WineTok: What you need to know right now.
We need to talk about TikTok. Today– March 22, 2022– the San Francisco Chronicle published a great article about the rise of wine influencers on TikTok while sort of touching on how the platform stacks up against Instagram and that it may be the key to winning over the elusive Millennial generation.
HOWEVER, what the article doesn't necessarily make very clear is just how tricky the “WineTok” waters are to navigate. While its 💯 clear that the wine industry is historically slow to adapt, it's not 💯 the wine industry's fault for not jumping on the TikTok wagon. In all fairness, there have been plenty of shiny new social media toys and digital trends that emerged during COVID. Remember when everyone just LOVED Zoom Happy Hours and were clamoring for an invite to Clubhouse 😱
So before you start thinking you need to make up a new dance like the Sauvignon Blanc Shake (you heard that here first) or become the next breakout DuoLingo star, here are a few important things to keep in perspective:
🍷 Like with most social media platforms, there is a VERY big difference between being a Creator vs. a Brand (aka an actual Winery) on the platform. In the context of Instagram, think of this as having a Creator account vs. a Professional account vs. a Personal account. If you have no idea what that means, take a beat and read up.
🍷 Because of the percentage of users that are LDA (aka 21+ Legal Drinking Age) vs. not, there are explicit guidelines from the TTB that dictate what digital platforms brands should & should not be on. Let's save the TTB's archaic approach to marketing as a whole for a different post. Bottom line: *technically* it's against Federal rules to advertise on TikTok according to the TTB. That means if you are currently a winery and are active on the platform, you COULD get fined. You can bore yourself to sleep and read more here.
🍷 While Creators on the platform, like the fabulous Somm_Vivant among others, can create content that may feature responsible consumption of alcohol, talk about their favorite wineries, teach wine lovers a thing or two– when it comes to monetizing their account it's a whole new ball game. Based on TikTok’s current policies, Alcohol is a Globally Prohibited Industry. Translation: if Creators are monetizing their alcohol-centric content, they are technically in violation of the platform policies. Alas, like their counterparts at Meta, the consistency of actually enforcing these policies is a total mixed bag. Creators and Wineries alike: proceed with caution if you are making backdoor deals in an attempt to skirt the rules.
🍷 All of the above is a very U.S.-centric point of view and the rules vary from the USA vs. Canada vs. the rest of the world! Meaning, for many international wineries TikTok opens up a whole new world of regulation headaches.
SOOoOOoo, until TikTok can publish real data on the 21+ crowd who is using the platform and update its community + advertising policies– don't beat yourself up for not having a TikTok strategy beyond "hold my glass, please" just yet.
That said, if you like to experiment with your marketing as much as you like to experiment in the cellar, here is what you SHOULD be doing as a Winery (aka Brand) when it comes to TikTok:
🍷 Identify and monitor Creators on the platform who are talking about wine. What wineries are they talking about? What kind of content seems to be performing the best? Introduce yourself. Make nice with them. Send them wine. Invite them to visit. No strings attached, of course.
🍷 Keep a watchful eye out for mentions of your winery on the platform. You need to know what people are (or aren’t) saying.
🍷 Have someone on your team that is PERSONALLY really hyped about TikTok? Let them run [kind of] wild. But set clear boundaries and expectations that should the platform rules change, what will or won’t happen to the ownership of the account, the continuation of content, and their involvement.
🍷 Be ready. I have SO many thoughts, ideas, plans, and what-ifs rattling around my brain and jotted in notebooks when it comes to how wineries can crush the TikTok game when it officially becomes go time. But until then, keep tabs on and take advantage of the crossover power of content between TikTok trends and Instagram Reels. And if you need someone to help with that, get in touch.
P.S. As mentioned above and as anyone who works in the social media space, platform policies and features change as frequently as newborns require feedings and diaper changes. What applies today will most definitely not be applicable in the future.