Build a smarter wine marketing strategy that actually drives growth
Do your marketing decisions feel like expensive guesswork? Without the research, data, and insights that support informed marketing decisions, you could be leaving success or failure to chance. 5forests’ comprehensive strategy solutions draw upon our deep understanding of the wine industry to ensure that our recommendations are relevant and actionable. We empower your business with data-driven decision-making, providing insights that drive growth and optimize performance.
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Is your winery at a turning point?
Most wineries that bring us in are at a turning point: a new estate, an old one under new ownership, a rebrand that has been talked about for years, a first push into the US from another country, or a customer list that gets a little older every year while the buyers who should replace them cannot find the brand. Some come to us after an agency that came and went and left nothing behind.
Marketing decisions happen in silos
Marketing lives in one silo, sales in another, tasting room in a third, and no one shares the same picture of what “good” looks like. Budgets get approved, campaigns get launched, and six months later no one can agree on whether it worked, or why.
You don’t have a clear picture of your customer
Locals, tourists, collectors, club-curious Millennials, gift buyers: they all show up in your data. But if you’re treating them as one blob called “online customers,” your offers, content, and campaigns can’t do their best work.
Too much “we think,” not enough “we know”
If your DTC channel has grown in fits and starts, there’s usually a lot of “we think” and not enough “we know.” You need a clear read on who your most valuable direct customers are, how they find you, what they buy, how often they come back, and what gets in their way.
Your club was built for yesterday’s customer
Many clubs were designed around an older, more traditional buyer: predictable schedules, fewer competing subscriptions, a high tolerance for “this is how we’ve always done it.” If your tiers, benefits, and options don’t reflect how members actually drink and entertain, the club becomes one more obligation to cut.
Members don’t see themselves in your story
If your messaging talks to a generic “wine lover,” it doesn’t speak to the very different humans who join your club. When members can’t see their own needs and values reflected in how you talk about the club, the relationship stays shallow. Shallow relationships are easy to cancel.
Your team is doing its best, but no one is leading it
Have a capable team but no one to lead them? We’ll fill that gap by mentoring and upskilling them.
How can 5forests help with your wine marketing strategy?
Our full-service approach supports every stage of your growth journey.
Wine brand strategy workshops
Our Brand Strategy Workshops provide the roadmap you need to build a profitable growth strategy, understand your audience, and communicate with emotion and precision. Over three consecutive days, we’ll deep-dive into your brand’s universe, collaborate with your stakeholders, and uncover insights that could redefine your brand’s trajectory.
Fractional CMO
Imagine having a top-tier wine marketer expert in your corner, one who understands the unique challenges facing your industry and brings a wealth of experience and personalized strategy to the table. That’s exactly what you get with our Fractional CMO service.
Workshops for regional wine associations
Our One-to-Many Workshops are specifically designed to extend the impact of transformational strategies across your whole membership. These scalable sessions provide the tools, knowledge, and inspiration needed to uplift individual wineries and, with them, the whole region.
Customer persona development
Enhance your market approach with laser-focused customer profiles. We delve deep into demographic and psychographic data to craft personas that pinpoint your audience’s preferences, enabling highly targeted marketing strategies.
Customer journey mapping
Elevate your customer engagement through detailed journey mapping. We analyze each phase of the customer’s path to purchase, identifying critical touchpoints and opportunities to improve their experience and build lasting loyalty.
Voice of customer (VoC) programs
Direct your business strategy with authentic customer feedback. Our VoC programs collect and analyze input from all touchpoints, providing actionable insights that refine your products and services.
Competitive market analysis
Position your brand for success in a competitive landscape. We assess your market position and identify strategic opportunities, helping you understand your strengths and areas for growth against competitors.
Market research
Gain invaluable insights into your target market. Through comprehensive analysis of consumer behavior and emerging trends, we equip you with the information needed to make data-driven decisions and stay relevant.
Macroenvironmental analysis
Prepare for future market conditions with strategic foresight. Our analysis of economic, social, and technological factors enables you to anticipate market shifts and adapt your strategy to maintain a competitive edge.
Goal setting & KPI development
Define success on your terms with clear goals and precise KPIs. We help you establish measurable objectives and track your progress, ensuring your strategies align with business outcomes.
Trends & forecasting
Anticipate market developments with our forecasting expertise. By staying ahead of trends and predicting changes, you can prepare strategies that seize opportunities and mitigate risks.
Why wineries choose 5forests for strategy
We have spent more than a decade on marketing for wineries, and we have run brand strategy workshops at wineries in New Zealand, the US, Canada and France, from offices in North America, the UK, France, Spain and New Zealand. Our narrative persona method, Winestories™, is our own, developed in 2016. We live and breathe wine marketing, so you won’t need to waste time explaining why wine is different.
Underneath all of these sits the same question: is the brand still relevant in a market that has changed around it? That is the number one reason 5forests gets called in.
“Since launch, we’ve seen a clear boost in customer engagement—more orders, wine club sign-ups, and new additions to our mailing list. We’re confident our site is performing at a high level and fully compliant, thanks to their expertise.”
Tera Shannon & Roxanne Jackson
Shannon Family of Wines
When we needed to rebuild our website to integrate with Commerce7—following a failed attempt with another agency—5forests came to the rescue. They delivered a beautiful, functional, and accessible site in record time.
Vicky Farrow, Proprietor, & Brian Shapiro, Estate Director
Amista Vineyards
From onboarding to launch, 5forests demonstrated a level of professionalism that gave us confidence in our site. No detail was overlooked and no question was trivial. I can easily recommend their work to colleagues and know they will share the same experience.
Elizabeth Clark
Argyle Winery
Working with 5forests since 2020 has been transformative for our family business. Their profound industry knowledge and practical innovations have been invaluable… ensuring our nascent winery thrives in the direct-to-consumer market.
Michael Franzia
Clark Ferrea Winery
5forests’ expertise in website development and maintenance, particularly with Commerce7, has streamlined our online operations. They understand the wine industry, are ahead of industry trends, and effectively work with our team to provide tailored solutions that meet our specific requirements.
Michelle Hogan
Anaba Wines
Rarely do you find someone who is so up on trends in both tech and wine, who also has empathy for the consumer. 5forests’ professionalism, expertise, great listening, and marketing guidance will help me way beyond just my new site launch.
Elizabeth Schneider
Wine for Normal People
I had a good feeling about working with 5forests from the very beginning, and I’m so grateful I trusted that instinct. I hope I have the privilege of collaborating with them again on future projects.
Elise Nerlove
Owner, Elkhorn Peak Cellars
Resources for wine marketing strategy
Our reports and guides on where wine is heading and what that means for your strategy, from The Third Place Blueprint to Beyond Heritage.
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What wineries can learn from Ray Oldenburg's third place theory, luxury retail, and the economics of belonging. A 52-page report, co-published by 5forests and Wine Culture Lab, on building loyalty and belonging into the tasting room.
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How wineries earn trust with drinkers under 35, now that heritage, appellation, and medals no longer secure attention. A 32-page report with cohort profiles, a four-level trust framework, and practical playbooks.
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A 24-page workbook that walks a winery through all 87 factors in a PESTEL scan, with space to record the evidence and mark each one Act now, Plan for or Watch.
Latest articles on everything “strategy”
What we’ve learned working on strategy with wineries, written up for the people who lead them. Start with the problems above, or browse everything we’ve written on the subject.
Questions about wine marketing strategy
What does wine marketing strategy work with 5forests include?
Customer personas, journey mapping, voice of customer programs, competitive and market research, macroenvironmental analysis, goals and KPIs, and trends and forecasting, delivered through brand workshops, a fractional CMO engagement, or a project of its own.
Who leads the work?
Polly Hammond, our CEO. She leads every brand workshop and writes the workshop report herself, and she is the fractional CMO.
Can we hire you for strategy without the marketing?
Yes. Strategy work stands on its own. The 5forests team can carry out the plan with you, but it doesn’t have to.
Do you work with wineries outside the US?
Yes. We run workshops at wineries around the world, and we have offices in North America, the UK, France, Spain and New Zealand.
Set yourself up for success
By aligning your business with customer needs, market opportunities, and industry trends, 5forests can help you build a resilient brand poised for success. Contact us today to learn more about how our strategy work can nurture your path to success, drive meaningful growth and secure your competitive edge.