Ep 3: Gino Colangelo Explains How to Put Your Brand in Front of the Media

06/26/24 • 42 min

What’s better than marketing your brand yourself? Getting other people to talk about your brand. The more (positive) attention you get, the easier it is to get people to try your product, and to convince distributors, retailers and the off-trade to stock it.

The man who knows more about this than just about anybody else in the US is Gino Colangeo, founder of Colangelo & Partners, which has a huge team dedicated to promoting wine and spirits and offices in New York, San Francisco and Miami.

He’s also a great storytelling and in this lively episode, Gino gives plenty of useful insights into the do’s and don’ts of spreading your message through both traditional media and social media channels:

1. Prepare yourself before you dive in

What do you need in place before you start a PR campaign? How much money? What time period do you need to plan for?

2. When to target trade media vs when to target consumer

There’s the right time to target sales channels through the trade media, and a better time to engage with consumers through mainstream press and social media. Gino offers tips on working out which channel to use and when.

3. You need targeted pitches

If your PR agency is sending out mass press releases, they may be wasting your time and money. What usually works better is the personalised pitch — but how do you get in front of those powerful gatekeepers?

4. Are you in the right place?

Everybody wants national distribution, but working state by state might be a better strategy. But in this case, how do you know which states to tackle first?

5. You need social media

Brands that don’t have a social media presence lack credibility. Gino explains why.

All this and more in this very insightful and fast-paced episode.

1. Prepare yourself before you dive in

What do you need in place before you start a PR campaign? How much money? What time period do you need to plan for?

2. When to target trade media vs when to target consumer

3. You need targeted pitches

4. Are you in the right place?

Everybody wants national distribution, but working state by state might be a better strategy. But in this case, how do you know which states to tackle first?

5. You need social media

Brands that don’t have a social media presence lack credibility. Gino explains why.

All this and more in this very insightful and fast-paced episode.

Previous Episode

Ep 1: An Overview of the US Beverage Market With Kaleigh Theriault, NielsenIQ

The U.S. beverage market is the most lucrative in the world — if your product is a hit, your money worries will (mostly) be over. But the post-pandemic market is undergoing a structural shift, with beverage alcohol declining and consumers wanting new flavors on a regular basis.

In this episode, Kaleigh Theirault of NielsenIQ tracks the changes, from the rise of canned cocktails to the emergence of new categories:

1. Why and how consumers are moving to the off-premise

At-home consumption of wine, beer, spirits and other drinks is rising. Is this just because people are still overstocked from the pandemic? Or is there something deeper going on?

2. Consumers are divided

The economy is great — for some people. Those people are out enjoying themselves, lining the bar and filling restaurant seats. Another group feels like they’re falling behind. The drinks preferences of both groups are diverging.

3. More choices, more fragmentation

Back in the pre-pandemic days, consumers would think of themselves primarily as wine drinkers, beer drinkers, or as belonging to some other category. But as choices have widened, the mental barriers have fallen, and consumers are now ready to try everything — with consequences for producers.

4. Things are speeding up

To capture consumers, producers have to work harder and faster. New flavors, new products and new offerings of all kinds. As the product cycle shortens, how can producers keep up?

5. Wine consumption is falling

While older consumers still reach for their Cabernet and Chardonnay, younger consumers prefer cocktails. Is this just a short-term trend — or is it structural?

All this and more in one fact-packed episode.

Next Episode

Ep 5: How Great Design Leads to Higher Sales With Drinks Specialist Rowena Curlewis

Rowena Curlewis is the woman behind some of the most iconic designs in the drinks space — not only has she worked on brands like Penfolds and 19 Crimes, but she recently created the labels for Dolly Wines, the first wines released by legend Dolly Parton.

Rowena is, with Margaret Nolan, the co-founder of Denomination Design, a brand design agency headquartered in Sydney, with offices in San Francisco and London.

In this conversation, she covers everything from current trends, to collaborations with fashion designers, to how to make a bottle stand out:

1. Connect through storytelling

Storytelling takes consumers down a path where they will fall in love with your brand. Authenticity is an important quality signal.

2. The name is everything

How will the product look on a wine list? When it’s written up on a chalkboard? Does the name jump out? Is it easy to pronounce? All these things will prompt the customer to buy it.

3. If you can get the consumer to pick up the bottle...

...it’s now much more likely that they will buy the product. If they like it, they’re more likely to buy it again, because once they’ve handled it, they’ve built a sensory memory around it that will give them a feeling of trust.

4. Design differently for the dark

If your product is going to be served in a dark bar at night, you need to consider how the bartender or sommelier will find it. Spirits brands are very good at creating distinctive shapes, so that people can tell what the bottle is, just by touch.

5. Don’t forget the capsule

The capsule does a lot more work than people realise, particularly if the bottle is going to sit in an ice bucket, or it’s going to poke from a rack. The capsule may be the only thing that customers get to see, so use that space effectively.

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