Marketing for wineries – Eladio Araiz
Eladio Araiz is an expert in marketing for wineries. It is strongly linked to the area of La Rioja, where he has developed all his professional experience. He currently works as marketing director for the La Rioja Alta S.A. Eladio shares with us his experience and advice to raise and execute good marketing for wineries. He also reflects on concepts such as how the appellation of origin of a wine affects his promotion, the benefits of belonging to a club of products or how we can make a person abandon his lifelong preference for our product.
When it comes to marketing for wineries we talk about pricing strategies, what factors matter most in a strategy, how to internationalize our product and specific techniques such as SEO, SEM or remarketing.
In addition to the promotion of products, what other tasks does a professional who is in charge of marketing for wineries carry out?
It varies greatly depending on the size and development of the department within the warehouse, but could be summarized as follows:
- Trace the strategy of each of the brands.
- Control points of contact with the client.
- Define and carry out the communication plan.
In wine, the Denomination of Origin is essential, what is the importance of the region in which the winery is located for its promotion?
Obviously it contributes a lot in certain markets that are difficult to access since the DO to which you belong is usually the “business card”. In any case, the more presence you have in a market, the brand is gaining whole to become the fundamental reference.
What do you think of the product clubs like Wine Routes? Is it a good option to let us know?
Of course, they help consumers to get closer to the world of wine in a more organized way and to ensure that our product has a greater presence. They can also find very interesting projects that would otherwise be difficult to know.
What marketing strategies for wineries can we carry out to differentiate ourselves from our competitors?
We must find the ones that best suit our Brand, our history and the culture of our company and, in this way, carry out consistent and long-term actions. From here, there can not be a recipe, you have to see each project in particular, each moment of the product life cycle and what objectives there are for the future.
Can you advise us on a book that inspires you in marketing?
Sometimes the most inspiring books are not marketing, but I like to recommend Andy Stalman’s “BRANDOFFON”, to understand the world that is playing live and the one that comes before us.
What matters more in a strategy: the price, the delivery time or the payment facilities?
The price is a fundamental variable (not to say the fundamental variable) since it is the one that positions you as a starting point. Delivery time, payment facilities, discounts, promotions, etc., are tools with which we work after marking the price. It is also true that sometimes, these tools can become fundamental if you get a differentiation through them.
If you had to choose between a Social Media strategy or an SEM strategy? Which one would you choose?
Combined without a doubt. Maybe for a segment of a client and / or a specific market, you can bet on one face to another, but in general, we combine.
Do you do content strategies? How do you plan? Is it difficult to find keywords for such specialized websites?
We try that all our contents are responsible SEO and we have a series of words / ideas with force that we use recurrently.
What is the ideal customer of a winery?
The one with whom we are able to make us accompany us in time. This is a long-distance business, of generations, and we should try to have those traveling companions.
How do you work marketing strategies for product internationalization? How do you apply the legal regulations of sale for each country?
We try different strategies depending on each market and always in the hands of our importers and the sales force. Sometimes we rely on marketing teams from the target country that of course help us with registrations, regulations, etc.
What advice would you give to a small winery that wants to publicize its products?
Starting from a good product, something that is sometimes forgotten, a brand can work well with the right distributors, who are probably few but who understand well what the winery wants, and complementing it with a good digital strategy that right now It does not have to be expensive.
How can we make a customer abandon a lifelong wine for ours?
It is difficult to change that type of long-term behavior, but it is also true that, each time, we are more open to trying new things. Probably we have to take a little risk when positioning some of our wines in other types of environments different from the traditional ones.
Do you recommend a price strategy when making a sale?
I recommend having a pricing strategy.
Is it worth doing remarketing on customers?
Absolutely. Without reaching the client feel chained, but it is simple to perform and very effective.
