How To Use Text Messaging To Communicate With Your Wine and Bottle Shop Clients

While owning a wine or bottle shop can be an enjoyable and thrilling experience, it also comes with a variety of challenges. New wines and spirits premiere often, your clients are eager to try them and effective communication with hundreds of customers can present growing pains for your new business. A young, hip clientele has moved beyond email communication and likely uses texting as its main form of keeping up with food and drink trends. CanaryTEXT can help you take advantage of this with customizable features that allow you to communicate a variety of important information to an audience whose tastes are constantly changing.

The Importance of App Technology 

Many businesses use apps to offer their customers special deals, information about sales and to announce when new products become available. Some companies are phasing out email newsletters because many people, especially the millennial generation, prefer to text and use apps rather than open emails. As app technology changes, keeping up with the way your clients access information can improve the overall health of your business.

CanaryTEXT can provide you with a variety of texting functions as you build your client list. As customers visit your wine or bottle shop, request that they sign up for text messages that will inform them about sales, in-store deals and events and other exclusive information. Thanks to the many options for group texting offered by the app, your clients can pick and choose which messages they want to receive. This may improve your relationship with them in a variety of ways, including:

The sooner you start using CanaryTEXT, the faster you can start building an effective business relationship with your clients, those individuals who make up the backbone of your wine or bottle shop.

Forming a Marketing Plan 

There are several ways that this app can help you market your wine and bottle shop to those who have signed up for your messages. Before you begin, however, it is wise to form a plan so you do not send texts at random or at times where it might inconvenience your clients. When you first sign up for TextCANARY, decide which features will best assist you. For example, if you want to send mass texts to all your customers about a sale, add all your contacts to one tag, which will create a group. If some customers ask that you only send them messages about certain deals, create a tag that will separate them from the rest. Some suggested tag names are “30% off or more,” “weekly deals” and “holiday specials.”

As you create groups with TextCANARY, explore the app’s different features to ensure you are reaching as many people as possible, especially since you can create as many groups as you want. You can even contact individuals within different groups or add and subtract names as your needs change. The overall flexibility of the app and how it allows you to personalize each feature can help you communicate with your clients in a way that is both simple and effective.

Choosing a Tone 

Sending out messages to promote your wine and bottle shop can have more impact on the recipients if you use a tone they can relate to. It can be difficult to interpret certain tones, so it is best to choose one and stick with it. Consider being professional but accessible as well, so your clients are not hesitant to reach out if they are looking for a certain wine or spirit. Avoid appearing too informal, as your clients may wonder if you are not taking your shop seriously. This means steering clear of texting abbreviations and slang when you can.

As you choose a tone for your CanaryTEXT marketing campaign, consider the overall nature of your business. Is it casual? Does it reflect a certain urban or rural aesthetic? Your customers might expect the tone of your messages to match the vibe they experience when they visit your store, so this can be an important point as you work to build your campaign. Do not be afraid to experiment with tone so you can discover one your clients enjoy and can relate to.

Scheduling Messages 

CanaryTEXT allows you to schedule messages, just as you would with an email service. This can help you plan out your promotional content and give you the chance to edit it when needed. You can schedule texts that wish your clients happy holidays or let them know about in-store events well in advance, such as wine tastings. You can even host virtual events and contests to offer your clients extra perks. If you plan to host events in-store, you can let your customers know important information such as the date and time, as well as what they can expect when they attend. Text promotions can help to build excitement for these events.

Using the scheduling feature may also help you save time when it comes to running your business. You can prepare messages for delivery on days when you have less free time, such as on inventory or product delivery day. The more messages you can schedule ahead of time, the less you may have to worry about sending out promotional texts when you are short on time. Try to schedule certain messages on the same day each month so your clients can expect news about the latest offerings in your wine or bottle store.

Focus on Customer Service 

Customers are the heart and soul of your wine or bottle shop, so putting them first can be a pathway to success. There are several strategies for providing sterling customer service, including:

• Building a personal relationship with customers 
• Offering what the competition cannot 
• Resolving any problems quickly and courteously 

CanaryTEXT can help you achieve these customer service points with its wide variety of features, no matter the size of your contact list.

If you offer delivery options for your products, using this app can give your clients a forum for communication in case there are any issues with the delivery. Lost orders, broken bottles upon arrival and delayed orders all may occur, and allowing CanaryTEXT to deliver messages from the app to your phone’s messaging feature can help you resolve these issues right away. You can toggle this feature off and on based on your hours of availability, which allows you to set service boundaries without isolating your customers. Another advantage of using a personal messaging app is that you can resolve problems in private instead of over social media, where others might try to involve themselves and make the issue much larger than it originally was.

Create Subscription Groups 

One possible way to increase your revenue is to create a wine or spirit of the month club, where customers sign up to have a new bottle of liquor delivered to their doorstep each month. You can add certain additional perks to this club, such as offering a discount on the customer’s second purchase of the same wine or spirits after trying the delivered bottle. This gives your clients a personalized experience that they might talk about on their social media, increasing your marketing reach via word of mouth.

Using CanaryTEXT to create your subscription group has several possible benefits. First, it allows those in the group to contact you directly via text with any questions about their membership. You can also send special deals for members only, and remind your clients about monthly subscription payments or contact them quickly if you have any issues with their payment information. Use the app’s custom templates to create monthly invoices and ensure that each member has paid in full before you send out a new bottle.

Schedule Seasonal Messages 

Wines and spirits make fine holiday gifts, so creating and scheduling seasonal messages can help you promote your bottle shop. Remind your customers about special sales, events and which wines and spirits tend to sell quickly. Send out messages for Christmas, New Year’s Eve and the 4th of July, when gatherings are most common.

If you decide to use Canary TEXT to send out seasonal messages and offers, remember to be inclusive and ask your customers upon signing up whether they wish to receive them. You can schedule seasonal texts well in advance to save time if you find yourself busier than usual over the holiday season.

Create Promotional Groups 

Much like subscription groups, promotional groups offer your clients perks they cannot find at other wine or spirit stores. You can think of this type of promotion as a “punch card” style club, where clients receive additional discounts or a freebie after spending a certain amount of money. These clubs can make your customers feel special and encourage them to spend more at one time so they reach the promotional amount.

Creating a promotional text group with CanaryTEXT can make it simple to alert your clients when they are close to receiving their latest promotion. You can use a ready-made template when creating your message so your customers know why they are getting the text. You can also create your own templates to give the recipients a personalized experience.

Announce New Arrivals 

Many people enjoy trying new wines and spirits, especially if they find their tastes tend to change depending on food pairings. Wineries often release new offerings in the spring and fall, when the changing of the seasons encourages people to celebrate with flavors that match. Announcing new arrivals to your physical or online store can give your profits a boost.

CanaryTEXT can help you reach as many people as possible about your new arrivals. Include as much information as you can without making the message too bulky, such as selections, brands and pricing, as well as any specials you plan to run. Remember to let your clients know they can contact you if they have any questions about the new arrivals.

Create a Call To Action 

You can let your clients know your intentions by creating a strong call to action within your message. Include a link to your store’s website and use verbs such as “click,” “learn” or “see” to catch the reader’s attention. The clearer your message, the more apt you are to gain success from your CanaryTEXT media marketing plan.

When you create a call to action, aim to make it both concise and exciting. One example might be, “See our new selection of wines from some of your favorite labels,” or “Learn about this week’s specials for club members only!” You can practice before you craft and schedule your message within the app so you feel more confident about its contents.

Additional Texting Tips 

Text marketing can be effective if you take your time in planning messages and tracking what kind of responses you get. As you use CanaryTEXT, ask your clients what they like best about the messages and what they might like to see in the future. You might also ask whether the messaging campaign influences their buying habits, as crafting your promotional texts based on buying trends can increase your profits.

Changing wording and tone for each message you send might only confuse the recipients, so choose someone on your staff who is willing and clever about crafting them. Avoid isolating certain age groups with trendy language and remain as accessible as possible. Remember to message consistently, as it may take some time for the promotion to catch on.

CanaryTEXT is not just for customers; you can also use it to create a contact list of employees, vendors and other individuals who are vital to the operation of your business. So can send important messages about special wine deliveries, if weather conditions will affect the hours of your physical location and about employee schedules. This type of messaging is usually simpler and more effective than emails, especially if you need one of your employees to take action in real time.

Your wine or bottle store is likely your largest investment, and the right kind of promotional text campaign can mean the difference between amping up your profits and barely breaking even. Check out all the features CanaryTEXT can offer you and make a giant promotional splash with your customers.