Design Your Own Custom AI Concierge for FREE Affordable pricing starts @ $69/mo Websites, not tasting rooms, are the first point of contact for most consumer journeys.  Still, too many merchants greet website visitors with pretty pictures and pushy pleas to share personal contact info before they’re welcomed with any semblance of hospitality. That’s why VinterActive created an AI Winery Concierge -- a multi-channel chatbot -- trained in the art and science of delivering attentive, personalized customer service 24/7. Why Add an Affordable AI Concierge to Your Team? KEY BUSINESS BENEFITS KEY MARKETING FEATURES Helps guests 24/7  Boosts wine sales Saves time & money Drives engagement Improves customer service Frees up small marketing teams to accomplish more Fully customized personas Detailed brand training Self-learning mode Compliance aware Asks for feedback Multichannel/multilingual: chatbot, standalone, mobile app, Shopify, SMS, email, In

As we move into the summer shipping season, the overall supply chain remains relatively stable – though a few indicators are beginning to shift. Here’s what we’re seeing across the key areas impacting glass packaging and logistics. Glass supply is holding steady, with no significant disruptions reported across domestic or international sources. Availability has remained neutral for several months now, though specific bottle types and molds still see some intermittent constraints. That said, there is a growing awareness in the industry of potential pressure on furnace capacity later this year. Conversations are underway about potential closures in Q4, which could result in tighter availability in early 2026 if demand remains stable or increases. Diesel prices edged downward in May, offering slight relief for overland freight. The national average fell from $3.567 per gallon in April to $3.499 in May. This small but welcome drop comes at a time when other transportation

With the hype surrounding AI, it’s hard to know what news matters to today’s DTC wine marketers. I suspect most of us tried using AI for content creation a couple of years ago.   But what has AI done for wine marketers lately, besides confusing us with too many models and few pragmatic uses? The good news is that, amid the usual noise about AI condemning us to a life of misery, the last few months have provided wine merchants with a new generation of valuable survival tools in the form of powerful AI Agents. What the Heck is an “AI Agent?” Leading business productivity tools – including Salesforce, OpenAI, JotForm, and Zapier – now offer their unique interpretations of “AI Agents” that can amplify the results of any sales or marketing team. Intriguing use cases in the wine industry include AI-powered sommeliers, social media assistants, DTC marketing management, and public-facing chatbots, all of which are empowered to represent your

Navigating the Regulatory Horizon: How Alcohol Merchants Can Adapt to Changing Compliance Landscapes

As regulatory frameworks shift throughout 2025, merchants of all sizes must prepare for still more change. By Kelly Martin Direct-to-consumer (DTC)

Over the past month, the wine industry has been caught in a whirlwind of shifting signals from the new US administration regarding tariffs. The rapid pace of change has left many wondering whether these moves are strategic negotiation tactics or actual policy changes that will directly impact pricing for wine-related goods and materials. The Trump administration initially imposed tariffs on imports from Mexico (25%), Canada (25%), and China (10%) – the White House Fact Sheet is here. While a temporary 30-day pause has been placed on tariffs for Canada and Mexico, concerns about retaliatory measures remain high. Canada, for example, had already announced 25% counter-tariffs on US goods, including alcoholic beverages – a move that could significantly impact California wineries and other US producers exporting to our northern neighbor. But it's not just the challenges with finished goods that we are concerned about; it is how tariffs will affect the packaging components li

The Future of Wine Marketing is Here What will you name your first AI Wine Marketing Agent? Wine marketers attending this week’s Unified Wine & Grape Symposium in Sacramento are in for a special treat when visiting Booth #A2715 featuring VinterActive LLC’s all-new: AI-Powered Wine Marketing Agents VinQuest™ Wine Marketing Research All-in-One SMS Signup Widget SimpleTexting for Vinoshipper, Commerce7 & WineDirect The future of wine marketing is here!  If you’ll be in Sacramento, c’mon by and say hello😊 ABOUT VINTERACTIVE Established in 2002, VinterActive LLC is a wine industry leader in the research and practice of DTC sales and marketing.  VinterActive’s award-winning PreferencePro™ automated wine marketing systems have sold millions of dollars of wine for large and small merchants across the U.S.

Works with any wine/beer/spirits website to build a compliant SMS list Want to delight customers and sell more wine using SMS but don't know where to start? No matter what you sell, job #1 is building an opt-in list of adult consumers eager to receive your texts.  That's why we built our new All-in-One SMS Signup Widget to help you get started. This affordable multi-purpose tool works with any website and any SMS provider supporting wine/beer/spirits merchants -- including industry leader SimpleTexting. Exclusive features include: Express written consent to receive SMS messages Carrier-approved age verification method Two-way text chat capabilities Customized fonts/colors/text for any wine brand Realtime sync with SimpleTexting Asynchronous integration with any SMS provider Expert support from VinterActive To see the All-in-One SMS Signup Widget in action, visit https://vinteractive.com and click the “Text Us Here” button. VinterActiv

Free Educational Resources for Winery Compliance Officers The rise of SMS messaging offers wine/beer/spirits brands a powerful tool for engaging today’s consumers with personalized opt-in text marketing.   Still, it comes with its own rules that all winery compliance managers should know. If you follow the rules set by federal/state laws and the requirements of telecom providers, SMS can give your wine brand a competitive edge by boosting sales and delighting your customers. But if you break the rules – even unknowingly – the consequences can be severe.  Just ask Papa John’s. Education is the First Step to Compliance Although opt-in text messaging is relatively new to the wine industry, the compliance requirements associated with SMS marketing are well documented.   The following links can help you start educating yourself and your colleagues about the straight-forward steps your alcohol brand can take to profit from complia

Affordable text marketing for alcohol merchants – starting @ $19/mo As competition grows, SMS wine marketing continues outperforming all other DTC channels with superior deliverability, precise targeting, higher response, and more consumer engagement for merchants embracing text messaging. That’s why VinterActive built a new 2025 lineup of SMS wine marketing tools, making it easier than ever for alcohol merchants to profit from text messaging with compliant tools starting @ $19/mo.   Meet Our 2025 All-Star Team A perfect way to start building a compliant list of opt-in SMS contacts Great for sending club updates & outbound sales promotions Real-time integration with Vinoshipper, Commerce7, or WineDirect Too busy to manage SMS marketing? Let VinterActive handle the details Starting @ $19/mo Starting @ $39/mo Starting @ $59/mo Starting @ $699/mo VinterActive - Providing the Right Tools for the Job Text marketing for alcohol merchants

Afternoon Brief: NASEM Report Affirms Benefits of Moderate Drinking

The first of the two alcohol studies that will inform American drinking guidelines has been released...