August 7 2007
The difference between having some marketing shtick and having a “brand” is the ability to execute all of the way, go the distance, give your company a DNA that can be touched and felt. With that in mind, I have to hand it to new “wine-a-day” company “The Wine Spies” because they are clearly committed to executing and building a “brand,” and a fun one at that.
Think about it, have you ever been to Disneyland and ever seen Snow White or any of the other human actors break character? Nope, you never have. Nor does Goofy pull his floppy ears and wagging tongue character-head off within sight of guests at the park. The characters don’t break stride and for good reason, it would ruin the illusion—the suspension of disbelief that separates acting from the real world, creates the ‘magic’ in the ‘Magic Kingdom’ and also is the ingredient that increasingly separates ho-hum marketing from a brand that is sticky and memorable.
And so it goes for “The Wine Spies” the newest entrant in the ‘one wine-a-day’ business model, officially launched on August 1st. No mere shtick with Agent Red and his cohorts, Agent Sparkle, Agent Pinot and a couple of other “Agents.” Exhibit A: I received a sample from them today and the box was marked, “Top Secret Wine Shipment.” They could have taken the easy way out and not spent the extra money or time to have it stamped on the box, but it goes a long way in engendering a positive feeling about what they are trying to do. Their web site found at http://www.thewinespies.com equally goes the distance.
Tina Caputo from the June ’07 Wines & Vines has the round-up on the other ‘wine-a-day’ players here. The premise, in a nutshell, is a single wine is made available for purchase for a set period of time and before it’s gone. Presumably, with each offering, there is a deal to be had or a special not otherwise available to help drive consumer interest. And, with Wine.Woot, Winestilsoldout.com and Radcru.com already engaged in this business model you might think that a fourth player is unnecessary. Perhaps so, but the folks at “The Wine Spies” have done their homework and taken a significant leap forward in building on this business model with a concept, appealing graphics and enough selling copy to really act as a pull enticement. If four competitors in this niche space is one too many, Darwin’s law may come into play, but doubtlessly one of the other competitors would be susceptible to falling prey to the whims of a fickle public.
In fact, their model is a bit of a hybrid in between some of the tasting note sites, as well, because they invite users to sign-up share tasting notes and earn “spy points.” They did their homework to advance the model to Wine 2.0 and beyond. As you increase your “spy points” you increase your rank and become eligible for more promotions, better offers, etc. taking a cue from the allocated wine model.
According to the press release (handily included in the box with free wine, which is always nice):
Agent Red says, “Newer wine drinkers can be intimidated by the language of wine. The Wine Spies makes wine more accessible to the emerging market of the younger generation of wine drinkers while also educating them and rewarding them for buying wines and sharing their tasting experiences with friends.”
With the company’s special relationship with vineyards, the Wine Spies website will showcase an International selection of almost impossible to find wines that most consumers are unable to buy at their local wine shops or even from other online stores.
My lone piece of advice to “The Wine Spies” is to be very careful with positioning towards the old canard of “making wines more accessible for the younger generation.” The statement alone makes them seem like VH1-lovin’ Generation X’ers with enough wherewithal to start a business, while not completely getting their MTV demographic brethren.
Generation Y already craves authentic experiences—shrugging off corporate marketing. The Wine Spies can resonate, but the accessibility and education thing is a bit of schlock that’s more used up than Pam Anderson. A better approach would be to give Generation Y. their due and if they don’t get it, keep piling on the depth of knowledge and force them to keep up, providing an international selection of wines, while maintaining an absolute commitment to the brand of “The Wine Spies.” If you pander to them, for a second, you’ll be left selling wine to Joann, the 44 year old mother of three in Des Moines, Iowa.
Otherwise, I’m stoked that we keep seeing new and strong entrants into the online wine space, trying new things and committing to build customer relationships. As I’ve said before, when we look back on this period of time in online wine sales it will all seem so simple and quaint. The Wine Spies is a strong entrant into the online wine world, advancing beyond quaint with a clever concept and the seeds of a fabulous brand.
*blog transparency alert* My employer has a relationship with The Wine Spies. However, I have not met any of the folks there and was not a part of any meeting or decision-making related to the relationship. I’m an innocent by-stander, but The Wine Spies did sample me a bottle of wine based on this blog. Though that, in and of itself, hasn’t induced me to write anything other than my honest assessment of their business and business model, based on a consumer’s perspective.
Posted in, Free Run: Field Notes From a Wine Life. Permalink | Comments (3) |
These guys are doing a great job and you are as well my man, this is theeeeee BEST looking wine blog and the content is awesome, nice to see2 RAD things together, I widh I was rad but 2-3 still gets you in the HALL
I’m sorry, but who says “rad” anymore? Hello 1980’s.
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Thank you for this thoughtful review.
When we started The Wine Spies, we decided to create a brand that delivered a shopping experience that was first serious about wine but also fun. Wine and fun, after all, should go hand in hand.
We never set out to market directly to Generation Y. Rather, we strive to make wine accessible to all - without the exclusion of wine neophytes or the seasoned connoisseur. We try to use language that invites newbies in, but also use standard descriptors such as ‘nose’, ‘palate’, ‘finish’ and the like. We know that new wine drinkers love to elevate their wine knowledge and experience.
The Wine Spies are passionate about wine and about providing a complete experience - for consumers and wineries alike. One of the things that sets us apart is the fact that our relationship with our wineries does not begin and end with the one day sale. Wineries know that if a customers tastes their wine, that customer will fall in love. While wine-a-day sites facilitate that initial taste, we go a step further by making it possible for the consumer to buy more of the same wine after our sale. We actually send our customers away from our site for that follow-on purchase. And we reward them for making the purchase by awarding more Spy Points. Wineries love this. So do our customers.
By the way, Joanne in Des Moines is a loyal Agent. And so is her 28 year-old brother in San Francisco now that she recruited him. We value them both equally.