If you run a winery or other wine-related business, you are probably very busy. You might not have time to constantly think ahead about the kinds of images and videos you’ll need for your marketing and social media materials like I do for my clients. (I may or may not have shot holiday retail photos for a winery client back in July).

Have you ever realized a little too late that a holiday (like Labor Day?) has arrived and you need to send an email blast to your wine club, or post on your social media about it, but you don’t have any high-resolution photos that will illustrate the festive point you’re trying to make?

Many business owners and managers have been there, if they don’t have someone managing marketing or social media for them. And the key to avoiding this last minute photo scramble is: planning ahead and scheduling a photoshoot for next season. Reach out to local photographers and get the ball rolling now.

I know – it’s still 85 degrees in Washington DC, and we’re not ready to think about Fall, let alone any holiday imagery – but hear me out: by beginning to think about the kinds of high quality photos your winery or business will need in the coming months and taking those images or scheduling photoshoots accordingly, you can save yourself the stress later!

Does your winery run a Black Friday sale? Do you need images of your wine bottles for your website that evoke fall? Will you have enough new photos to share as summer ends and we transition away from #RoséAllDay poolside imagery on our feeds, to warmer, red-wine focused ‘grams?

Sure, you could snap some photos with your phone in between your other priorities. And sometimes on social media, a casual iPhone wine photo is all you need. But when it comes to website banners, email blasts, and generally creating a quality look for your wine brand, professional photography can be key. Shopify says that “more than half of online shoppers think that product photos are more important than product information, reviews, and ratings,” when making purchase decisions. If it’s important to customers, being intentional about your imagery should be important to you.

Because it takes TIME to create quality images like the seasonal scenarios I described above, it’s NOT too early to start thinking about how you’re going to obtain them for your business to share next season.

Thanks for reading! Until next week.

Meaghan Webster is a wine and food photographer, marketing consultant, and results-based social media manager for wineries in Washington, DC, Virginia, and New York. Learn more about her services at meaghanwebster.com or see her latest work and tips at instagram.com/meaghanwmarketing.

Click here to inquire about Meaghan’s wine photography services.