You are creative in your wine making, yet are you are stuck with an out-dated image or thinking when it comes to your brand or domain?

There are so many great wines in the world that are not being loved in key markets, we cannot talk for German or Chinese trends but, we can talk about British and we will. Below is an example of a real business (aka wine maker) that we think have taken creative steps forward but haven't got it quite right and could do better - the names have been changed to protect the innocent!

The Big Brand event.

Lets first consider being ambitious yet at the same time putting your brand into a pigeon hole. The incorrect use of creativity.

We have recently seen a region put together a large scale event that was, to some extent, very original.  It invited the masses to a fun afternoon in a central and popular location to sample many of their excellent wines. All sounds good so far doesn't it...

The problem was however that the positive - bringing a wider audience to taste and understand their wine - was then undone by creating a negative - you should drink it only with our food!

Of course the traditional foods of one country or region will often go well with the wines of that terroir, but not exclusively so.  And with the British public eating a wide range of British & International cuisine on a regular basis you simply do not want to only be the wine of choice when your local food is on the menu. 

By reinforcing this traditional pairing the region missed an opportunity to inspire the public to make their wine the "with everything" wine, which of course it could and absolutely should be.

Consumers need the confidence to order the wines they best enjoy with the food they are eating and eating regularly. If the winemakers continue to only emphasise that Pinot Grigio goes with pasta or Rioja with chorizo (by example only) then you will only find your way onto your target audience's tables on the occasions they happen to be in their local Mediterranean restaurant (not in the top ten of regional restaurant rankings) and of course you will have missed the high-street shopper too who might be cooking either this or that at home this evening.

Consequently by delivering this traditional message, the affect would actually have been to lessen potential purchase frequency.

More powerful would have been to place the wine next to a wide range of dishes that  the British eat everyday in obvious or innovative pairings.  By showcasing the wine alongside popular dishes which are routinely eaten at home the impact could have been much more powerful than limiting the thinking of the audience to a single pairing, particularly one that is not yet a main stead of the British home cooking.

In short, analysis, strategy and creativity need to work together in sales campaigns and, in order to be successful, you need to know your market thoroughly to reach it properly and permanently.

We do.