Difficult Wine Retailer Decisions?
No one qualified or experienced to offer suggestions and advice.
Need New Ideas?
Gone a bit flat and need to brainstorm ideas.
Want to Get Things Done?
Have lots of ideas but never find the time to do them.
Then MyLocalWineStore Mastermind groups are for you.
‘Mastermind’ groups (also known as ‘Peer Advisory’ groups) are 4-8 carefully vetted, non competing wine retailers. The group formally meets online each week where a group member has a turn on the ‘hot seat’. He or she asks questions or describes problems. The other members suggest answers, point out resources, and help the hot seat retailer to really think through his or her particular issue.
None of us are as smart as all of us
We tend to work alone. Other wine retailers we talk to on a day to day basis are local competitors. Non-wine retailers struggle to relate to the problems of the wine industry. So it is hard to find out how other wine retailers are doing things. With a Mastermind group you can use the collective experience of a group of similar retailers to find solutions to wine retailer problems.
Hot Seat +
Each week at a certain time you are obliged to give all your attention to helping the hot seat retailer. The give part 
.
After he or she has finished each retailer can post their own questions in the same forum. These may be answered immediately or at any time over the next week allowing flexibility in giving and receiving feedback. This method allows the certainly of support of a group telephone call or meeting, with the flexibility of an online forum.
Airtight Confidentiality
There is a high level of confidentiality. Each member signs a confidentiality agreement and has full access to the other members profile.
Application and Screening
I carefully select and screen members. Firstly they must be experienced wine store owners (though I may create a group for those about to open a store). I’m looking for members who are willing to contribute as well as receive advice from other members. Members who genuinely want to turn their wine store into a clicks and mortar success and share their learnings with other members of the group. Members who turn up at every meeting prepared. Members who know they will be held accountable by the rest of the group for creating goals and plans, and implementing them.
I’ll also give plenty of advice, but please note the power of a Mastermind group is in the collective not my individual expertise.
Commitment to Give
Mastermind groups success rest on all members giving their advice rather than just receiving advice. Members who do not contribute will be quietly asked to leave and a new member found.
The Facilitator
Which is me, Bruce McGechan, author of How to Sell Wine Online, and wine and technology entrepreneur. My role is to set the agenda and facilitate the meeting to ensure it remains effective for everyone. I ensure the forums run smoothly and remind people of their upcoming commitments so they have time to prepare. Initial meetings will be based around the chapters of my book, with future agendas jointly decided as the groups’ particular dynamic plays out.
The Meeting
Each group has it’s own online private social network (using software called BuddyPress). The social network is made up of member profiles, private messaging, a Facebook-type wall update tab or ‘activity stream’, and the centre of the Mastermind Group – the forum. None of these are visible to anyone bar members and myself.
Each meeting starts with going through what people said they’d do at the last meeting, what they’ve actually done and what they intend to do in the next week.
Then a member takes the hot seat and describes his or her problem (this must be written in advance). For about 30 minutes members brainstorm ideas or suggest solutions.Then other members post their particular problems one by one. The meeting finishes with each member saying what their action points are for the next week.
The Agenda Topics
The Mastermind group is officially about supporting retailers with selling wine online. However the aim of the group is to improve wine retail store’s overall success so the group’s agenda is their own to decide. The group may also decide to help with other problems for instance employee challenges, liquor law compliance and supplier issues.
Other Assistance
I’ll also have occasional seminars with leading internet marketing experts as well as continue to post about topics important to wine retailers selling wine online. These will be done for all MyLocalWineStore users but may be a focus of discussion during a Mastermind session or simply discussed in the forum over the week.
The Consultant
Need one-on-one time with me? I believe that the help of your peers and myself is most effective. However sometimes retailers really need my particular wine internet marketing skills on a one-on-one basis confidentail basis which can be arranged. See below for fees and please note this is the most expensive way to receive support and advice.
Membership Fee
Mastermind group require committed members who are there to achieve success not pick up the odd tip. The groups also get hours of my time in the forums over the course of the week. In effect all the group retailers share in the advice and share the fees. For this reason I only charge US$200 per month for Mastermind group membership.
If you feel you need one-on-one time with myself then I charge US$250 per hour, about the same as a small business lawyer or accountant. Please email me to discuss this further. I have limited hours put aside for consulting work as most of my time is spent with Mastermind Groups, wine internet marketing research, blogs and public forums.
