Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/267019
w w w. v w m m e d i a . c o m M a r - A p r 2 014 | V I N E YA R D & W I N E RY M A N A G E M E N T 1 5 evant and pull content becoming increasingly more relevant." ("Pull" content draws prospects to it, rath- er than "pushing" content to them via ads or unsolicited marketing messages.) In October 2013, Mabray spoke at the Digital Wine Communica- t i o n s C o n f e r e n c e i n L o g r o ñ o , Spain, where he used VinTank data to identify opportunities for com- municators to create pull content. "There are 200,000 wine brands in the U.S., of which just 40,000 are reviewed each year," he said. "That's 160,000 brands that are not yet part of the conversation." Mabray also noted that there are a mere 25 "super critics," wine com- municators who have an audience of 100,000 or more. When asked what the index might look like in six months, Mabray predicted that it will hold fairly steady and suggested that trends could be identified if Vine- Pair publishes the data again next year, or by looking at the index his- torically. The see the VinePair index, visit vinepair.com/wine-blog/vinepair- wine-web-power-index-2013. gathered from Alexa Rank for web traffic, Facebook and Twitter for social media influence, and Moz tools that measured organic search relevance over two days to produce what amounts to a snapshot of influence in December 2013. "What's interesting about the (VinePair) index is that the blog- gers are showing up even though their Alexa ratings are typically very low," Mabray said. "This is based on having good, meaningful con- tent that people like to share. What we're seeing demonstrated here is push content becoming less rel- Facebook's announcement that it is further curbing the reach of unpaid content is a wake-up call for wineries that have been relying solely on the platform's free tools to reach their fans. On average, an organic (unpaid) post reaches as few as 10% of fans, with only 30%- 40% of fans viewing even the most compelling content. Wineries that want to use Facebook effectively will now be reaching into their pockets to ensure that content is reaching their hard-won fans. Jason Haas, partner and general manager at Tablas Creek Vineyard in Paso Robles, Calif., shed some light on the evolving scenario on his winery blog, tablascreek.typepad. com. Haas, who taught web pro- gramming languages prior to join- ing the family winery, offered some sound perspective for navigating the ever-changing Facebook land- scape: "Not only do wineries have to invest in getting Facebook fans, they will have to continue to invest to reach them," he said. While Facebook tools may still be free, there's a significant oppor- tunity cost associated with accu- mulating fans and creating content. "Facebook was initially viewed as the great leveler; a place where anyone with creative content could build an audience and then broadly (and freely) market that content," Haas said. "But now, the ground rules have changed for organizations that use Facebook intensively." Haas suggested that wineries re-evaluate how they're allocating time and budget to social media. "Not only is it worth investing more time in creating great content, it's essential if you want to reach the maximum number of fans without paying for advertising," he said. He noted that Facebook will penalize users for over-frequent posting and he has seen that the reach of his content was watered down when he has posted more than once every 24 hours. In November 2013, Haas ana- l y z e d t h e c o r r e l a t i o n b e t w e e n engagement rate and post reach for his winery's website. He found that most posts reached 17% of their 5,300 page "likes," with a high of 31% and a low of 7%. "Facebook's message is clear," he concluded. "Make your content compelling if you want it seen organically. Other- wise, expect to pay." While Facebook is continually making changes behind the scenes, there are still rewards for creat- ing good content. As many news feeds attest, posts that are clever and funny typically have the highest level of engagement. The challenge facing many first time-Facebook advertisers will be how best to cherry-pick the advertising options that will deliver the most eyeballs. Haas is test- ing his buy with content such as special offers that directly drive sales and allow him to calculate a measurable return. "Facebook is like any other new technology," he said. "As it matures, there's a level of expertise that's involved in mastering it. "From this point forward, exper- tise is really going to matter. Small businesses are going to have to become more expert in social media. They're compelled to learn the rules and stay abreast of chang- es, or hire the necessary expertise needed to do so." Wineries Adapt To Facebook Changes DEBORAH PARKER WONG Jason Haas of Tablas Creek Vineyard recommends that wineries invest in winning Facebook fans.