142: Partner with an Influencer | Marketing Tip Monday

Sustainable Winegrowing with Vineyard Team

Have you worked with a social media influencer? While the concept of working with influencers may sound intimidating to some, we can assure you that with clear goals and succinct calls to action, the process is super rewarding and for direct to consumer sales can be very lucrative.

Welcome to Marketing Tip Monday with SIP Certified. We know customers are looking for wines labeled as sustainable. While our longer-form episodes help you learn about the latest science and research for the wine industry, these twice-monthly micro podcasts will help you share your dedication to sustainable winegrowing so you can show your customers that you share their values. Today we are taking about social media influencers.

As we've discussed in previous Marketing Tips, partnering with social media influencers is a great way to reach groups of people who may be unaware of your brand, and specifically, partnering with a "wine influencer" will ensure that your brand is being shared with consumers who are passionate about wine and wine culture.

In an effort to broaden brand awareness for SIP Certified, we engaged social media influencers in Q1 and Q2 of 2022. These campaigns were an incredible way to educate consumers about the benefits of purchasing SIP Certified wines and helped distill the messaging of sustainability down to digestible language via influencers.

Creating a budget, establishing goals, brand parameters, and tracking engagement are the key elements in an influencer campaign. Any reputable influencer will have a rate sheet complete with their prices for different types of posts as well as their average engagement rates and demographic reach. This is important for your brand as the reach should be successful and align with your existing or aspirational customer. Setting brand parameters is important so the influencer’s messaging is in line with your existing brand guidelines and feel.

Now, to really see how these partnerships have played out, I invite you to check out our show notes and use the link to our latest article called, Connecting with a Broader Audience.

Here you can see the recipes created by the equally talented and funny Jerry James Stone. This year, Jerry is pairing SIP Certified brands with fresh and simple eats that you are going to want to try for yourself. Check out Seared Polenta with Slow Roasted Tomatoes and Pesto & Ron Rubin's 2019 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir and Blackberry Balsamic & Basil Grilled Cheese & Rava's 2018 Grenache Rosé.

This year we just had to work with Isis Daniel, aka the Millennial Somm again. A certified Level 3 with Merit Wine and Spirit Education Trust wine consultant and wine content creator, she produces educational and entertaining wine content across her social media channels. In her fun and casual #TastingThursday Instagram live show, she sits and sips with wine-growers and -makers through a friendly interview, giving her audience insight into the personalities and passions of the people behind the wines. Grab a glass of McIntyre's 2018 Pinot Noir and sit back and enjoy our #TastingThursday with Kristen McIntyre of McIntyre Wines!

A lifelong love for travel, a degree in Visual Arts and Art History, and a whimsical purchase of a bottle of Bordeaux were the perfect ingredients to inspire Christy to begin her exploration of California's diverse wine-growing regions. Thus, Christy on the Vine was born. Her wine blog is dedicated to documenting her experiences with the wines and wineries she encounters on her journeys.

Join Christy on the Vine as she enjoys SIP Certified Sustainable Wines from the Santa Lucia Highlands in the sand in Monterey Bay. Featured on this blog and Instagram post are the 2019 SLH Chardonnay from McIntyre Family Wines and the 2019 Lucia Pinot Noir from Pisoni Family Vineyards.

Dedicated to making wine, food, and travel more fun, Mike Cano leverages his multilingual, communications, and digital marketing skills to invite consumers of all demographics to explore various wines and wine regions. Through his wine blog, LatinxWine, he shares informative brand backstory and wine tasting notes of the wines he enjoys.

His sunny, poolside Instagram post documents his experience of two SIP Certified wines: Center of Effort's 2017 Edna Valley Chardonnay, and Cambria Estate Winery's 2020 Julia's Vineyard Pinot Noir.

Tag us, and use the SIP Certified GIPHYs!

If you are SIP Certified, we love seeing and sharing your content! Tag us @SIPCertified in your upcoming Instagram and Facebook posts.

And make sure you use our GIPHYs on your next Instagram story or Snapchat content. Just search for "SIP Certified" in the stickers, or check out the link to this article to save the files so you can use them in your emails or on your website.

Check out the show notes for links to this article, more posts filled with the latest social media tips to grow your following, and to sign up for our biweekly Marketing Tips newsletter. Until next time, this is Sustainable Winegrowing with the Vineyard Team.

References:

• Connecting with a Broader Audience
• Does social media impact wine sales?
• Marketing Tips eNewsletter
• SIP Certified
• Social Media Tips