Many thanks to Moonshine University for featuring my piece on #wine and #craftspirits #branding on their blog! bit.ly/3i92H1x

If you want to incentivize people, you must dangle cake not carrots! Can you recall a #wine #spirits #salesperson that was excited about an incentive program? An incentive program that no one is excited about isn’t really an incentive program, is it? bit.ly/2Wp8NCs

Leverage comes from doing things that computers and other people cannot. It also comes from having a long-term mentality. Cashiers and order board admins think in shifts, #salespeople in months, #managers in quarters. Extend your time horizon. bit.ly/3yok18j

If you missed last week's #hardseltzer piece on Ah So Insights (which was for paid subscribers only), you can now read it in full on the Moonshine University blog. bit.ly/2VzT9nC

“Can our sales team work remotely?” is just a way of avoiding the thornier question: “should our sales team be allowed to work remotely?” We already know that #wine #spirits sales reps can work remotely. bit.ly/3ly6QOF

Employees are less willing than ever to work for companies that won’t work for them. The #wine and #spirits industry needs to reckon with what this means. The appeal of “expanding one’s palate” isn’t as great as the promise of affordable healthcare. bit.ly/3xCen1p

While #somms and beverage directors rightfully bemoan the loss of creative freedom and diversity that larger #wine and #cocktail lists afforded, the implications for #distributors have been largely unaddressed. Smaller lists raise the stakes. Here's how. bit.ly/2VIoVPc

The #wine and #spirit trade relies on externalities (underpaid farm labor, uninsured hospitality/retail workers, disenfranchisement of BIPOC, LBTGQ+ in wholesale) to subsidize its costs. It's time for the cost of business to increase. bit.ly/3k0r15q

Who looks forward to #salesmeetings? What if meetings had narratives or themes that made them memorable and engaging? What if meetings were peer-reviewed? What if meetings were designed to serve #salespeoples' needs rather than the company’s wants? bit.ly/37Yfa2b

A #wine and #spirit portfolio will always be missing something. The emphasis on rounding out a selection based on limited criteria is a kind of FOMO. When you prioritize “fill” over “fit” you end up with an incohesive portfolio. #winedistributor bit.ly/387fQm3

Nothing sells like the promise of being let in on the best thing the rest of the world has yet to discover. There’s only one problem. There are no secrets. #wine #spirits #cocktails #wineindustry bit.ly/2Y2VzMF

My new piece on SevenFifty Daily on "Why alcohol brands should think less about going viral—and more about creating value, building trust, and making sure you’re discoverable across the supply chain" #winessales #wineandspirits #marketing #brandbuilding bit.ly/3t9n4zG

.Scott Rosenbaum' article on building a beverage alcohol brand is a must-read for importers and producers who want to be discoverable in the ecommerce era. Check out the first article from the Ah So Insights CEO in his forthcoming series in SevenFifty Daily. hubs.ly/H0Wj3fc0

Why brands need to understand the broad marketplace, according to Scott Rosenbaum’s Scott Rosenbaum. hubs.ly/H0XcfD30

Solving a customer’s problem is not the same thing as making them happy. Management’s wants are not the same as the market’s needs. A company’s success is not the same as its employees’ morale. And 6 other false equivalencies... bit.ly/3CHEze2

The idea that the #wine and #spirit business is a "relationship business" is paid a lot of lip service. But if #relationships matter, then shouldn’t as much time be spent discussing organizational psychology as the Crus of Beaujolais? #winebusiness bit.ly/3DdgUlH

Companies are happy to indulge our collective distaste for talking about $. Lack of transparency helps companies arbitrage compensation so that they can pay some more and many less. Here's the latest on the compensation of wine and spirit professionals. bit.ly/3BQF1WY

Wine and spirit professionals must be skeptical of any company, brand, or product that claims its shine will last forever. Ask: 1. Is the decline is transitory? 2. Is the decline is representative of your own reduced performance or the company’s? bit.ly/2ZdyS8S

In the #wineandspirits business, regulation and the concentration of capital have produced inequities that provide leverage to one party over another. This doesn't mean those in power take all the cake; they just tend to cut themselves larger slices. bit.ly/3BHFyKb

As family-run companies mature, the number of decision-makers with the same last name tends to increase; the backgrounds of those at top of the company hierarchy become homogenous. This stifles diversity in an industry that already lags behind others. bit.ly/3bEeC3t