Stop Selling Wine. Start Building a Place People Don’t Want to Leave.

If you’re running a tasting room and your main focus is selling wine… you’re already behind.

I know—that sounds a little harsh. But stick with me.

Because the most successful tasting rooms I’ve seen (and the one I’m working to build myself) aren’t winning because they pour the best Pinot Noir or have the prettiest vineyard views.

They’re winning because of how people feel when they walk through the door. As report after report comes out that talks about the decline in wine sales and wine tourism I found myself challenged to think outside the box and take a different approach in how we run our tasting room.

If you are frustrated with the decline in sales and guest count then I hope I can challenge you to think differently with the ideas in this blog. These ideas may not work for everyone, but hopefully you can find one or two takeaways.

Now it’s not that I have all the answers, because I don’t. I’m sharing what works for me. I run a tasting room in the heart of wine country in the Willamette Valley and when you are competing with 700 other wineries in the same region you have to think differently and try something new. In a time of declining tasting room sales, we are seeing a constant and steady increase in sales and guest count. So something is working.

If what you’ve always done isn’t working anymore then why keep doing it?

It’s Not About the Wine. It’s About the Return.

Wine might get someone in the door once. But it’s the relationship that brings them back.

Your wine club members and regulars aren’t just coming back for the Chardonnay, the patio, or the sunset over the vines. They’re coming back because:

• You remembered their name

• You remember what they like

• You ask about their life events

• You made them feel like they belong

• You make them feel comfortable

That’s the shift.

We’re not in the wine business. We’re in the people business… that happens to serve wine.

The Biggest Mindset Shift: From Transaction to Connection

I come from a retail background, and one thing that was drilled into me early on:

“Get people in the door.”

Because more people = more opportunity = more sales.

That still applies in a tasting room—but most wineries stop there.

They focus on:

• Reservations and group size (limitations)-if you can handle bigger groups then accommodate them.

• Conversion rates

• Turning the table in 90 minutes to make way for the next group

• Sales pitches and the hard (scripted) sell

All important. But here’s the problem…

If people come in and don’t feel anything, they don’t come back.

And if they don’t come back, you’re stuck constantly chasing new customers instead of building a loyal base.

The Real Goal: Create Your “Third Place”

There’s a concept in hospitality called the “third place.”

• First place = home

• Second place = work

• Third place = where people choose to spend their time

That’s what your tasting room should be.

Not just a place to taste wine.

A place to:

• Hang out

• Bring friends

• Celebrate

• Unwind

• Feel known and seen

When you become that place, everything changes.

You don’t have to convince people to visit.

They start building it into their lifestyle.

This is one element that I personally have been going after in my tasting room. I have created aspects of the tasting room that will make people want to come and hang out on a regular basis.

A couple of things that I have implemented are:

1.      Coloring pages for adults and children. I have guests that will come and color and drink wine. Plus when the children are occupied with coloring pages then the parents will feel comfortable hanging around and coming back on a regular basis.

2.      A big selection of table games and cards. Guests come and play games and buy more wine as they play.

Customer Service Is Dead. Long Live Experience.

We need to rethink what “good service” actually means.

Good service used to be:

• Polite

• Efficient

• Knowledgeable

That’s the baseline now. Today, what stands out is experience.

Experience is:

• Storytelling instead of scripts

• Conversations instead of presentations

• Personalization instead of repetition

• Energy instead of formality

Creating the experience is key! It’s the difference between merely serving a glass of wine and telling a story about the wine, the land or the vintage. Guests want to connect with you and the producer and the story behind the label.

Throw away the scripts. Guests know when you are quoting the script. Get excited about the wine you’re serving.

This is the difference between naming the Pinot Noir clones that are used in that wine vs. telling your guests what the characteristics of those clones are and how they impact the wine.

Your Regulars Are Your Real Marketing Team

You can spend thousands on ads.

Or…

You can invest in creating people who can’t stop talking about you.

Your regulars and wine club members are your greatest asset because:

• They bring friends

• They post about you (they are looking for a sharable experience)

• They advocate for your brand

• They celebrate your wins

But that only happens if they feel like they’re part of something.

Not just customers.

I always ask my guests about how they discovered us. Most of the time it is a word of mouth recommendation (and not just from the locals).

How This Translates to Sales

Let’s be clear, this isn’t just a feel-good philosophy.

This is a sales strategy.

When you focus on connection and experience:

• Guest count increases (because people bring people)

• Conversion rates increase (because trust is built)

• Average sale increases (because people stay longer and buy more)

• Wine club sign-ups increase (because people want to belong)

You’re no longer “selling a membership.”

You’re inviting someone into a community.

Guests should be asking you how they can be a member before you even have a chance to “pitch” it to them.

I find that when we create a great experience, I don’t even have to sell the wine. Most of the time all I have to do is ask “What were your favorite wines?” and they already have a shopping list of the wines they want to take home. And all I asked is if they had any favorites, I didn’t ask them to buy them.

The Challenge

Here’s the part where I challenge you (and myself):

Next time someone walks into your tasting room…

Don’t ask:
“How do I sell them wine?”

Ask:
“How do I make them want to come back next weekend?”

Because if you win that question…

The sales take care of themselves.

Final Thought

The wineries that win over the next decade won’t be the ones with the best wine.

They’ll be the ones that create the strongest emotional connection to their guests. They are the ones that build relationships with the regulars and club members.

Because in a world full of options…People don’t always remember what they tasted, but they remember YOU.

They remember how you made them feel.