The Winery Web Site Report

Lazy Sunday: You'll be happy to know...

that none of the 30 worst Web sites of 2007 belonged a winery.  Here are The Worst Web Sites of 2007, courtesy of Web Pages That Suck:

• 1 through 10 (the worst)
• 11 through 20 (first runners up)
• 21 through 30 (second runners up)

Please don't look - some of these are truly abysmal, and I don't want anyone tainted by the experience!

Two Years of Winery Blogging

I wanted to call attention to this terrific post from Jason Haas on the Tablas Creek Vineyard blog, summing up lessons learned from two years of winery blogging.

Although I started this blog about two years ago, it's really only in the past year that I've felt I've found my voice.  ... I'm sure that blogging came more naturally to some other people than it did to me.  I'm not a writer by trade, so I'm learning as I go along.  ...Now that the Tablas Creek blog is two years old, I find myself starting to get asked, more and more, how to do it.  There isn't any one answer.  But, it occurs to me that it might be helpful for others considering a similar undertaking to put down some of my conclusions about what makes a blog work.

He goes on to list 7 things to do if you want your blog to work.

The Tablas Creek blog is not as widely known as some winery blogs, which is why I point it out to you (and again, encourage you to learn how to use a blog reader like Bloglines.com or Google Reader or IE7 to keep up with all the great winery bloggers out there).

Today's Question: Has blogging by others impacted your winery?

I was reading this post by Josh over at pinotblogger, and it leads me to ask this question:

Has your winery (e.g. sales of your wine) been positively or negatively impacted by others (e.g. a wine blogger) writing about your wine?

Inquiring minds want to know, so please leave a comment!

The Value / Cost of a Winery Blog

Rich Brooks of Flyte New Media has a great post on the pros and cons of having a business blog.

There's a value vs. cost equation that only you can answer. Will the time and effort you put into blogging be returned in business gained? Can the time you spend on blogging be better spent elsewhere? How can you measure success with blogging?

Cost: time, stress, and money.  Value: demonstrates expertise, raises search engine visibility, generates leads, leads the media to your door.

I really think blogging is a great way to stay in touch with people who are interested in your winery, but it takes effort, and probably appeals most to people who are closet writers to begin with.  If only that pesky wine would sell itself!

John Jantsch is more succinct: Blog, dammit!

While you're at it, check out Rich's post on Your 2008 Web Marketing Plan.

Mary Baker, Wine Detective

This great series of posts on the Nigerian wine scam by Mary "Kinsey Milhone" Baker over at Dover Canyon is a must-read for anyone with a winery.  Fascinating stuff (and I'm eagerly awaiting the final installment).

Intro, Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V.

Mary has done a great public service to smaller wineries that may be drawn into this type of scam.  Thank you, Mary.

Please pass her post along to others.

Happy New Year!

Best wishes to all my readers for a happy and successful 2008!

If you have any questions about what you should be doing with your winery Web site this year, drop me a line (mike at winerywebsitereport dot com) or leave a comment.  I'm in the mood to hand out free advice (which is, of course, worth what you pay for it).