Celebrate Everything: Producers Can Get More From Marketing Around Under-the-Radar Holidays and Causes

avatar
by Lindsey Francy Jun 1, 2023 News
Celebrate Everything: Producers Can Get More From Marketing Around Under-the-Radar Holidays and Causes
Advertisement

Leveraging widely recognized but under-utilized events can help initiatives

that might otherwise get lost in a broad marketing blitz get a foothold.

Kathleen Willcox is a writer.

New Year's Eve, anniversaries, birthdays are all good reasons to open a bottle of wine. If they know that bottle gives back to causes close to their hearts, that would be great. According to multiple studies, they are 70% more likely to spend their money.

Many producers and retailers approach their end-of-year marketing plans like William the Conqueror approaching the Battle of Hastings, with a blitz of e-commerce campaigns and event activations — as if their entire bottom line depended on it. Which, in some ways, it does. New Year’s Eve is the biggest day of the year for alcohol stores, with an increase of 159% on December 31, according to marketing firm Womply. December overall, with its range of religious and secular holidays, is the biggest month of the year for alcohol sales, according to data from the Census Bureau.

Halloween is a second-string holiday. Sales do rise even though they aren't up as much. According to a survey of 15,000 California adults, almost half of them plan to spend $100 or more on alcohol for Halloween, while Americans will spend $3 billion on alcohol alone on Memorial Day.

Producers should reach out to their base with occasional, strategically planned offers and promotions to boost bottom lines. We reached out to producers to find out what they do. You can get a cheat sheet on year-round sales.

Annual holiday parties can be thrown.

Parties are called for on certain holidays. Halloween is a time when the winery is transformed into a dance party.

Chris Kajani says that they get a lot of younger wine club members out for this. The DJ spins and there is a costume contest with our favorite taco truck and lots of wine.

Wine club members get a discount on their entry. Many people who aren't signed up for the wine club leave when they show up. The club membership is close to 1,500.

The Booo-chaine Halloween Dance Party is a kind of call to action for the winery. Its premium wines are meant to be enjoyed with joy and a sense of fun.

He says that the wine club does everything from dancing to seminars. Chef-led events are something we like. Both our wine and our fun are taken seriously.

The response speaks for itself, with consistently sell-out events that inevitably bring in new members.

The brand needs to be aligned with annual events.

An annual event or holiday can be linked with a brand.

The Tropical State of Mind Campaign for Tropical Moscato will be launched on June 21st.

“Summer Solstice is an overlooked holiday, and we want to take advantage of that,” says Louise Jordan, director of communications at Quintessential. “By associating Tropical Moscato with long summer days — on the longest day of the year — we hope to remain top of mind throughout the summer by bringing a tropical feel to summery celebrations.”

Jordan says the winery is connecting with 10 people.

Jordan says that they use a lot of factors when connecting with tropical. We look at their content to make sure it's in line with their brand messaging and engagement on their feeds. We are targeting both paid and organic for this campaign.

Paid influencers receive product and payment in exchange for promotions, whereas organic influencers work in exchange for a sample of the product — in this case, a bottle of Tropical Moscato along with a branded package with a pool floatie, cocktail shaker and cocktail recipes. 

A program for retail stores and email blasts will be included in the social media campaign, along with a tropical floatie, cocktail set and recipe book contest.

Maximizing holidays helps initiatives that might otherwise get lost in a broad marketing campaign get a foothold.

The less celebrated should be encouraged.

The people who shape and define our love are the focus of a number of special days. Mother's Day and Father's Day are days that are frequently used for special sales.

But there are dozens of other special days that could serve as serious — or silly — sales fodder. (Why not offer a special around Hammock Day or National Marshmallow Toasting Day?)  

The chief of customer experience at Keel + Curley winery in Plant City, Fla., says that having special limited-time product releases and family-friendly public events really work for their demographic. On the Fourth of July weekend, we release our limited-edition blush watermelon, watermelon cider, and watermelon sour beer in our tasting room. Seasonal releases are done all year long.

Keel + Curley also offers tasting room specials for Teacher Appreciation Week and other weeks that celebrate essential, but less-appreciated workers, and have developed a cult following from those groups of workers as a result, Camacho says. 

We like to announce our limited-time products on social media, and they get everyone excited to shop online at midnight or visit our tasting room on launch day. We have sold out of every release within a month since we created them.

It's important to focus on unique releases during holidays.

It's not easy to target a group in a holiday and cause in one fell swoop, but that's what Crystal Head is doing. The creation of the ultra-premium vodka, created by actor Dan Akroyd and artist John Alexander, has always set itself apart with its unique skull vessel and production process.

Crystal Head has also committed itself to supporting the LGBTQ+ community year-round, through partnerships with organizations like Boston Globe Sip the Rainbow and the Human Rights Campaign. The team is stepping it up in June for Pride Month, with a Paint With Pride release, explains Marketing Manager Daniella Vizzari. The limited-edition presentation will feature a colorful, paint-splattered design against a white bottle.

Vizzari says that it will be released in a few countries. In addition, we will be participating in Pride celebrations across the US, including in Hollywood, Philadelphia and more.

Vizzari says that the Crystal Head team is using the Pride month release to highlight its commitment to diversity, equality, art and expression. Art encourages social change and fosters community. The bottle is a piece of artwork that we hope will empower members of the community.

Many of the previous Pride month releases have sold out and are displayed on bar shelves or mantles at home.

There is a market for certain causes.

Some wineries have found that aligning themselves with a variety of universally appealing causes can simultaneously highlight a range of deserving nonprofits but also lift their own sales and find new fans and allies.

“Our annual charitable giving campaign, called Frank for a Cause, aims to support deserving charities across the nation,” says Napa’s Frank Family Vineyards founder Leslie Frank. “We often focus on causes that are important to the Frank Family team and to our club members, and we build our campaigns around current events to raise awareness and reach new audiences. From Breast Cancer Awareness Month to Arbor Day, our campaigns connect with consumers who hold these causes dear and let us build new relationships while supporting meaningful change.”

Since launching Frank for a Cause in 2018, the winery has raised more than $125,000 to support seven national nonprofits and numerous local organizations, including Feeding America and The Humane Society of the United States.

The K9 for Warriors campaign raised $25,000 last year and is being extended for another five years. 20% of each package is donated to K9s for Warriors, and recipients will get a bottle of wine, a bandanna, and a dog toy. Frank Family and K9s for Warriors, the nation's largest provider of service dogs for military veterans, were the beneficiaries of the initiative.

Frank Family recognizes the opportunity in partnering with causes that have widespread need. Our customers are given the chance to support causes that are close to their hearts while enjoying our wines.

Can't disagree with the thinking behind it.

Is there anything else you'd like to say?

Kathleen Willcox
Kathleen Willcox

Kathleen Willcox is related to the late Kathleen Willcox.

Kathleen Willcox is a writer about wine, food and culture. Her work can be found in Wine Searcher and other publications. Kathleen co-authored a book called Hudson Valley Wine: A History of taste and terroir. You can follow her on social media.

Advertisement