How Much Should Wineries Invest in DTC Marketing for Growth?
Many clients have asked me how much revenue they should dedicate to DTC marketing for wineries. Some are unsure about which benchmarks to follow. Others hesitate because they fear overspending or minimal returns. I’ve spent nearly a decade in finance, including 4 years at Grupo Peñaflor and 5 years advising Napa Valley wineries and emerging CPG brands at BBG. I tell them all the same thing: look to SaaS for inspiration.
The following breakdown explains how to build a sustainable DTC marketing budget and measure performance. My goal is to share practical steps for winery digital marketing investments that help you flourish in DTC markets.
Why DTC Marketing for Wineries Is Critical
A DTC model sets your winery apart by placing you in closer contact with your audience. Selling this way often translates to stronger margins and the chance to gather valuable data on who purchases, how frequently they reorder, and which wines stand out. Traditional distribution is great for scale but can eat into profitability and create barriers between you and your buyers. When you focus on your own e-commerce platform or wine club, you own those relationships and control how you communicate with your customers.
Some wineries approach DTC marketing with caution because fully embracing it calls for substantial spending on technology, digital ads, or specialized staff. Although it may feel intimidating, especially compared to better-funded industries, the payoff can be significant. Customers who interact with you directly often show stronger brand loyalty and become repeat purchasers who spread the word among friends.
How SaaS Marketing Benchmarks Apply to Winery Marketing Benchmarks
Many SaaS companies dedicate up to 50% of their revenue to sales and marketing. That level of spending might seem out of reach, but SaaS teams focus aggressively on attracting and retaining subscribers. A winery with a big wine club or loyal fan base can think of its audience in similar terms. If you treat members as subscribers, you’ll track the cost to acquire new ones and compare it to their potential lifetime value.
A Different Funding Reality
SaaS businesses tend to operate with venture capital, which allows them to spend more aggressively, even if profits lag at first. Wineries rarely enjoy that cushion. Owners must balance marketing investments against immediate operational costs, which can feel stressful. The same metrics still help, though.
Even a modest increase in DTC spending, anchored by data on customer acquisition cost and lifetime value, can deliver more stability and confidence. You simply set a budget that feels comfortable and then measure results. If your CAC remains low relative to each buyer’s LTV, that additional spend looks worthwhile over time.
The Subscription Mindset
Wineries sometimes underestimate the subscription aspect of wine club memberships or repeat buyers. In practice, anyone who comes back several times a year — and sticks around — is similar to a software subscriber who renews an annual plan. That’s why LTV matters so much. If a devoted customer yields $1,000 in lifetime revenue, you can justify spending a fraction of that amount to attract them.
SaaS benchmarks remind us that marketing is an investment rather than a discretionary expense. Even smaller wineries can channel a percentage of revenue into landing pages, strategic ads, email funnels, or content outreach. As results take shape, you can adjust your budget upward or downward without overextending your resources.
Setting a DTC Marketing Budget
Many wineries start by earmarking 10%-20% of annual revenue for marketing. Steeper targets in the 30%-40% range might work if you plan to expand aggressively or introduce a new varietal line.
Picture a winery producing $2 million in annual revenue. If that operation currently devotes 5% of its budget to marketing, membership in its wine club may remain flat, and tasting room traffic might rely heavily on word-of-mouth. Raising the budget to 15% — $300,000 — opens possibilities like website upgrades, omnichannel ads, email automations, and outsourced marketing expertise. As soon as these efforts launch, owners typically track each channel’s results to see if acquisition costs stay below LTV.
Goals often guide how you split that budget. Perhaps you aim to grow your wine club by 25% or launch a line that appeals to a younger audience. These targets determine which marketing channels you prioritize and how much to spend on each. You might invest more in influencers or social media if your new audience spends much of its time online. Spikes around holidays, harvest releases, and local events usually justify short-term increases to your marketing budget as well.
Analyze Marketing ROI for Long-Term Success
A clear view of ROI in direct-to-consumer marketing strategies for wineries keeps your spending focused. Tracking a few core metrics reveals where to boost resources and where to pull back:
Customer acquisition cost. Divide your total marketing spend over a set period by the number of newly acquired customers. If CAC climbs too high and sales don’t follow suit, consider adjusting your channels or creative approach.
Lifetime value. Estimate the total net profit per customer throughout their relationship with you. When a large wine club segment buys every quarter for 3 years, their LTV generally justifies a higher CAC.
Conversion rates. Watch how many visitors or email subscribers turn into paying customers. If a social media campaign produces lots of clicks but few sales, a tweak in messaging might raise conversions.
Average order value. Measure how much each customer typically spends per transaction. AOV offers insights into whether certain campaigns or product bundles encourage larger purchases.
Retention rate. Calculate the percentage of customers who return for multiple purchases or renew a wine club membership to measure the effectiveness of content marketing, loyalty programs, follow-up emails, and promotional events that keep buyers engaged.
SaaS companies rely on data to fine-tune their budgets in real time. Wineries can adopt a similar mindset by reviewing key metrics across each marketing channel. If an approach doesn’t bring in enough loyal customers, shift that budget toward the platforms or tactics with stronger returns. Perhaps Facebook ads spark plenty of click-throughs but minimal wine club sign-ups. In that case, shift spend to targeted emails or partner with influencers to yield better returns.
Long-term success depends on detecting underperforming strategies before they drain resources and stall growth. Regular checkups on the marketing ROI for wineries clarify which audiences respond best and reveal emerging opportunities for upselling or cross-promoting. I always tell winery clients to view each outreach effort through the lens of real performance data to help them stay agile and maintain meaningful engagement with wine club members and newcomers alike.
Lessons From SaaS: Digital and Content Marketing Strategies for Wineries
I’ve always admired SaaS companies for their use of data, content, predictive analytics, and automation. Wineries can adopt those methods in several ways. For instance, writing about your vineyard’s story and or this season’s harvest builds credibility and draws traffic from search engines. Paid ads can help you target distinct segments, while CRM tools track which wines each shopper prefers. Even small automations, such as welcome emails or reactivation messages for lapsed club members, free up your team’s time and strengthen ongoing relationships.
What’s more, SaaS businesses prioritize user retention from day one. They track every customer's journey, gather feedback about product experiences, monitor usage patterns, and refine processes that keep subscription churn low. Wineries can adopt a similar mindset by treating every club member as a subscriber for the long haul. Loyalty often hinges on personal stories, thoughtful communication, and consistent quality. When you apply SaaS-inspired analytics, you transform casual shoppers into recurring patrons. And that recurring cycle generates ongoing revenue you can count on.
Say you discover a particular email subject line drives more online orders. Replicate that style in your other campaigns. Keep fine-tuning and watch your results grow.
Invest in DTC Marketing to Drive Winery Growth
Winery owners can feel hesitant about spending more on marketing, especially knowing that SaaS companies operate with venture backing that allows for deeper campaigns. Even so, a well-planned DTC strategy leads to greater control over margins and helps you attract loyal followers who stay with you year after year. This loyalty, in turn, becomes a subscription-like model where LTV and recurring orders drive steady revenue.
I’ve seen how allocating a defined share of revenue — 10%, 15%, 20%, or even 40% — and rigorously measuring CAC and LTV helps wineries avoid guesswork. Rather than thinking of marketing as a cost, treat it as a necessary investment that supports your growth ambitions. Balanced Business Group can help you align your finances, dissect your marketing results, and create a sustainable DTC plan.
Reach out now to explore how we can customize a program that fits your winery’s goals.
Author: Maggie Ojeda
With 9 years of experience in finance, specializing in Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) and cost management, Maggie Ojeda is a trusted expert in delivering actionable financial insights. She spent 4 years at Grupo Peñaflor, one of Argentina’s top wine producers, where she developed a deep understanding of the wine industry’s financial complexities. Currently, as the FP&A Team Lead at BBG, she leads financial strategy for Napa Valley boutique wineries and emerging CPG brands. Her expertise in financial modeling, variance analysis, and cost management enables her clients to make informed, strategic decisions for business growth.
