Until recently, Leanne Molchan’s social media savviness consisted of six posts to her four-year-old Instagram account.

“I am not naturally a social media person,” says the Co-owner/Marketing Manager of the new Swayne Creek Ciderhouse on Vancouver Island.

While she understood the importance of building a social media presence, especially for a startup, Molchan says she found herself “bumbling” as she prepared to launch the business online.

That’s when she found the support of Brock University’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI).

A few months ahead of the cidery’s June 7 opening, Molchan enrolled in the Practical Social Media Marketing Strategies for Wineries and Cideries course — one of several professional and continuing education opportunities offered through the research, outreach and educational institute.

“I needed help on the basic things like what are the differences between a reel, a post and a story?” Molchan says.

She found the answers she was looking for and more through the flexible online offering.

In addition to the knowledge she obtained throughout the course, Molchan benefitted from the final class project: creating a marketing strategy, which she’s now implemented at her cidery.

“All the content that I had to brainstorm and come up with during the class is in there, and I have a team of four people who can add to that content page with their ideas as well.”

Professional and continuing studies through Brock University’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute helped Kevin Brohman thrive in the wine and cider industry.

A month after the cidery’s launch, Molchan’s social media efforts have resulted in nearly 500 Instagram followers, with plans to further grow that audience.

Kevin Brohman also relied on CCOVI to enhance his skills — and to advance his career.

A Wine Consultant with Cave Spring Vineyard in Jordan, Ont., when he completed the Wine Spirit Education Trust (WSET Levels 2 and 3 Award in Wines) course at CCOVI, he has since been promoted to Retail Supervisor.

“WSET training absolutely helped me get my promotion,” says Brohman. “Having that knowledge of wine be second nature really helped me to perform more efficiently, to be more supportive of my fellow staff and to give customers a better experience when they come in for tastings and purchases.”

Describing his WSET journey as “phenomenal,” he says the training has given him tremendous insight into how wines are made and the importance different climates and temperatures have on the final product.

“To be able to speak to customers on why certain varieties are different year to year, or where certain wines come from and why wines taste different is so helpful to my job,” Brohman says.

WSET programming is open to anyone new to or already working in the industry as well as those without an industry connection who simply want to become more of a wine aficionado.

To learn more about or to register for CCOVI’s professional and continuing education programming, visit the Institute’s website.