Wineries of all styles and sizes — small, big, family-owned, biodynamic, you name it — have financial obligations when it comes to wine production and bottling. You know better than anyone how much wine quality and production timing can impact your brand’s success. But, as hiring support for various wineries in California, a common question we here is: How can I get ahead of the busy bottling season — to keep my production on time and avoid mistakes — all while also growing my business?
In our many years of working with successful wineries, we’ve seen several common answers to this question. Exploring one or several of the following options should help keep this year’s bottling season running smoothly.
1. Social Media Counts
Get creative with your marketing and meet your customers where they’re at. Using social media platforms is a great way to stay connected with the public, your customers, and winery guests. Platforms such as Facebook and Instagram are inexpensive ways to keep your brand front and center in a competitive market. Anything you post should steer people back to your website for more details on your winery, whether your goal is to encourage visitors to your tasting room or selling wine online.
You can also use social media to let your customers know about your winery’s events and specials. Social media is also a wonderful place to remove some of the confusion around, quite literally, how the wine gets made. Share interesting facts about the grape-growing and your bottling process, or introduce your bottling line workers to your audience to set your winery apart as an expert in the industry.
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2. Perform Necessary Sanitation
Properly cleaning and sanitizing your bottling and capping system is key to preserving flavor and consistency. As well as equipment, your sanitation protocol should include spoons, funnels, and any other utensils used in the bottling process.
3. Check in on Your Storage — Prepare and Repair as Needed
Be sure to check your storage and refrigeration systems for required maintenance, such as cleaning and replacing filters and lightbulbs. Be sure to include your refrigeration and storage system in your cleaning schedule.
And with supply chain issues still causing problems globally, securing bottling consumables such as bottles and corks well in advance can help to prevent delays in the bottling process.
4. Make Sure You’re Maximizing Your Software
If you use a software management system, check with your provider to make sure your business is getting the most out of all its features — that includes production, inventory, billing, and shipping tools. Likewise, perform recommended computer and software updates and maintenance to avoid unnecessary technical issues during bottling season.
5. Take Care of Staffing as Early as Possible
There are many jobs in which employees can train on the job, and wine production is one of them. While it’s critical that your employees are able to perform their jobs with skill, their capacity to do their jobs with passion is also important. Wine bottling requires patience and an eye for detail so be sure to hire staff that shares your work ethic. Be sure to start bottling season with success by ensuring all team members are current on training and certifications.
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Are you a winery in California in need of reliable seasonal or long-term staff? Contact Star Staffing today. We can help you explore options that fall in line with your requirements.