What About the Wine Label?

I was speaking to a group of wineries and growers recently about sales and marketing of wine and grapes. In the course of the conversation a question was asked about the importance of the wine label. The question was about the look of the label and whether it was okay for a label to be quite plain and simple.

My answer was that yes, having a simple label is fine as long as it well executed, easy to read and gave the government and buyers the information they needed.

The person who asked the question then responded by saying that he thought that the label was just the label and that “it’s what’s inside the bottle that counts.” While I don’t disagree that what is inside the bottle is very important, I hastened to add that the label was also of great importance.

For many people, the label is the first impression of your wine. Someone who has never tasted the wine has an impression of the label design and execution as well as the verbiage that will help him/her make the decision as to whether or not they buy that wine. This is especially true if you are selling your wines off premise, where many buyers will not have the opportunity to talk to you.

Even if you sell all your wines through the winery, many of your customers will be influenced not only by the taste of the wine but also by the overall presentation of the wine, the label, the bottle the capsule, etc.

So while your label does not have to be fancy or expensively produced, it should be of the same expected quality to assure the customers that the price you are charging for the wine is warranted.

Keep a label simple if you wish but let it echo the quality that you know is in the bottle.

A tip of the glass from me to you

1. E Column
   by Elizabeth “E” Slater, In Short Direct Marketing

   A recognized expert in the fields of direct marketing and sales in the wine marketplace. Slater has taught more wineries and winery associations how to create and improve the effectiveness of their direct marketing programs and to make the most of each customer’s potential than anyone in the wine industry today.

   Follow E on twitter @esavant and facebook.