Marketing Lessons From a Good Bottle of Wine
Sunday, January 24, 2010
I look for good marketing no matter where I happen to be. The other day I heard someone on the radio talking about wine bottles and the marketing connection. That definitely got my attention as wine labels have so little room for copy that a number of marketing strategies must be at play to influence a purchase.
So what sells wine? I think there are a few things that move someone through a purchase decision process in the wine market. I'm no wine expert and quite honestly know little about "good wine" but can certainly tell you what marketing strategies encourage consumers to make that buying decision. The label. Okay, so we all know that the label is important. The color, the shape, the imagery. All of these components have an impact on purchase decisions. Each color used gives a hint to what consumers might find in the bottle. Are the colors harsh? Do they say, "I'm bitter" or are the colors unique and creative, giving potential buyers a sense of newness and being different?
The shape and size of the bottle. The size of the bottle and overall packaging gives a good deal of information about what you might find inside as well. Is the bottle traditional in shape? Is is tall or short? Each of these nuances must be congruent with other marketing factors to create a story worthy of pursuit.
The price. Much like a Cadillac, many people buy on price. Why? Because price can give you an understanding of value. Two wines side by side. They look similar and are of the same size. However, one has a price of $8.99 and the other $24.95. Which one is better? Price may give you the impression that the second, more expensive bottle is "better"... but is it really?
Recommendation. Does the wine fit the occasion? Has it been recommended by someone in the store or someone you know who told you that you had to try that particular brand, vintage, etc.? In the wine game, recommendations are a critical aspect of the purchase.
So there you have it. Some factors that influence wine purchasing. Are you a wine connoisseur? If you are, what influences your buying decision? You may add in some additional factors like, "..all Napa Valley wines are good so this one must be good as well". This is the final aspect of buying wine (and similar products) and that is your personal experience. Nothing can replace experience as a driving factor in making buying decisions.
The next time you're in the market for a bottle of wine, notice what drives your purchase. Enjoy and bottoms up!!!
Marketing Blog founder and top-selling author Michael Fleischner has been featured on The TODAY Show, ABC World News, and Bloomerg Radio. 
6 comments :
There are so many different ways of looking at marketing on a daily basis! If we remain diligent and pick apart the successful marketing of other products it helps to incorporate those factors into our marketing. . . and it doesn't hurt that I love a good merlot!
There are so many different kinds of wines, that it really is hard to make a decision sometimes. I like to shop at Total Wine because they put little tabs on the rack in front of the bottles that give a more detailed description of the wine. Some have little humorous antidotes, but mostly it's about what ingrediants that particular wine has and the flavors it enbodies. Based on these more detailed descriptions is how I decide what I'm going to purchse.
I think this is a great marketing stragetic for Total Wine as I'm sure I purchase wine I would otherwise never try.
Hi
Thanks for this great post. You are doing great job.
Keep it up
It is really confusing to buy a good wine. Your article is correct in saying that before buying a wine, one has to consider a lot of things. Thanks for the information.
That piece is as generic as could be. You could replace 'wine' with toothpaste or shampoo or mayonnaise and it would be as relevant.
You obviously know nothing about wine ("...bottoms up," for God's sake!)and your blog is textbook stuff, but you do know something about SEO: being the first entry in the search results for 'marketing blog' is pretty good going.
If the wine has won any competions is also a way for a bottle to stand out from the rest of the crowd. It is the gold sticker of approval from a wine connoisseur.
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