Modern Methods of Communicating Directly to Your Customers: 
How effective is New Media in terms of recruitment and sales?

1. Modern Methods of Communicating Directly
to Your Customers:
How effective is New Media in terms of
recruitment and sales?
Presented by:
Paul Mabray, CEO of VinTank
Marc Engel, Partner and Director of
Wines Practice, B/R/S Group

2. Flow
1) Who We Are
2) What is ‘New Media’?
3) What Does It Mean for Wine?
4) Is New Media Effective for Recruitment and
Sales?
5) Lessons
6) Workshop It

3. WHO WE ARE

4. Two guys. Two Opinions.
Paul Mabray Marc Engel
• 17 year online wine veteran.
• Work for the only digital think tank in the
wine industry.
• Wrote a tiny little report about wine and
social media called “We are here” and then
gave it away for FREE.

5. Two guys. Two Opinions.
Paul Mabray Marc Engel
• No, I don’t work for Paul
• Marketing researcher
• Listen to the voice of the consumer (and trade)
• Presented “Engaging the U.S. Wine Consumer: A
New Paradigm” at Wine Evolution, January 2007

6. WHAT IS NEW MEDIA?

7. So what is new media?
WIKIPEDIA DEFINES - New media is a term meant to encompass
the emergence of digital, computerized, or networked information
and communication technologies in the later part of the 20th
century. Most technologies described as "new media" are digital,
often having characteristics of being manipulatable, networkable,
dense, compressible, interactive and impartial.

8. So what is new media?
New media is a term meant to encompass the emergence of
digital, computerized, or networked information and
communication technologies in the later part of the 20th century.
Really?
Most technologies described as "new media" are digital, often
having characteristics of being manipulatable, networkable, dense,
compressible, interactive and impartial.

9. Old vs New

10. This…

11. This…

12. This…

13. This…

14. This… Is new media.

15. No really
We are witnessing a fundamental shift in
communication.

16. But don’t take our word for it…
If Facebook were a country, it would be
the 4th largest country in the world.
Source: TechCrunch 2009
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/07/15/facebooks-
offical-user-count-now-250-million/

17. Did we say fundamental?
Never in history has humanity been as
interconnected as they are today.

18. Welcome to the Revolution
Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mlemos/
3522358252/sizes/o/in/set-72157617990467890/

19. Translation
This ain’t your mamma’s internet.

20. Evolution

21. Evolution
Google

22. Today
66% of Global Internet Population Visit Social
Networks. Nielsen

23. Today
66% of Global Internet Population Visit Social
Networks. Nielsen
Social networks are the 4th most popular online
activity – ahead of personal email and PORN.
Nielsen

24. Today
66% of Global Internet Population Visit Social
Networks. Nielsen
Social networks are the 4th most popular online
activity – ahead of personal email. Nielsen
75% of consumers rate Word of Mouth as the
#1 influencer of purchase intent. Nielsen

25. Today
66% of Global Internet Population Visit Social
Networks. Nielsen
Social networks are the 4th most popular online
activity – ahead of personal email. Nielsen
75% of consumers rate Word of Mouth as the
#1 influencer of purchase intent. Nielsen
71% say they share a recommendation (product,
service, restaurant) online with others at least
every few months. Razorfish 2009

26. 66% of Global Internet Population Visit Social
Networks.*
Today
Social networks are the 4th most popular online
activity – ahead of personal email.*
75% of consumers rate Word of Mouth as the
#1 influencer of purchase intent. Nielsen
71% say they share a recommendation (product,
service, restaurant) online with others at least
every few months. Razorfish 2009
75,000 new blogs created every day, updated to
the tune of over 1.2 million posts per day, or
over 18 updates a second. Technorati

27. Social networks are the 4th most popular online
activity – ahead of personal email. Nielsen
Today
75% of consumers rate Word of Mouth as the
#1 influencer of purchase intent. Nielsen
71% say they share a recommendation (product,
service, restaurant) online with others at least
every few months. Razorfish 2009
75,000 new blogs created every day, updated to
the tune of over 1.2 million posts per day, or
over 18 updates a second. Technorati
25% of top search engine results for world’s 20
largest brands are Consumer Generated
Media (‘advertising’ consumers trust). Qualman

28. Social networks are the 4th most popular online
activity – ahead of personal email. Nielsen
Today
75% of consumers rate Word of Mouth as the
#1 influencer of purchase intent. Nielsen
71% say they share a recommendation (product,
Don’t make us
service, restaurant) online with others at least
every few months. Razorfish 2009
75,000 new blogs created every day, updated to
estimate
the tune of over 1.2 million posts per day, or
over 18 updates a second. Technorati
tomorrow.
25% of top search engine results for world’s 20
largest brands are Consumer Generated
Media (‘advertising’ consumers trust). Qualman

29. New media is like the swine flu.

30. … but why?
Interactive
Connected
Because new
Free
media is
Fast
Measurable

31. … but why?
Interactive
Connected
Because new
Free
media is
Fast
Measurable

32. … but why?
Interactive
Connected
Because new
Free
media is
Fast
Measurable

33. … but why?
Interactive
Connected
Because new
Free
media is
Fast
Measurable

34. … but why?
Interactive
Connected
Because new
Free
media is
Fast
Measurable

35. And it’s not contained
It has jumped out of computers and into our
pockets.

37. People can connect, update,
complain or praise – anytime,
anywhere.

38. Just wait till tomorrow

39. Just wait till tomorrow
Tomorrow is TODAY

40. Sounds scary
“Technology is shifting the power away from the
editors, the publishers, the establishment, the
media elite. Now it’s people who are in
control.”
Rupert Murdoch, Global Media Entrepreneur

41. We understand.
Most Business People

42. Your Competition.
86% say they
have not used social
networking sites to get
business advice or
informaDon.
76% have
not found social
networking sites such as
Facebook, Twi@er and
LinkedIn to be helpful in Most Business People
generaDng business leads or 61% say they
for expanding their use general
business during the search engines
last year. like Google.
Source: Citibank/GfK Roper survey of 500 small business executives across
the U.S., as cited in Research Brief from the Center for New Media
Research, 2 Nov. 2009

43. Imagine
The advantage you
could have with your
head out of the sand.

44. WHAT DOES NEW MEDIA MEAN
FOR WINE?

45. So what’s in this for wine

46. Wine & New Media: A Perfect Pair
I’m a long
tail product.
New
Wine Media

47. Wine & New Media: A Perfect Pair
I’m a long
tail product.
New
Wine Media
I love long
tails!

48. Wine & New Media: A Perfect Pair
New
Wine
Word of Mouth Media
is the biggest
reason why
people buy me.

49. Wine & New Media: A Perfect Pair
OMG! People
talk about what
they like all the
New Dme on me.
Wine
Word of Mouth Media
is the biggest
reason why
people buy me.

50. Wine & New Media: A Perfect Pair
I confuse and
inDmidate New
Wine
most people. Media

51. Wine & New Media: A Perfect Pair
I confuse and
inDmidate New
Wine
most people. Media
I’m not scared.
People trust
me. Even your
mom will trust
me.

52. Wine & New Media: A Perfect Pair
I’m quite the
experience.
New
Wine Media

53. Wine & New Media: A Perfect Pair
I’m quite the
experience.
New
Wine Media
… and I seek
mastery and
control.

54. Wine & New Media: A Perfect Pair
I’m quite the …!!!
experience.
New
Wine Media
… and I seek
mastery and
control.

55. Look who’s talking
Source: www.cruvee.com

56. The Dominance of Twitter
Where they’re talking…
On Blogs
On Forums
On Microblogs
Source: www.cruvee.com

57. Wine Blogs
• 250,000 products
produced annually
• About 30,000
reviewed by
‘professional’ reviewers
• There are over 1000
dedicated wine blogs

58. Wine Blogs
Collectively wine bloggers represent an audience
much larger than the winespectator.com.

59. Wine Industry Noise
40+
50+
200+

60. Wine Industry Noise
40+ – Wine Social Networks
50+ – Wine iPhone Apps
200+ – Wine Portals

61. Wine, where should you play?

62. Wine, where should you play?

63. Wine, where should you play?

64. Wine, where should you play?

65. Wine, where should you play?

66. Wine, where should you play?

67. Wine Social Networks
Fishing where the fish are.

68. Wine Social Networks
Fishing where the fish are.
86,000+ Users 50,000+ Users
1,000,000 Tasting 32,000+ Tasting
Notes Notes

69. Customers Recommend Brands

70. Change
“No longer is it enough to make and sell wine and then
expect the world to beat a path to your door. (Well,
unless you’re Lafite in China, that is.) Today, sellers have to
reach out to their customers, and they have to do so in
ways that may be unfamiliar and even uncomfortable for
them.”
–Steve Heimoff, blogger and writer, Wine
Enthusiast

71. It’s a crazy Wine World

72. It’s a crazy Wine World
Insane Regulations

73. It’s a crazy Wine World
Insane Regulations
An incredibly complex
product

74. It’s a crazy Wine World
Distribution has all but
ended as a viable sales
channel for small wineries.
Rob McMillan
Insane Regulations
An incredibly complex
product

75. IS NEW MEDIA EFFECTIVE?

76. Is new media effective?
3,279,102 friends 620,359 friends
1,043,850 friends 218,172 friends
1,824 videos uploaded 330 videos uploaded
Channel Views: 20,024,491 Channel Views: 2,221,268
151,206 followers 4, 848 Followers

77. Is new media effective?
$360 $639
million million

78. Why yes, it is.
$360 $639
million million
Overall funds raised during the 2008 campaign.

79. Obama’s Online Fundraising
• $150 million (sha@ered
previous record of $65m)
• 632,000 donors (total was
3.1 million)
• Average donaDon <$100
(Plouffe)

80. Hyper Speed
After Palin disparaged Obama’s past work as a
community organizer, he raised $10M within
24 hours, most of it online.

82. The Obama Network
Widgets
facebook
MyBO.com
Email
Barack TV Social
networks
Outreach
twitter
Mobile

83. MyBO.com
• 2 million profiles
created
• 35,000 volunteer
groups
• 400,000 blog posts
• 200,000 offline events

84. Mobile Obama

85. New Media is extremely effective
for branding, marketing and public relations…

86. Why?
1) Informative
2) Inclusive
3) Entertaining
4) Engaging
5) Democratizing

87. Hulu
“Consumer behavior is one of the hardest things to
change.The gap between the existing and the new
has to be so materially better that it shocks you
into behavior change.”
--Jason Killer, CEO of Hulu

88. Hulu
• 380MM videos (up 150% in 6 months).
• 2.6% market share of all video.
• Resurrecting old media properties, bring to
whole new generation.

89. It’s powerful, ask Domino’s

90. Listening - Customer Service
Chris Brogan – President of New Marketing Labs

91. Listening - Customer Service
Chris Brogan – President of New Marketing Labs
October, 2009… My website went
down. The moment I noDced it, I
tweeted to Rackspace, my host.
(Yes, I pinged Twi@er before
looking anywhere else). I said,
“Dear @rackspace – my site is
down. Please help.”

92. Listening - Customer Service
Chris Brogan – President of New Marketing Labs
Guess how long it took for them to
respond.

93. Listening - Customer Service
Chris Brogan – President of New Marketing Labs
Four Minutes.

94. Listening - Customer Service
Chris Brogan – President of New Marketing Labs
I’m fully sold on who I’d
choose if I needed
mission‐cri5cal support for
a heavy traffic site. I’d use
Rackspace cloud.

95. Zappos

96. Will it Blend?
• A small company, no marketing
budget - CEO Tom Dickson
blends objects in their blender
and video tapes it.
• Marbles, golf balls, hockey
pucks
• 3.8 million views
• 5x increase in sales (home
and commercial)

97. #flymeto
• Give away iPhones, flights
for tweeting their
company’s name
• 90x increase in Twitter
followers in one week
• Web traffic up 600%
• 100% increase in signups,
still sustaining growth
• Bolstered by coverage in
the media (BBC,
about.com, Mashable)
Cost: $13,500

98. IS NEW MEDIA EFFECTIVE IN THE
WINE INDUSTRY?

100. Gary Vay-ner-chuck
• 850,000 followers on Twitter
• Nearly 90,000 viewers per day of his vlog,
Wine Library TV
• Million dollar book deal
• NYTimes, Amazon.com bestseller
• $80 million retail, half on Internet

101. Murphy-Goode

102. Pinotblogger
Josh Hermsmeyer wanted
to start a winery.
Participated in online
forums, including
eRobertParker
• But found them
hierarchical
Now, nearly 5,000 Twitter
followers
• Up 3x since May
Over 1200 mailing list
names

103. New Media to Drive Offline Sales
Free membership in a lower-tier ‘club’
No purchase commitments
Exclusive content online
• Recipes
• Pairing tools
• Special e-commerce offers
Purchase offline
‘Proven’ by surveys with these ‘club’ members

104. Marketing is not the same…
As sales.
It’s about building brand awareness and connection,
which should allow for the opportunity for sales.

105. Facebook for personal connections
Already have a direct
Fans on FB come to the relationship with people
winery to buy wine at the winery who blog
and are on FB

106. Facebook for personal connections
Already have a direct
Fans on FB come to the relationship with people
winery to buy wine at the winery who blog
and are on FB
Tony the
winemaker
Josh & Ryan,
Kent, the chef pourers in the
tasting room

107. Old new media, more effective
than new new media.
Ad on FB offering 10% discount
• Nearly 300,000 impressions (times displayed)
• 90 clicks to the website
• 0 sales
• Targeted email more effective
• FB-only 25% off promotion in honor of the winemaker and
her husband’s 25th anniversary
• 0 sales
• Then emailed to mailing list…nearly $15,000 in sales

108. Old new media, more effective
than new new media.
Ad on FB offering 10% discount
• Nearly 300,000 impressions (times displayed)
• 90 clicks to the website
• 0 sales
Targeted email more effective
• FB-only 25% off promotion in honor of the winemaker and
her husband’s 25th anniversary
• 0 sales
• Then emailed to mailing list…nearly $15,000 in sales

109. Uncertainty about Facebook
• “But I don’t think it affects the bottom line”
• “Not the driving force behind sales, but a great
information tool”
• “Still trying to figure out how to measure its
impact”

110. Uncertainty About Twitter
• “Hard to track and measure”
• “Not sure what to make of it yet. Is it a fad or is it
a useful tool?”
• “Losing its edge”

111. LESSONS

112. New Media is NOT a silver bullet
“YOU NEED
TO BE ON FB,
MS, Twitter, FF,
etc, etc, etc.”

113. New Media is NOT a silver bullet
“YOU NEED
TO BE ON FB,
MS, Twitter, FF,
etc, etc, etc.”
“YOU NEED
TO HAVE YOUR
WINES RATED
BY WINE
BLOGGERS.”

114. New Media is NOT a silver bullet
“YOU NEED
TO BE ON FB, “YOU
MS, Twitter, FF, NEED to
etc, etc, etc.”
BLOG.”
“YOU NEED
TO HAVE YOUR
WINES RATED
BY WINE
BLOGGERS.”

115. New Media is NOT a silver bullet
“YOU NEED
TO BE ON FB, “YOU
MS, Twitter, FF, NEED to
etc, etc, etc.”
BLOG.”
“YOU NEED
TO HAVE YOUR
WINES RATED
BY WINE
BLOGGERS.”
WHAT IS THE TRUTH?
Your brand will benefit from a good social media strategy that is PART of
your overall digital strategy.
PICK the social network where YOUR type of customers are engaging. Do
activities that yield the HIGHEST ROI for your efforts.

116. What new media will give to you
• Exposure
• Likelihood to be recommended
• Customer acquisition
• Extended customer life time value (LTV)
• Measurement
• Unparalleled access

117. Content is King
From customer relationship management to
customer-managed relationships
MESSAGE MUST BE RELEVANT

118. Business is Personal
The Godfather was wrong

119. Integrate the Old & New
New media is just 1 (one, uno, eins, un, ichi, )
communication channel.

120. Integrate the Old & New
New media is just 1 (one, uno, eins, un, ichi, )
communication channel.
Publicity initially gained online may eventually get
reinforced by traditional media.
E-marketing, website, employee relations,
community release, PR.

121. Be Patient
Don’t expect immediate sales payoff, but you can
expect uptake in discussions.
Again, brand building is not the same as sales.

122. Set clear goals
Finding trends and tracking them back to their
point of origin is the key to measuring ROI.
• Number of referrers on your e-commerce site (assuming
you can track this data) from your website or Twitter
• Number of coupons used that were given away in a
Facebook campaign to start calculating which sales
stemmed from your social media campaigns
• Hash tags on Twitter, redirects in links
• Use bit.ly

123. Take aways
1) Listen
2) Be Authentic
3) Be Transparent
4) Engage
5) Care