#WBC18 Lightning Talk: Liz Barrett

We will have 8 of your fellow attendees get up on stage to deliver five-minute, Ignite-style “Lightning Talks”. With 20 slides each advancing automatically on 15-second intervals, speakers have to be on the top of their game to deliver fun, informative, often hilarious talks.

Transcript

2. Insights for Bloggers from the PR World Liz Barrett, CSW Wine Blogger and… Wine/Food PR Consultant
3. Crossing Over: From PR to Blogging • 20+ years in PR and marketing • Pitching food & beverage media & bloggers • My last company was a WBC sponsor P.S. It’s awesome and weird to be pitched!
4. After becoming head of PR and Marketing Comms for a wine company, I became obsessed with wine.
5. Now I Lead a Double Life
6. The third piece of my double life • “ Name That Wine” • A blind-tasting series on YouTube with the inimitable Rob Frisch!
7. Pitching & Catching
8. What do PR people do, anyway? • We traffic in earned and social media, with an occasional foray into paid media • We brainstorm pitches to generate editorial content about people, products and programs • We pitch our faces off, send samples, emails, texts, DMs to reporters, producers and bloggers • We plan tasting events, winemaker dinner and sponsorships • We sweat about whether or not writers will include their product in their story or show up to event
9. Two Big Things PR People Don’t Know or Understand • How bloggers blog • They are not full-time bloggers • They may have full-time professional jobs • They may have 14 small children • They may write for lots of other wine publications and sites • Bottom line: it takes time • There are secret underground, members-only blog groups on Facebook seeking samples and sponsorship! • I was stupefied when I found out about The French Winophiles, Food Wine Pairing Weekend, Italian Wine Bloggers
10. Earned Media Matters • When the stars align and great stories come out, PR people merchandise those stories • Each story is a valuable third- party endorsement about a wine, winery or winemaker • Sell sheets • Websites • Facebook, Insta, Twitter • Newsletters
11. Relationships • Get to know the PR people behind the brands • Introduce yourself • Get on their contact list • Explain the focus of your blog • New wines, unusual wines, wine education, food and wine pairings, etc • If you ask for samples, be clear upfront on the angle of your story • Bonus points: share the reach of your blog and your social media following
12. Agencies, Importers & Marketing Companies to Know
13. Wine Knowledge • The more knowledge you have, the better
14. First Impressions • Pay attention to how your blog looks becauselooks matter • It should have at least a level of design sophistication • It should be mobile-friendly • Function well on phones, tablets, laptops
15. Content • Include hyperlinks in your blog • Winery websites • Winemaker bios • Distributor or importer pages, • Restaurant sites, etc. • About You • Allude to your whereabouts, at least by state • Sample Policy • If you accept samples, state your policy • Always disclose if wines were made available free of cost as samples
16. Blog Policies • Lots of people have “real” jobs outside of blogging • You need to determine where you draw the line • If you represent a region or a brand, it’s often a conflict if you blog about a competing varietal or brand • Personally, my allegiance to is to a paying client, so if I represent a Champagne brand, I’ll bow out of a blog group project about other sparkling wines • Honesty - if I receive samples and I don’t like the wine, I just don’t write about it.
17. Writing Quality • Writing quality matters • Read good writing • Take a class • Practice, ask for feedback from people you respect • Proofing matters Karen McNeil
18. Photography • Good quality photography is HUGE • Good lighting • Crisp, sharp pictures • Appetizing food • If you just don’t have any good photos, go without Yes! No!
19. Promotion • Share a link to your post as soon as it is up with the producer or PR agency • Let them know when and how you plan to promote your own post • Ask them if they will share your posts on their own social media pages
20. Social Media • Be on it! • You don’t have to do them all, but you do have to do at least two or three • Dedicate time to cultivate followers • Do NOT buy followers. Duh
21. The End