Benchmarking wineries’ digital presence and engagement in wine tourism: A cross-Balkan perspective

Abstract

This study aims to benchmark the websites of wineries in three Balkan regions – Naoussa Imathias (Greece), Struma Valley (Bulgaria), and Povardarie (North Macedonia) – by evaluating their digital engagement strategies in the context of wine tourism. The selected regions represent three distinct types of destinations: a more established, a developing, and an emerging one, offering a robust basis for comparisons. The evaluation framework was developed through a two-stage process: first, we conducted a thematic analysis of winery websites featured in the World’s Best Vineyards list, which identified additional indicators for inclusion in existing benchmarking models. Subsequently, a refined set of five key categories was generated, taking into account several communication, quality and performance aspects, namely: informational content; interactivity; transactions; integration; and sustainability. The extended model was applied in comparative content analysis of winery websites across the three regions. Empirical findings reveal not only region-specific strengths, but also common challenges for Balkan wineries, particularly in terms of interactivity, integration, and sustainability communication. The study contributes to the wine tourism literature by incorporating a sustainability perspective into benchmarking approaches and by offering insights into the digital positioning of wine regions at different stages of tourism development, demonstrating that more advanced tourism maturity does not automatically translate into greater digital sophistication across all dimensions.