere

I predict that all five will have something that is both informative and useful to say.  And thanks to Dr. Debs at Good Wine Under $20 for transferring the original tag into "winespace."

Environmentally-friendly Packaging, Poor Customer Focus

French Rabbit wines come in a 1-liter Tetra Pak.  This is a wine whose story is more about the packaging than the wine, and their Web site reflects that point.

The problem with the Web site is that if I'm part of the target market for this wine (environmentally-conscious folk who enjoy a drinkable-but-otherwise-undistinguished wine), the site doesn't help me find it close to home.  They do give a list of distributors by state and encourage you to contact them to find local restaurants and stores that carry French Rabbit wines, but couldn't French Rabbit do this for me?

You have got to make it easy for customers to find, try, and buy your wines, and your Web site is a key part of the process.  I am continually amazed at how often that simple point is missed.

Lazy Sunday: A Vineyard Year

Nancy Bentley over at Kinkead Ridge Vineyards has posted a video of year in the vineyard on YouTube.

It's not fancy, but it is authentic and informative.  I hope Nancy will add some information about how the video was produced, so that other small wineries can take advantage of her experience.

There's actually a lot of work and care about this, as she had to shoot the video over the course of a year, and then edit it down.  My one suggestion would be to actually embed the video in their blog and on their home page, as I have done above.  YouTube makes it simple, by actually giving you the specific HTML code you need to place on the page.  In this case, it looks like:

<object width="425" height="350">
<param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DeLhRjrWaSI"></param>
<param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param>
<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DeLhRjrWaSI" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed>
</object>

Enjoy the video with your Sunday morning coffee (it's less than 9 minutes long), and think about how you might use YouTube and video to promote your winery.

Web Site Advice for Small Wineries

Written by one of the smartest people in online marketing, Seth Godin: Memo to the very small

Basically, don't waste a lot of time on a fancy Web site.  Instead, focus on making sure that you can be found by search engines and have a way of easily updating your site.  E-commerce?  Don't worry about it.  Spend $5 a month on a nice Typepad blog with a professional look.  Spend your time and effort on doing what you do best (making wine and building relationships).

Does Seth's advice apply to small wineries?  What do you think?