Customer Care Series: The Tasting Room Experience
I am the Harpy of Customer Service – I nitpick and critique every single aspect, from the attire of the server to the upkeep of the location to the music volume – because all of these elements are integral to the customer experience!
This weekend I had the opportunity to visit several Walla Walla tasting rooms and have to say – I was TRES impressed. The wine being poured was delicious, but more impressive was the fact that each tasting room had gone above and beyond to create character and ambiance, and the wine was poured by knowledgeable, friendly staff. Though I didn’t get the privilege of tasting with The Winemaker in any of the locations I visited, I was able to taste with the winemaker’s wife at Trust Cellars, and the assistant winemaker at Chateau Rollat, among others.
Here is a list of Dos and Don’ts when it comes to the Tasting Room Experience.
DO:
- Have a personality
- Play music, but at a reasonable volume
- Acknowledge visitors as they enter your tasting room, even if you are slammed with tasters.
- Staff your tasting room with people who know about wine (this seems like a no-brainer but alas… I have stumbled across far too many clueless attendants in my tasting history)
- Encourage discussion about the wine in your tasting room! Ask questions, share what you taste, and connect with your visitors on a personal level as well!
- Let people in your tasting room know about sales and specials – both with signage and with well-trained tasting room staff! Believe me, we want to know what is “Hot on the Menu” when we walk through the doors.
- Keep the tasting room clean. Seriously.
- (if you are close to several wineries) Offer to hold on to wine purchases behind the counter while your visitors taste at neighboring wineries so they don’t have to lug a half-case or multiple bottles all over town!
DON’T:
- Use jargon or technical terms unless you are prepared to explain it in layman’s terms.
- Over pour! Nothing ruins a tasting experience like the drunk guy sloshing wine all over your sleeve, or the shrieking laughter of a couple of old gal friends who’ve been tasting all day!
- Be afraid to brag a little – share recent awards, scores, photos of events at the winery, and give your visitors a look at the inside “doings” at your winery!
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October 23rd, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Yes! I agree with all of this. The thing is, if people don’t like you, they probably won’t like the wine (as much as they might have on its own merit). So be real. And remember that every customer wants to feel special. We’re in an age of luxury tastes and people want individualized service. Challenging? Yes. Impossible? Absolutely not. Treat everyone as a person, no matter how tired you are of spouting the same spiel. Has this person in front of you, trying these wines, a potential customer… has this person heard this information before? Do they want to hear it? It’s true, you are here to serve when you’re in the tasting room. So please, please, please, don’t try to impress anyone. Just make “the people” feel special. I’m serious. And do this for two reasons. 1) Tasters tend be better behaved when they’re well served, and 2) they’ll be more likely to buy. Customers want an experience. Give it to them. And make sure it’s a good one.