Let’s see how long it takes for the paychecks to follow, however.
Wine blogging is currently an unpaid position. Anything anyone writes about anybody helps that entity with publicity and Website presence. The only gain for the person doing the writing, however, is the pleasure of expressing his/her opinion in a public forum. It’s not billable hours, and can’t be… otherwise, it’s no longer credible. (I don’t/can’t charge my wine clients for anything that I might put up on the Web about them. It’s just the code of the [Internet] road.)
When a company has a blog, the information coming forth is mostly related to that company. It’s written off as an advertising expense, for the cost of hosting that URL each month.
It is what it is.
Today, when a winery-in-the-know is looking for someone to market for it, here’s a classic example of how it posts its needs. The Winery is Murphy Goode (KJ’s the parent company), and it’s set up an entire Website just for this ad… Very, very progressive, indeed. I was first made aware of this job by Barry Wu of Engineer in Wine Country.
Pay attention to the dollar figure, because this has now set the standard…
OVERVIEW
We at the Murphy-Goode Winery got to thinking about the new age of communications and we figured it was a pretty good thing. So to get going, we’re looking for someone (maybe you) who really knows how to use Web 2.0 and Facebook and blogs and social media and YouTube and all sorts of good stuff like that – to tell the world about our wines and the place where we live: the Sonoma County Wine Country.
In exchange, we’re offering you a “Really Goode Job” – a six-month job paying $10,000 a month plus accommodations!
We want to hire a social media whiz (your title will be “Murphy-Goode Wine Country Lifestyle Correspondent”) who will report on the cool lifestyle of Sonoma County Wine Country and, of course, tell people what you’re learning about wine making.
Did we mention that the compensation was $10,000 per month Plus accommodations in a beautiful home in picturesque Healdsburg, a popular vacation destination in our neck of the woods. Working hours are flexible. And all you have to do is experience wine and good living, and then tell people about it. (Do you play Poker, or Liar’s Dice? Don’t worry; we’ll teach you.)
You (we hope) will become part of the Murphy-Goode crew – for six great months.
Now, I was further reminded by Evan Cover of Cruvee that this $10,000 a month is just the beginning. Murhpy Goode (KJ) is also offering the following:
- Housed in a deluxe private home in the heart of Wine Country (Possible $2500 per month), within walking distance to our tasting room on Healdsburg Square.
- You’ll receive return airfare to your hometown, accommodations and transport in Sonoma County, travel insurance for the contract period, computer, internet, PDA, and digital and still camera access.
What’s the price of this lifestyle, while just blogging and no other distractions?
It’s pretty pricey, quite honestly, for a six month paid vacation/travel journal.
While small wine companies can’t compete with this offer, they still need to consider a marketing person with some social networking ability, who will keep their winery current on the internet using all the social media networks available. If they don’t, they’ll pretty quickly become the equivalent of granny and grandpa sitting in the nursing homes of today, who never did and never will turn on a computer.
Below is The 2009 Overdrive Search Marketing Map that I received from Harry J. Gold, CEO & Managing Partner of Over Drive Interactive. This schematic is for Social Media understanding that we’re all going to be needing to review, use, follow, etc., if we’re to remain competitive. You will find this map on Overdrive’s Website.
One step at a time, People, and we’ll all get through it unscathed.
Recent Comments