Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/197178
WINE WISE MARKETING ELIZABETH SLATER It's Still a People Business Train your hospitality staff to put the customer first spent a good deal of time this year an o n ym o u sl y visiting tasting rooms in many parts of the United States, and sending other secret shoppers to evaluate winery experiences. I'm always interested in discovering how hospitality staff members interact with me (or not), and I was quite surprised in 2013 to find that far too many tasting room employees have not received the training they so desperately need in customer service and sales. Some aren't authentically engaging with visitors at all. It is vital that vintners +Continue to train hospitality staff on and their tasting room/ the basics of service. hospitality managers +Be more interested in your guests understand the basics than you expect them to be in your of creating a good expewinery and brand. rience for visitors, and how important it is for + Let all visitors know that they are them to regularly train important to you and that you weltheir staff. come them. When I talk to win+ Ask guests questions and listen to eries and associations what they have to say. You can use about engagement and that information in the closing connection with visitors process. and hospitality employee wine-selling, I am usually asked to present "new learnings" in customer service and sales. I am happy to do that, however, when I become a secret shopper at the wineries I am going to be working with, I often notice that the hospitality employees do not have a grasp on the basics of creating a relationship with visitors, to turn them into buyers and long-term customers. So the new learnings have to wait until everyone is up to speed on creating a strong foundation. LEARN WHAT VISITORS WANT When it comes to building guest relationships and sales, I am often asked how wineries should be relating to their younger visitors: those who are in the Millennial generation. SHORT COURSE 18 V I N E YA R D & WIN E RY MANAGEM ENT | Nov - Dec 2013 Tasting room employees should take the time to engage with visitors and learn about their interests. Photo: Thinkstock/Christopher Robbins I have done a fair amount of research, talking to Millennials, Gen Xers and Baby Boomers about how they wish to be treated when they visit wineries. Amazingly, they all want the same things. They want to be treated with respect. They want employees to show interest in them. They want to have a good time. What constitutes a good time may well vary from person to person, so it is up to you to find out what that means for each individual and group taking the time to visit your winery and learn about your wine. You do that by asking questions. Start with easy ones, which will give you information about w w w. v wm m e d i a . c o m