Top 8 Wineries Doing Facebook Right!

It was surprisingly difficult to write this article. This title originally was “Top 10 Wineries Doing Facebook Right!” but I just couldn’t find 10 wineries. A much easier post would have been “Top 200 Wineries Doing Facebook Wrong!” I could name-names, but that wouldn’t be very fair now would it?
The thing that makes all of this worse is that the really big ones, supposedly the ones with the big marketing budgets are generally the worst offenders.

The criteria I used to decide on my top 8 wineries was as follows:

– Active updating; either every day, or every other day.
– Engagement. Is the winery connecting with their fans, or are they just blasting out sell messages, trying to get people to buy.
– Quality of content. Does the winery post interesting and fun content (a combination of self created and outside links).
– The number of Page fans had nothing to do with the selection process.

With all of that being said, here are my top 8 wineries doing Facebook right (in no particular order):

Caymus

Strengths:

Caymus is the comeback kid! I remember when I first checked out their Facebook Page, probably a little over a year ago, and they had fans posting all types of questions and comments, with zero response from the winery.
However, since Frank Gutierrez was hired in the position of Social Media Manager & Filmmaker at Caymus Vineyards, their content has gone from strength to strength. The quality of their videos are stunning, and they engage with all comments on their page.

Click here for the Caymus Facebook Page

Chateau Montelena

Strengths:

Just an all round good page. Lots of interesting content, with very few posts of a “shameless self promotion” nature. They also recently started using the Facebook Deals feature, providing all check-in’s with 50% off their wine tasting.

Click here for the Chateau Montelena Facebook Page

Jordan

Strengths:

The photos taken from inside the vineyard seem to be their strong point, attracting the most likes from fans. The content on the Jordan Facebook Page is classy and stays true to the brand. My advice to them is don’t be afraid to have a little fun!

Click here for the Jordan Facebook Page

Mollydooker

Strengths:

With most winemakers handing the sole responsibility of their Social Media to either someone else in the business, or even a third party, it’s nice to see Sarah and Sparky Marquis posting personal content. Fans can stay updated with news of the couples’ travels around the U.S., photos of harvest and wine production, and even photos of their son Luke (the Blue Eyed Boy) competing in his go kart competitions.

Click here for the Mollydooker Facebook Page

Barefoot

Strengths:

I know what I initially said about the number of Page fans not being a factor, but in the case of Barefoot I don’t think it can be overlooked. 63,186 at the time of this article being published! Barefoot do an extremely good job of making sure that every single user is engaged with, and obviously that’s quite the task considering their fan base.
They have obviously also put a decent amount of money into custom designed apps, which look and function great, but I personally place more value on what happens on the pages’ wall. 

Click here for the Barefoot Facebook Page

Twisted Oak

Strengths:

A great fun page! Twisted Oak ran the “Bring Your Rubber Chicken to Work” photo competition for its fans to post photos of them…well…bringing a rubber chicken to work. I have no idea of the relevance, and it doesn’t matter! The main thing is that the fans embraced the idea, and obviously didn’t feel like they were simply being used to promote a brand.

Click here for the Twisted Oak Facebook Page

Wente

Strengths:

Wente uses VinoVisit so that you can book tastings in advance at the Wente winery, without leaving the comfort of Facebook. Very cool! They also have Cruvee installed, a winery specific Facebook application which allows a page to host each of it wines, tasting notes, price and ecommerce all under one tab.

Click here for the Wente Facebook Page

Flora Springs

Strengths:

Flora Springs seem it have it all covered! Custom welcome page, 2 for 1 wine tastings voucher, ecommerce, and great page interaction. Posts by both the winery and its fans are frequent, and the winery strikes a nice balance between promoting what is happening at the winery, along with interesting status updates.

Click here for the Flora Springs Facebook Page