As I sort through the stack of business cards from Vinexpo New York City on my desk – and try to put faces to names – I can’t help but think of the dozens of brands and people I met that would be great partners for Astra Digital Marketing! It’s no surprise because when I entered the conference on my first day, I could hear the voice of my CEO, Ron Scharman, in my head saying, “Be strategic and show these people what success can look like with digital marketing!” What is Vinexpo? Vinexpo is one of the largest exhibitions for wine and spirit professionals held in Bordeaux, Hong Kong, Shanghai ..read more

  You probably have heard this story a hundred times – a fresh, college graduate navigating through the job market trying to land his first job. It’s a story that’s been told so many times that even the Lifetime Channel wouldn’t make a movie about this. Well, thanks to the heteronormative narrative and the homogeneous cultural representation in the media, there is still a place for me, a gay international person of color, to tell my story. So, grab some wine and popcorn and hop on this journey with me. I was a smart, hard-working student in college. To my credit, I spent countless hou ..read more

With the holidays quickly approaching, it’s time to start thinking about how your brand can successfully utilize the most popular shopping months of the year. October, November, and December (or OND, as we call it around here) is the ideal time to make your year-end sales goals and provide enticing deals for your customers. Give us 5 minutes of your time, and we will give you 5 tips on how you can make the most out of this holiday season. Happy OND planning! Step 1: Create a Calendar Which holiday sales will you be participating in this year? Take a look at your revenue from last year to det ..read more

1. ADA Compliance on Your Website The American Disabilities Act states that businesses must facilitate full and equal access to “goods, services, facilities and accommodations” for all individuals. In what capacity that extends into the digital realm has come into recent question. By the logic that there are more and more online-only businesses and that even businesses with a physical location receive an increasing amount of website traffic, this digital point of business nests itself within the “accommodations” category. There have been a few lawsuits directed at major retailers in recent ye ..read more

Written by Guest Author: Sophia Young There is no slower adopter of digital marketing and e-commerce than the wine industry. Though wine is among the most ubiquitous of all alcoholic drinks, second only to beer, it lags in its e-commerce efforts as a sector. We’re not talking about the big companies here, but rather the small and medium-sized wineries and tasting rooms out there. There are many reasons why wineries fail at e-commerce, which is a sad reality for a market with almost inexhaustible demand in its target audience. Here’s why our industry and community are taking its sweet time wit ..read more

It’s summer in Napa and man, is it sweet. Sweet like the grape-infused breeze. Sweet like the morning dew in the wheat fields. And sweeter than ever, considering the lockdown we’ve all experienced for over a year and a half. Everyone looks happier, feels bubblier, and has relaxed their work-from-home shoulders a few inches. With tasting rooms open again (Yay!), our team has been able to dial back on the excessive content creation and, if you could believe it, open one of the books on our sad, neglected shelves. Summer reading is back and better than ever, but not without the appropriate bevera ..read more

Pretty much every nook and cranny could use a Spring Cleaning. Overflowing closets, the kitchen junk drawer, purses and backpacks, neglected areas of the backyard, and even your various digital marketing channels. Especially after the long winter months of holiday content, all of our social media accounts and websites could use a breath of fresh, non-Christmas scented air. The problem is Spring Cleaning is intimidating. It’s at the bottom of your to-do list from January to March because it just seems so daunting. But as with most things in life and digital marketing, the devil is in the detail ..read more

Investing in Future Growth in Digital 2020 is now receding in our rearview mirror, and 2021 is about to hit us right between the eyes. Usually, businesses go through years of transition in making changes to the way they do business. Thanks to Covid, this year has been one of rapid transformation rather than transition. The Old World has become the New World before our eyes. Not surprising that when the survival of one’s business is at stake, we look at all reasonable options for staying afloat, even if it means navigating in uncharted waters. In this case, I am referring to digital marketing ..read more

As a digital marketer, I’m honestly surprised at the amount of mail I get. It’s like, we’re still doing this? Sending out offers on paper to people’s homes? But then as a normal person who grew up with the mail being a part of my home life, the honest to God truth is — if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Here are some stats from February of 2020…   Source    When was the last time you received mail (that wasn’t from a friend or family member) that you enjoyed? Something from a business that actually was interesting to read or brought you some value? That wasn’t a clear piece of ga ..read more

Our latest webinar was all about Video Marketing, and we’ve turned it into a blog for all you avid readers. This is our Video Team’s step-by-step guide on making a video come to life, then how to use it to sell your wine. You can watch our recorded presentation on our YouTube channel   Why is video relevant to the wine industry?  It works. Recent consumer studies show that video outperforms all other forms of marketing, except for sharing a warm smile, a great story, and a glass of wine in your tasting room. And running a wine business during a Pandemic has taught us that there are ..read more