Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/10329
FROM THE EDITOR CALABASAS, CA 7 P.M. JUNE 19, 2010 2 P.M. TO All Kidding t Aside here are 80 million “Millennials” in this country and, like it or not, they have a huge impact on the wine and spirits market. Millennials are defi ned as consumers who have discretionary money to spend but who are no more than 30 years old. Actually, of the large number in the United States, 20 million haven’t even reached legal drinking age yet. The remaining 60 million are a potent force—seriously enamored of wine and bars. Unlike generations before them, these young’uns don’t bother with entry level wines such as White Zinfandel or cocktails such as Long Island Iced Tea; they have plunged right in and embraced red wine and Mojitos. Wine and spirits people are eager to sell their products to this group but are faced with a huge communication problem: Traditional advertising channels are not an effi cient way to reach these kids. Most of them never pick up a newspaper or a magazine, and most of them don’t watch network television (except for Glee and American Idol). What they do pay attention to are social media. What are social media? (818) 217 - 0024 VALLEYWINEFESTIVAL.COM FOR MORE INFORMATION: The term is defi ned as “Internet- and mobile-based tools for sharing and discussing information among human beings.” What makes social media so different is that a) their content is easily generated by anyone who wants to participate and b) the discussions and exchanges are peer-to-peer—authority fi gures need not apply. At the new media seminar I moderated at VINO 2010 in January, the topic of social media was very much in the fore, with many in the room trying to learn about selling wine in the new media environment. Each social media site has a different base and involves different procedures. The major social media sites are Facebook (the most used), YouTube (videos-based), Twitter (the liveliest and most voracious), MySpace (like Facebook, but more music), LinkedIn, Plaxo and Spoke (all three of these skew much older). Each of them requires time and effort; you have to become involved in order to get results. If you are going to attempt to play in this new territory, a commit- ment is necessary. You have to stay on top of what you post and do it frequently. If you’re intimidated by the newness and open-endedness of social media, ask an expert. Ask your kids. PHOTO: CATHY TWIGG-BLUMEL