One of the easiest ways to increase your profits is to cut your costs. But cutting costs can be a, ahem, two-edged sword.[level-members] You don’t want your customer experience or your marketing reach to suffer. You do want to minimize expenses on anything that doesn’t directly contribute to keeping current customers happy and attracting new […]
Archive for April, 2013
Cost Cutting Done Rig
April 16th, 2013Amazon Hits Tex
April 15th, 2013Online wine sales just got broader, as Amazon has added Texas to its list of wine states.[level-members] They now have Texas-made wines and also wines that are available for shipping to the Lone Star State. Started in the past two weeks, the Texas-based labels include Becker Vineyards, Llano Estacado and Bell Springs. Texas is the 17th […]
Wine Pairing of the Week – Barbera and Piz
April 12th, 2013How about a great pizza pairing? Not exactly adventurous, I know, some weeks call for a no-muss, no-fuss Friday night transition into the weekend. (Or a Sunday night transition back into the work week.) And it’s tough to beat Barbera. [level-members] As with many varietals, Barbera-based wines have changed over the years. What used to […]
What They’re Reading This Week – Wine Spectator of May 31, 20
April 11th, 2013The cover: sushi and sparklers. First, the letters. There’s some interesting discussion of an online article by Harvey Steiman about In Pursuit of Balance, (subscription required) a California-based group of winemakers in favor of wines with low alcohol and high acidity.[level-members] (Very much not your typical California-style wine.) We’re strongly in favor of this kind […]
Measure Marketing To Ensure Success: Earn More, Spend Le
April 10th, 2013If you’re not measuring it, how do you know if it’s working? That’s as true for marketing as it is for anything else in business. If you’re not tracking results, you can’t know whether your efforts are paying off or if you should be devoting your attention somewhere else. We’ll be conducting a survey later […]
Great Wine Shops Do Mo
April 9th, 2013Lest you think we’re the only one recommending – and noticing – when independent wine shops do more, here’s a column from Alice Feiring’s great blog. [level-members] Great wine shops surprise and beguile. They offer things you can’t find just anywhere. They’re engaged in what they’re selling and interested in why their customers are asking […]
Shipping Wine From State to Sta
April 8th, 2013Thinking of shipping wine to a customer out of state? Be careful! Whether it’s for a walk-in customer visiting your area who wants to send something home, or a regular customer shipping a gift, you can run afoul of state regulations very easily. [level-members] This map from the Specialty Wine Retailers Association gives an overview […]
Seafood Pairin
April 5th, 2013Here are some great seafood recipe pairing ideas from the fine folks at Snooth.com. [level-members] They’ve taken the traditional tack of white wine with fish except for meatier, more toothsome fish like tuna. We’d encourage you to be more adventurous. There are so many great rosés on the market now, and many make a fine […]
What They’re Reading – Food & Wi
April 4th, 2013A few features from the folks at Food & Wine this week will have your customers thinking about spring herbs, cured meats and arancini – rice balls, as well as high-value Italian wines. [level-members] The Cooking with Herbs feature shows as a slideshow on the F&W website and runs the gamut from Grilled Halibut with […]
Top 5 Reasons To Love “Top 5 Lists̶
April 3rd, 2013People Love Lists, especially Top 10 or Top 5 lists. So give ’em what they want. [level-members] You can use lists in any marketing you do, from email newsletters to post cards to blog posts, and you can post them in your shop. (With some provisos. See below.) You can build a weekly tastings around […]