Why you need good Photography to sell Wine.

Do you produce wine but are not sure how to display it?

Are you in marketing and are struggling for the best way to market your wines or the wines of your clients?

When browsing the wine store for the evening’s bottle of wine how many labels do you recognise? One, two, three if you’re lucky?

What about the corner liquor store or wine merchant, what do they push your way?
Don’t get me wrong some wine shop assistants are excellent but most go with the wines they are familiar with and a lot are only familiar with the label, not what’s inside the bottle.

If any of this sounds like you then read on.

Because Photography is just not taken seriously enough by the vast number of wine producers!

The wine industry is highly competitive and whilst you can have the best made wines from some of the world’s best vineyards, it doesn’t mean that it will sell.

Like any product it’s not just the quality but increasingly image!

Just look at how the wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy sell.

What about Grange from Australia? Or Mondavi from California, Guigal from the Rhone Valley.

Then there are regions,

Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, Pinot Noir from Oregon and Central Otago.

I could go on and on!

The point is that these wines are all about image and in some cases prestige.

I’m not here to educate you on how to position your brand, only you can do that but what I can tell you is that you need great images to help formulate your marketing strategy.

OK how do you create a brand image that make people want to buy your product?

Where are these images displayed?

Well obviously, anywhere that sells wine but before that, the vast majority of potential customers will come across the image of your wine or winery somewhere online.

And more and more its social media channels that wine consumers will see wine and winery images.

Instagram, Snapchat and Pinterest are the most visual whilst Facebook, Google + and LinkedIn have both visuals and information and let’s not forget YouTube and Twitter and apps like Vivino.

Then you have blogs, winery websites, reviewer’s websites, online magazines, etc. all of which, by the way, now need to be mobile friendly, so the online space is really where you need good images for consumers to share.

What’s a good image or photo?

Studies have proven that we as human beings remember things that are connected with our emotions whether it be curiosity, anger, sadness, happiness, laughter etc. so an image needs to be memorable.

Think of one photograph you remember, maybe it was of friends, family, travel, or a photo you saw in a magazine or online somewhere, I’ll bet another 1000 words that it evoked some sort of emotion.
That’s what I’m talking about!

What to do about it?

You must produce visual content that helps you stand out.

Have images that help evolve your brand and tell a visual story of who you are.

The key to that is to see visual moments everywhere.
Behind-the-scenes peeks are becoming popular with some of the big brands.
For example, active photos that show real customers or employees doing real things — as opposed to staged shots or logos.

Of course, someone still needs to push the shutter button and that can be by engaging a good photographer.

Many organizations have photographers they contact in times of need — for events, product launches, etc. But that makes Photography a bit of an afterthought.  

And will they be able to capture the essence of what you are about?
The other option is to DIY.

All you need is to start is good technique and a good eye, assuming that you have a camera. These things can be taught to anyone who is willing to learn and follow specific instructions.

Don’t get me wrong this won’t get you to the levels of the greats, they spent years honing their craft, but you can quickly and easily get to the stage where your photos become the envy of your peers.

 

Do you agree? Is Photography an afterthought for a lot of wine business? Feel free to add your tips and opinions below. I would really like to hear them.

For some good examples of photography on some wine websites see http://www.timatkinphotography.com/

http://www.vinography.com/archives/vinography_images/

https://www.jordanwinery.com/

https://www.burchfamilywines.com.au/trade/images.aspx