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Salesforce.com helps boutique wine business say 'thank you'

Bespoke Collection uses the cloud-hosted customer relationship management platform to manage interactions with both distributors and individual buyers.
Written by Heather Clancy, Contributor
Bespoke

When was the last time you or your team thanked someone personally for buying one of your company's products or services?

This is something that Bespoke Collection, a boutique wine company in California's Napa Valley that include several different vineyards as well as one in Argentina, makes sure it does for every transaction, regardless of whether the order comes from an individual buyer or from a long-time distributor or retail partner.

Recently, for example, the team noticed that a significant customer was planning a visit to one of its locations. So it made sure that someone dropped by to greet that person, in person.

"Our business is so much about relationships, that we wanted to create 'bespoke' relationships," said Paul Leary, president of the eight-year-old company.

That is to say, Bespoke focuses on creating experiences that are unique to each customer's buying needs and personal preferences, like a custom tailor who makes your "bespoke" suits or clothing to order.

The company started using the Salesforce platform approximately two years into its existence, to create a 360-degree view of its clients and to track its communications with each of them, no matter whether those interactions happen via email, print or social media.

Whenever someone enters an affiliated retail location or tasting room, that's where the profile is created. It flags which wines someone appreciates, how often he or she visits, and tracks past purchases -- things you would pretty much expect out of a CRM application. This automatically makes someone a part of the Bespoke Benefits rewards program. Ultimately, the goal is to make visitors part of the Bespoke wine club, which obviously creates a much more specific relationship, Leary said.

Right now, the 38-person company is using Salesforce to manage about 70,000 people in its client and prospect database.

"The foundation is there and we are creating demand scenarios around print and social marketing," he said.

Bespoke also uses Salesforce Chatter enterprise social network platform to help keep tabs on activity, although it remains a challenge to get everyone monitoring the information as closely as they should, Leary added. "It's a great way to talk about sales and marketing successes." 

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