Creating Imagery for Wine Industry Social Media
Social media is not a one-off project, it is a neverending flow of content, all supported by visual content, that tells your brand’s story. Nonstop. Same story in many, many different ways, until the end of time. Not to be overly dramatic, but it’s true: social media, whether it’s the platforms that exist today or new ones that come online, social media is a marketing machine that always needs to be fed. Coming up with content on a regular basis, content being a visual asset + copy, is really where a lot of the overwhelming feeling comes into play. I’m here to help with that sense of being overwhelmed, and break down visual content for social media in actionable smaller bites.
Creating content for wine brands is my specialty. I have worked in wine for 15 years, 8 of which have been with my business, Untapped Media Inc. While I manage very select brands’ social media now, I have been in the social media game since 2010 professionally and have managed social media fully for about 45 brands since then.
I have focused my business on creating asset libraries for businesses, so they always have an image at the ready for whatever needs arises. If a press inquiry comes in, there’s a great beauty shot for that. If your wine is going to be included in a publication’s gift guide, there’s a different great beauty shot for that. If you decide to open an e-commerce store, there are perfect bottle shots for that. If you need to feed the social media content machine - which you do - there’s always fresh content for that.
AT THE CORE
Be genuine and authentic in telling your story.
Be engaging.
Engage.
What’s Your Visual Style?
Who are you as a brand?
What is your brand style?
Consistency is KEY: your social media visuals should look like your website, email, brochures, wine club materials, rack card, etc. visuals
Don't be afraid to edit! It's a part of the process.
Craft Your Story
Define your brand pillars & create storylines based on those
When creating content, keep those storylines handy
Think of creative ways to tell that story through the images you're creating or working with someone to create. For example, if you want to show off the color of your new rosé, shoot all different rosés to show the broad range of colors. Shoot in your brand style.
How will you continue to tell your story with your audience (current & potential customers) over and over when social media does not have an end date? Investing in fresh, on-brand imagery can really speak 1000 words.
Build an Asset Library
Take photos and videos CONSTANTLY of EVERYTHING - you will always need them
The best camera you have is the one on you
Develop an organizational workflow so you can quickly find what you need
Partner with a Pro
Find a professional who sees your vision, understands your brand and can execute consistent, on-brand imagery
Understand usage rights and editing terms
Invest in brand imagery with a long shelf-life and multi-use (general brand imagery, non-vintage, images you can use on your website, in social, in email but also for press inquiries, advertisements, printed materials)
Use Compelling Imagery (With examples!)
Also: view the scrolling carousel at the top of this post! Lots of images in there that help tell those wine brands’ stories.
In-action, with and without people
Your staff working in the tasting room, the vineyard, the crush pad, on the bottling line
Your wine on the bottling line, grapes being harvested, racking, cleaning barrels
Your wine being poured, on a table with food with hands reaching in, someone about to drink a glass
In-environment
At a home, in a backyard, at a restaurant table (no restaurant names anywhere! Tied house.)
At an event
By a fire, by a pool, by a lake, by the ocean
In the field
Vineyard shots at golden hour and blue hour, with amazing skyscapes, every time of the day, throughout the year
Bud break
Veraison
Clusters
Harvest
Motion (action in a still image, GIFs, video)
Tell this story through a professionally produced video
Create GIFs of pouring and cheers
Pour in slo-mo
Timelapse of the crush pad during harvest
In-studio beauty with on-brand props
Beauty shots of your product featured perfectly, with props that help embellish your story, paint the picture for the viewer using on-brand glassware/flowers/props
People, human element / seeing faces
Dinner al fresco, backyard party, at the beach, on a picnic
Walking with a bottle
Someone pouring into someone else’s glass
Cheers
Taste appeal
Closeup of a pour
White wine or sparkling on ice
Condensation on a glass or bottle
Swirling
A splash
Enticement to visit
People at your tasting room bar
People at your seated tables
People walking the grounds
People arriving by hired car service
Food pairings
Simple to elaborate foods/dishes that help tell your food & wine pairing stories
With and without people
Education
Color, legs, wine cellar, aroma and taste profile with ingredients or props that tell that story, winemaking practices, sustainability story, vineyard management, sorting, fermenting, barrel vs stainless, each and every part of the winemaking process if that is true to your brand story!
When you think about creating your library of visual assets, think about what types of content you want to publish to tell your brand’s story plus what types of content resonate with your audience.
How do you know what’s working? Utilize the social media platform’s analytics to keep track and measure content performance. When you see that something is resonating with your audience, recreate that content in a fresh way. Test it on the same day at the same time. Test a new version of that content a few weeks later on a different day at a different time. Social media is a testing ground. Ensure you’re tracking your efforts there so you’re getting the most out of it.
Let’s Talk about Stock, Baby
Can you get many of the images I’ve listed above on a stock site, paid or free to use? Yes, you can. Check it out:
Can you produce (or work with a pro to produce) CUSTOM branded stock photography that only your business will use? Yes, yes, and yes. Check it out:
You’ll notice that some of my shots look like stock - a group of wine glasses on a bar top, a glass of white wine on a table, a handful of grapes, a glass of bubbles, a swirl of red wine - and they are, they’re BRANDED stock photography for my clients. No one else has those photos, no one else gets to use those photos (except me) and my clients now have shots with wine in them but also more general shots they can use for so many placements!
The Ever-Coveted UGC (User Generated Content)
There are three basic types of content: OWNED, PAID, EARNED.
OWNED: you made the video, you took the photo, you wrote the copy (or you hired someone to do so on your behalf.) You own it. It’s copyrighted to you (or to your producer with usage rights to you.)
PAID: You are running an ad, using assets you have created/hired someone to create for you.
EARNED: You are featured by a third party in their marketing or personal accounts, including press, blogs, UGC (user generated content).
In social media, we deem UGC as pretty much the holy grail. Someone else liked your brand/product/service enough to share it on their social media or on their blog, of their own accord. For example, they visited your winery, they took a photo of their wine glass with the bottle, they shared on Instagram. Third-party endorsements/word of mouth is always the best! You saw it because you were tagged. Now what?
When someone posts content on their social media like this, they own the copyright to that copy and that photo/video, just like when you create content, you own the copyright to it. In the case of UGC on social, let’s say it’s on Instagram.
Ask permission to use the photo as a part of engaging with that content (“Thank you for visiting! Which wine was your fav? (May we share on our social media with photo credit?) Cheers!” Getting written permission is the ONLY way you should ever share someone else’s content.
When they reply yes (99% of the time they do), screenshot it and Save it in Instagram (if that’s where you saw it.)
Use an app like Repost to share their content to your Feed or Story, include their handle using the app. Since Instagram does not have Share functionality built in on Feed posts, you’ll need to use a third-app for this.
If they tag you in their Story, share it. Instagram has built-in functionality for Share in Stories and it automatically gives credit to the OP (original poster).
Add UGC into your content mix for legitimacy and super engaging content.
Note: if the post doesn’t really fit your brand standards/style, you have a few options.
ALWAYS engage on the post regardless
Share to your Stories only
Ask if you can use the image somewhere else, maybe an “our fans” roundup blog post or something
Wine Holidays & Online Themes
Wine holidays are a great way to be a part of the conversation in a branded way. Shoot or find an image of your brand that fits the holiday/theme.
February - Delaware Wine Month #delawarewinemonth
February 16 - International Syrah Day #syrahday #internationalsyrahday
February 18 - Global Drink Wine Day #globaldrinkwineday #drinkwineday #internationaldrinkwineday
February 27 (day changes every year, start watching the hashtag at the beginning of February) - Open That Bottle Night #openthatbottlenight #openthatbottle
March 3 - National Mulled Wine Day #nationalmulledwineday #mulledwineday (why is this not in December is beyond me. I don’t make the rules.)
March 13 - International Riesling Day #inernationalrieslingday #rieslingday
April - Michigan Wine Month #michiganwinemonth
April 17 - International Malbec Day #internationalmalbecday #malbecday #worldmalbecday
May - #oregonwinemonth - create or find shots in your own asset library of your vineyards, your wines in a pretty location, a pour at a dinner table with the label and AVA clearly showing
May 6 - International Sauvignon Blanc Day #internationalsauvignonblancday #internationalsauvblancday #sauvignonblancday #sauvblancday
May 9 - National Moscato Day #nationalmoscatoday #worldmoscatoday #moscatoday #internationalmoscatoday
May 26 (always the Thursday before Memorial Day) - Chardonnay Day #chardonnayday #chardday #nationalchardonnayday #chardsohard #whitewine
May 24 - The Anniversary of the Judgment of Paris #judgmentofparis #californiawine #californiawines #frenchwine #frenchwines
May 25 - National Wine Day #nationalwineday #wineday #drinkwineday (yep! Different than 2/18)
June - Ohio Wine Month and Idaho Wine Month #ohiowinemonth #idahowinemonth
June 11 (always the second Saturday in June) - National Rosé Day #roseday #roséday #nationalroseday #nationalroséday #roséallday #roséthedayaway #yeswayrosé #roséandslay (this is a biggie! People LOVE rosé.)
June 18 - Drink Chenin Blanc Day #drinkcheninblancday #drinkcheninday #cheninblanc #drinkcheninblanc
June 21 - World Lambrusco Day #worldlambruscoday #lambruscoday #internationallambruscoday
August - Washington Wine Month #washingtonwinemonth #wawine #wawinemonth
August 1 - International Albarino Day #internationalalbarinoday #albarinoday
August 13 - International Prosecco Day #internationalproseccoday #proseccoday
August 14 - Another Rosé Day (why not!) #roseday #roséday #nationalroseday #nationalroséday #roséallday #roséthedayaway #yeswayrosé #roséandslay
August 18 - Pinot Noir Day #pinotnoirday #pinotday #internationalpinotnoirday #internationalpinotday
September - California Wine Month #californiawinemonth #cawine #cawinemonth Also Missouri, North Carolina and Illinois Wine Months
September 1 (always the Thursday before Labor Day) - Cabernet Day #cabernetday #nationalcabernetday #cabday #cabernet #cabernetsauvignonday
September 16 - International Grenache Day #grenacheday #internationalgrenacheday
October - Merlot Month #merlotmonth #merlotme
October - Texas, Virgina, Pennsylvania Wine Months
October 11-17 - Drink Local Wine Week #drinklocal #drinklocalwine
November 10 - International Tempranillo Day #internationaltemperanilloday #temperanilloday
November 16 - National Zinfandel Day #nationalzinfandelday #zinfandelday #zinday
December 4 - Cabernet Franc Day #cabernetfrancday #cabfrancday
December 31 - National Champagne Day #champagneday #nationalchampagneday #bubbles #sparklingwineday #sparklingwine
