These minutes are pending Board approval
DAY 1, April 18
WINE TOURISM (Marketing)
What βISβ Wine Tourism?(Numbers in Green relate to Wine Road Tourism filters below)
- Marketing promotion and advertising
- Emotional
- Connection to land (Sonoma County)
- Experimental
- Farm and land (Sonoma County)
- Consumer focused ** #1
- Itinerary focused β options, packages, choice, experience a range
- Physical visit β wineries, hospitality (Sonoma County)
- Food and wine (Sonoma County)
- Immersive and interactive
- Place-stories; Northern Sonoma County β (Our members – Sonoma County and AVAβs); emotional connection to place **#3 #4c
- Learning β expand knowledge
- Do more
- Visitor – influence people to come and visit (summary statement) **#4b
- Wine = brand (draw for visitor) β their stories
- Personal β identify with something β diversity
- Return and retain
- Referrals
- Concierge service β advisement
- Recommending
- Partnerships β restaurants
- Community? Part of, fosters with tourism, engaging
- Engaging tourists (stories) **4a
- Wine Road Tourism β direct result to members
- Escape β small town dream; rural β urban escape
- Expectation for service and quality
- Economic driver **#2
- Profitable β conversion to sales **#2
What βISNβTβ Wine Tourism?
- Cookbook we stopped doing β time suck, not driving wine
- Wine scores β objective evaluations
- Logistics β shipping wine
- Picking a restaurant for visitors
- Sonoma County (as a whole)
- Fundraising (Art of the Oak) β philanthropy
- For the sake of giving
- Not government relations or advocacy
Β
SURVEY RESULTS
The board completed a brief survey ranking the core services of Wine Road. The top ranking results were:
- Three annual events
- Website
- Social media
- Small events
- Map, Podcast, Wine Road App
- Events on the road
- Hosting press, community, member seminars, wine festivals
- Partnerships, trade and travel shows, newsletter
Β
CORE AREAS FOR WINE ROAD
- Events
- Communication (push)
- Member communication
- Visitor communication
- Marketing (response advertising)
- Digital marketing
- Collaboration
Communication β defined
- Member
- Best practices
- What are we doing
- How you can be involved
- Push β one way
Collaboration β defined
- Sonoma County working with partners
- San Francisco
- Reach more people β sharing resources
Marketing β defined
- Promotion
- Public Relations β press, media relations, unpaid exposure
- Advertising β paid exposure
- Media β digital and social
- Consumer focused – website
- Map
Events = Events
- Big three
- Small events β Rhone varietals
- Events on the road
Β
WINE ROAD TOURISM (Filters)
Β
The board agreed to identify the following core areas of Wine Road Tourism and to use these areas as filters to determine whether or not a service or program should continue or be a part of Wine Road.
- Consumer Focused
- Economic driver β profitable conversion
Β
- Engage and influence visitation
- βWine Roadβ story telling (place, emotional connections, stories of members, personal experience)
Β
What Services or Programs should Wine Road KEEP?
- Member education tied to our CORE!
- Annual meeting β
- Collaboration with our partners – consider fee for display table
- Affiliation with Wine Road
- Event boost β relationship with other event groups; cross promote other events such as other AVA groups
- Events β quality versus quantity
- Small events β enhance or build upon large event such as breakfasts, winemaker dinners
- Events β more people know about them; promote them
- Consider a fourth major event?
- Brand awareness β Wine Road and members; a deliverable from Wine Road Tourism
- Consumer understanding of Wine Road brand
- Incorporate Wine Road into event names β Wine Road Wine and Food Affair
- Use blog to support building Wine Road brand
- Digital marketing and media
- Evaluate each, enhance
- Weekly podcasts (keep Wine Road in mind with thread to come back)
- Messaging around on-going visitation for members
- Modify website
- Around Wine Road Tourism
- Podcast β cliff hangers; come back next week
- Insider information
- Build a following
- Redwood Empire Food Bank donation
- Collaboration with AVA groups, Sonoma County Tourism
- Consumer newsletter β 50,000 subscribers
- Sonoma House? β should Wine Road do it again or partner with Sonoma County Tourism
- Video β consumer and member focused
Β
What Services or Programs should Wine Road DISCARD?
- San Francisco travel
- Government relationships
- CPR and like training
- Member education β let a partner do it
- Mystery tours
- Festivals
- Blog
- Speaker at meetings β tie to Wine Road Tourism filters for yes or no
- Auction for members
- Pure Luxury Transportation
- On the Road β no plans to continue
- Member coddling needs to end
- High School scholarships
DEBRIEF β DAY 1
- Wine Road Tourism (filters) β applying them
- Core focus areas β identified and defined
- Priorities β keep and discard
- Next up β innovation, creativity, responsive, focus and goals
Β
DAY 2, April 19: GOALS
Β
COLLABORATION GOALS
| Sonoma House | Shift to Sonoma County Tourism |
| Participation β Set by rising tide, lifts all ships
Goal β every collaborative activity = Ex: Canine Companion Partnership oΒ Input vs. output oΒ Charity and good will oΒ Income producing oΒ Brand building Action: Review calendars of all AVA groups for cross promote activities
Goal β strengthen relationships with AVA groups oΒ Cross promotion evidence |
2018 β 2019
Ongoing
2018 β 2019 |
| Redwood Empire Food Bank β Explore how to have a return on investment through cross promotion of Wine Road events | 2018 β 2019
Β |
| Explore how to partner and collaborate with restaurants | Five year goal |
| Explore partner program with mutual benefits for participation | Five year goal |
Β
COMMUNICATION GOALS
| Annual Meeting β How to increase member attendance and participation
oΒ Partner with 3 other AVAβs and Wine Road β one event oΒ Social element oΒ Consider vendor participation β display tables |
2018 β 2019
Β |
| Member education tied only to Wine Road events
oΒ Video the training to share with members |
2018 β 2019 & Five year
|
Β
MESSAGING GOALS
| Website β Redesign
oΒ Photos β more and new oΒ No member pages oΒ Home page flexibility to change oΒ Events β main focus on home page oΒ Ongoing visitation oΒ More videos oΒ Easy to find β info graphics oΒ Map β our location |
2018 β 2019 β after messaging and brand
Β |
| Core Wine Road message β Review, revise and launch
oΒ Brand and name oΒ SEO search oΒ Our location β Sonoma County, Northern Sonoma County oΒ We want to be the BEST! |
2018 β 2019
|
EVENT GOALS
| Major Events β Quality initiatives
oΒ Consumer experience § Increase quality of consumer attending § Explore exclusivity § 2-tier ticketing system oΒ Member readiness β continue to have learning opportunities oΒ Sharing stories β during and post event § Add to improvements oΒ More promotion of the event outcomes § Post messaging § Show members the outcomes β why we do it? oΒ Highlight best practices oΒ Emphasize human resource training oΒ Build awareness among winery owners oΒ Enhance grass roots knowledge among members § Create ambassadors and evangelists § Create the personal relationship with members
Action: Create a success matrix for major events Action: Examine marketing focus to increase quality attendees |
2018 β 2019 & Five year
Constant Quality Improvement Β |
| Pre-event event
oΒ Β Consider higher end experience prior to and post event § An elevated experience oΒ Β Platinum level ticket β extra event or activity § Create scarcity at higher end |
2018 β 2019
|
| Consider making an event high end β like Winter Wineland
(leave Barrel Tasting alone) oΒ Β Evaluate if the mother ship (Barrel Tasting) event is solid |
2018 β 2019
|
| Harvest experience event β high end
oΒ Β Consider partnership |
Five year
|
| Fourth event β have two wine and food events, fall and spring | Five year |
MARKETING GOALS
| Brand
oΒ Β Brand first, then messaging |
2018 β 2019
|
| Consumer Newsletter
oΒ Β Continue, tweak as needed |
2018 β 2019
|
| Podcast
oΒ Β Move to weekly oΒ Β Increase promotion |
2018 β 2019
|
| Video
oΒ Β Do more, incorporate into newsletter |
2018 β 2019
|
| Digital marketing
oΒ Β Evaluate types, destination oΒ Β Modify as needed oΒ Β Outcomes driven |
2018 β 2019
|
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE GOALS
| Member dues
oΒ Β Consider a tiered dues structure (perhaps based on case production) § What do other AVAβs do for dues § Share research with Board oΒ Β Be sure purpose and message on the why is solid |
2019 β 2020 & Five year
|
| Board member and committee member recruitment
oΒ Β Active identification and recruitment oΒ Β Grid spreadsheet (Scott to share) oΒ Β Create project oriented taskforces |
Ongoing |
| Wine Industry Scholarships
oΒ Β Move to discard list |
|
| 2019 Board Retreat
oΒ Β Beth check-in on priorities, keep items, losing discard items; activities of Beth β are they in, out and at job description for position oΒ Β Learnings and moving Wine Road needle |
2018 β 2019
|
| Goal Dashboard (Scott) β on board agenda with filters and core areas identified
oΒ Β Consider mini-retreat during the year to check-in on our plans |
2018 β 2019
|
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