"Girls Night Out": Influencing Wine Popularity

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - April 17, 2013 - PRLog -- April 17, 2013, Santa Ynez, CA--At one time wine was just to sip and enjoy.  Today, wine is the gateway to social acceptance in sharing food to gossip, fashion ideas to celebrations—it’s all about Girls Night Out and wine is the spirit of choice.   If you’re at all concerned about keeping your place in the market, it takes more than just having a great varietal but a strategy in reaching this powerful consumer who knows she has thousands of brands to choose from— why yours?

Moscato is the impressive leader in wine popularity and sales growth.  The loyal customer base is predominately women who are wine tasting at greater numbers, engaging in road trips with her entourage inhaling the tasting rooms across America.  Add the infamous Girls Night Out to the equation and you have women celebrating for a number of reasons and making this varietal growth impressive.  More important is understanding this Girls Night Out patron who is a powerful consumer in this trend and will continue to dominate.  Understand her ethnicity, her patterns, and her expectations and you’ll become a SAVE in her smart phone directory—a place few men remain for long.

A macro view shows that wine consumption is on the rise in the United States, according to wine consultant Jon Fredrikson of Gomberg, Fredrikson & Associates.  California wine sales grew even faster than the overall category by a full percentage point.   Chardonnay remained the most popular varietal followed by Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Grigio.  Add, that in the past five years, there are 50,000 more locations in America to buy wines according to consumer expert, Danny Brager of Nielsen.  It’s clear that one sees a magical pattern that continues to grow since wine is growing even during challenging economic times

The largest percentage gains were Muscat/Moscato up 33% in volume with 6% of market share.  Attribution in this growth was the urban woman, 21-31 who is making a transition from sweet cocktail drinks to learning about wine—her first step in this transition, traditional sweeter varietals where Moscato fits as comfortable as a Louboutin shoe. Well even if it’s not comfortable the red bottom heels says “look at me”.   The sweet wine is drawing women to new drink of choice in celebrating everything from promotions, birthdays to dump-the-man in your life.

After six months of research in this demographic circle for a client marketing a premium Tequila, Acosta Global Marketing found that this young female consumer, more so ethnic young woman, is setting new pathways to a variety of products including wine.  As wine prices fall well below the $20 a bottle mark, young women are choosing the sweeter choices as Moscato, Muscat, and Riesling.  However the lady newcomers to wine are learning that each brand offers a slightly different version—they taste differently.  One young multi-ethnic urbanite came to the realization after bragging  to her BFF (best friend forever) to come down the sweet nectar of a Riesling only to be disappointed by the restaurant’s choice, “I just thought that all Rieslings were the same and realizing that the Fess Parker brand I bought taste nothing like other Rieslings.  Lesson #1—a varietal does not guarantee identical tastes and appellation is merely a district from where the grape is grown.  Learning wines might be the macro approach of appreciating an appellation but it will come down to a micro view in selecting a specific brand.  Lesson #2—we understand wine clubs, buying by the case, and calling a restaurant, lounge or night club in advance to learn which brands and varietals are served—let the merchant know your choice.  Often times the wine buyer/taster is judging from his palette of what he likes and enjoys.  However, a smart marketer will pay close attention to his females patrons—if she’s buying, give her what she wants; if she’s not buying, she’s ordering as the young gent behind her is merely paying the tab.

There is much to know about this female consumer. She has more expendable cash for her new wine appreciation, it’s time to remove all marketing wisdom from the past and understand the pattern of this multi ethnic urbanite female—she’s different than her older sister and light years different than her mother.

As the author of “The Theory of SWAG: A Young Woman’s Guide to Success & Wealth”, my 10 year study of this burgeoning consumer provides astonishing results.  She is more independent than any generation before her.  She has outpaced her male counterpart graduating from college in larger numbers, and sees raising children as a single parent perfectly acceptable, she is rejecting her male generation’s practice of hook up sex, women paying for dates, obsession with video games, and lack of ambition a package convincing her to do it alone.  And she’s proving it.  She finds a support team in her friends, more often than family members. She is more likely to start her own business earlier than generations before her.  She is willing to risk an impulsive buy but if disappointed will ban the brand and likely never return.  She is more risk driven with investments and tends not to follow male advice without question.

The most important thing to remember about this new breed is that she is persuasive. She can convince her network of friends, be it real life or Likes and Tweets, to endorse a book or product; and rest assure, she can move a wine’s brand name to hundreds in a moments notice be it text messaging or social networking.

In creating the Celebrity Personal Choice project, it was simply based on her respect, adoration, and rationalization of accepting certain celebrities.  The celebrity can be from TV, Music, Film, Books---if you give her reason to admire you, she’s committed.  Keep in mind that she’s not a follower of negative comments—she will form her own.  If you violate her belief system, then yes, you’re history.

In our survey of over 1500 women 21-39 if she would purchase a wine knowing that a favorite celebrity found it one of their favorites---92% said YES.  The attitude was simple—if I love a wine and Rihanna loves a certain wine—why not?

So in your marketing strategy, consider this new dynamic consumer and her approach to buying wines be at the local lounge or night club, or home cooking for her chosen—it’s time we bring the tradition of wine to the 21st century by recognizing this influential consumer.
               
Article by:
Robert Acosta
Acosta Global Marketing