The conclusion from Douglas Zucker’s article “Drowning in
the Wine Lake: Does Choice Overload Exist in Wine Retail?” that consumer choice
overload does not exist in the wine category is unexpected to me, though not
surprising. The rationale makes sense: as knowledge of wine increases, wine
buyers are looking to find and experiment with new wines regularly. The amount
of choice available to them in grocery stores or wine stores serves as an ideal
environment in which wine consumers can explore and educate themselves.
However, the article’s conclusion and our discussion in
class got me thinking about purchasing patterns. Particularly, how does the
average consumer decide which wines to buy? Where does he or she buy them? And
what should wineries and brands be thinking about as they market to various
customers?
A recent survey conducted by wine.net surveyed 2,000 wine
drinkers to understand what matters when buying wine, what types of wine
consumers prefer, and where they buy their wines. Their methodology was simple:
they showed consumers three different bottles of red wine (ranging from $10 to
$150, but prices were kept secret) and asked them to choose their favorite, and
did the same with white wines.
The survey found that the main attributes that consumers
considered when choosing which wine was their favorite were:
- Appearance of the bottle (82%)
- Perceived price (65%)
- Wine region (58%)
- Shape / color of the bottle (53%)
I wasn’t surprised to see that appearance and shape and
color of the bottle affected consumer’s perceptions so drastically – after all,
we heard from Carol Reber the importance of branding and labeling bottles,
particularly if they are going to be on retail shelves. Perceived price was an interesting
attribute, implying that people actually like wines better if they think they’re
more expensive. Given most of the experts we’ve talked to have said that once
you’re above the $100 threshold, no one can really tell the difference in taste,
it’s interesting to see how much price perception matters to consumers.
The study also showed that most consumers buy their wines in
grocery stores or liquor stores. The conclusion for me (and the conclusion I
think most wineries have reached) is that wineries and brands should continue to focus on
their bottle label and appearance, as classier and more elegant looking wines
often may get picked over higher quality wines. For the full survey results
(including how red and white wine drinkers differ in their preferences), the
survey is linked here.
V, it's fascinating that appearance is the main attribute for 82% of consumers surveyed, and region is only 58%! I think education of sales associates should be another focus area for wineries and brands. When I think back to the wine stores in NYC and Boston that I frequented almost weekly, my purchase decisions were almost entirely based on recommendations from the salespeople. For example, I remember my first visit to Urban Grape in the South End in Boston. I knew I liked Barberas (a former Italian coworker had ordered a Barbera at dinner once, and I loved it), and so I asked the salesperson for a Barbera under $15. After she highly recommended the Piazzo Barbera wine for $12, I bought it, and proceeded to regularly buy the same wine for the next 2 years. While this salesperson in particular was most likely recommending the wine based on her personal preference, I think there is significant opportunity to improve sell-through rates if education becomes a focus area for wine brands.
ReplyDeleteThis also leads me to wonder whether there is room for innovation in wine retail, and whether liquor stores could adopt elements from multi-brand retailers like Sephora. At Sephora, there are special gondolas and shelves for recommended products, and salespeople receive training from brands so they can better inform customers and provide personalized recommendations. The brands that are better at educating often perform better in the store.
Yo V, what up? I found it interesting that the study ignored both price and varietal, as those are my two primary decision metrics when I am making my wine purchase. When reading Zucker's article, I kept thinking that the reason there is no choice overload in wine is because there are so many classifiers for wine that enable a consumer to segment the market quickly and efficiently. For example, if I walk up to the Safeway "Wall of Wines" I can quickly whittle the wall down through a process of Pinot --> USA --> $10-15. At that point, I'm deciding between 5-10 bottles and I'm no longer overwhelmed by choice.
ReplyDeleteAt this point in my purchasing decision, when I'm staring at 5-10 bottles that I have no way of distinguishing, your study is really interesting. How am I going to make the decision? Which bottle talks to me! The label, the specific region, the branding will all be an important factor for me at this point.
V, I want to find the same survey and apply it to restaurant sales! I agree that not only am I not surprised at the data behind the power of the physical appearance of the bottle to include details like label, closure, shape and the glass itself but I also will admit to falling victim to the these irrelevant details. I am not the average wine consumer and in recent years, I find myself opting out of buying wine in traditional retail environments unless I am traveling or need some for a specific purpose. At home, I have made the commitment to and investment in a small cellar of wines that are mostly purchased over the internet either direct from wineries or from websites that curate a particular style of wine, Kermit Lynch in particular. The reason I bring up this counter experience, while I recognize that this form of consumerism is not the norm, is that I think that it may be the intermediary to what the consumer experience is of buying a bottle of wine off of a restaurant list. When purchasing wine direct from a winery, you are making the choice with a very different set of situations and often times significantly more product information.
ReplyDeleteWhen I step into the world of restaurants, and of my restaurants specifically where we do not have sommeliers on the floor assisting curious guests with the purchase, I see this data as yet another indication that the wine list as we know it today is in fact a very poor consumer experience. The information is often difficult to understand, poorly and at the least inconsistently organized from restaurant to restaurant, and leaves only the most educated consumer struggling to simply find something familiar that fits into a price range. Perhaps this is yet another indicator to something that I am really fighting as an owner/operator or restaurants- the menu tablet- where guests can find all of the additional information they desire, including the shape of the bottle and an image of the label, but with little personal service.