Kristen Reitzell
Kristen Reitzell is the Senior Vice President of Communications & Digital Marketing at Jackson Family Wines. Kristen manages all aspects of the company’s communications strategy, overseeing corporate and family communications, as well as PR and digital marketing across the company’s global portfolio of wineries in California, Oregon, France, Italy, Australia, Chile, and South Africa.
In her 10 years with the company, Kristen has managed trade and media relations, overseen strategic communications for numerous product launches and estate openings, spearheaded brand partnerships, and led international PR campaigns. Kristen also oversees the company’s digital marketing and e-commerce team, a function she’s helped developed over the past decade to build an infrastructure that reflects the everchanging digital landscape.
Previously, Kristen managed PR for several companies in the technology sector, before making wine her full-time focus. She attended the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone to further her academic studies in wine and in 2008 she became a certified sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers. Kristen also worked for Calhoun & Company Communications, a boutique public relations agency that specializes in luxury wine and spirits. There, she worked with wineries in California, Oregon, Chile, Spain, Italy, and Austria.
Kristen approaches her work with the same enthusiasm and passion she has for life, taking full advantage of everything Northern California has to offer. If she’s not at the ballpark cheering on the San Francisco Giants, she’s hiking or skiing in the mountains with her family.
Making Social Media Work for a U.S. Audience
With today’s consumer spending more time online than ever before (except for perhaps March 2020), it is critical for brands to understand how to utilize social media not just as an awareness tool, but as a meaningful conversion strategy. As an owned communications platform, social media offers brands the opportunity to control their message, engage directly with their community, and measure performance. Kristen Reitzell, SVP Communications & Digital Marketing at Jackson Family Wines, can give attendees a breakdown of the social platforms that are critical to U.S. consumers and how to use them to grow your business, from content creation to amplification (advertising) to community management. Kristen will discuss the importance of these owned channels for both large and small brands, and the value of meaningful and impactful content. She will discuss how to optimize content creation for a U.S. audience as well as working with influencers. Kristen will also touch on how impressions can lead to improved discoverability to drive awareness, attract new consumers, and ultimately, sell wine.