What if i told you that customers would want something completely different from what they receive today in five years time.
Would you be interested?
Would you be willing to listen to me and change what you do ?
Well the answer is, yes they will.
The internet now provides us with so much information, everyone is a 5 sentences deep expert.
People are starting to feel that because they can find information, neatly summarised into bite sized chunks, that they know a lot of what you are going to say about the wine, how it is made etc and many, quite frankly, they are not interested.
In five years time, what will be key, is the tailored experience. I don’t mean standing at a tasting bar, listening to someone tell them about the wine, what they should smell or taste.
There will still be a place for that, but the key will be differentiation. Differing the types of experience to meet the needs of different customers is what will be expected. Many wineries are set up for a one size fits all approach to customers, which relies heavily on the personality of the cellar door staff to make it work.
Great cellar door staff who can change their style and presentation to meet the needs of different customers are invaluable today.
Customers often have a great time when they connect with the person at the cellar door, and winery owners often assume that connection will mean they then connect with winery and wine, but many winery owners also know that the purchases on the day are not replicated down the track.
The customer builds a temporary relationship with the cellar door staff, they chat, laugh, perhaps share stories and that loyalty increases wine sales on the day, but once the customer leaves, that is the end of the relationship with the cellar door staff, there not Facebook friends, they don’t keep in touch! It is hoped they become winery friends by extension and people do sign up etc, but often this engagement quickly fades and the winery becomes one of many choices of winery and wines available to them.
So what will change in five years time, Customer Experiences will need to be differentiated and winery goals will need to become more specific.
Firstly , customer experiences will need to be varied according to the type of customer, there will need to be options, choices, depending upon what the customer wants to experience and what goals you have set for each of these experiences. Wine tours have an impact here too, but i will need to talk about that in another post.
Secondly, winery goals will need to be set for each experience, these need to be specific, communicated and monitored.
For instance, for people who have a great time engaging with the cellar door staff, the goal should almost certainly be around on the day sales and any post visit sales will need that particular cellar door staff member to be explicitly involved with the post purchase communication, remember those customers had a positive engagement with that cellar door person not necessarily with your winery.
This is the first in a series i intend to write over the coming months as i head overseas to develop a European wine tour experience.
But before i go, if there is anything i can do to help you with your customer experience and future development, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
I am a consultant, coach and mentor with 20 years experience. My consultancy today revolves around doing things better, more effectively, through a deep understanding what you are trying to achieve, understanding what value the customer receives and what is the most effective outcome for all involved.