National Survey from Category-Leading Communications Agency and Renowned Research Company to Help Guide 2023 Marketing Strategies
January 17, 2023, NY, NY — Colangelo & Partners (www.colangelopr.com) and Wine Opinions (www.wineopinions.com) combined resources and expertise for a survey of the U.S. wine trade designed to inform better decision-making for wine companies and wine marketers in 2023. “By combining our databases and our category experience, we have been able to glean important, statistically significant learnings that will inform our marketing strategies for our clients heading into an uncertain business landscape in 2023,” said Gino Colangelo, president of Colangelo & Partners.
A Balanced Response and Varied Findings
The survey drew over 1,000 respondents from all 50 states across the three tiers of the U.S. beverage alcohol industry, offering geographic and demographic balance. Nearly 50% of respondents came from New York and California, with Florida, Washington and Colorado being the next most prominent markets. “One of our most interesting findings came from the demographics of the respondents themselves,” explained John Gillespie, Founder and CEO of Wine Opinions. “Of all female respondents, 39% were under the age of 40, while only 26% of male respondents were in that age segment. This suggests that greater gender balance is coming to the wine industry.”
The survey touched upon a broad array of topics including price sensitivity going into a potentially recessionary economic environment, predictions for growth of categories such as organic and ‘better for you’ wines, favored social media channels for the business of wine, preferences for in-person vs. virtual events heading into the new year, emerging secondary markets, and predictions for the ‘next big thing’ in terms of wine regions.
Category Trends
By a margin of two to one, respondents voted Sicily as the next hot wine region followed by Paso Robles and the Douro. Respondents also expect the ‘sweet spot’ for wine retail to see a slight increase in 2023 to $21, (up from $20 in 2022), suggesting no price-sensitivity concern despite the uncertain US economic forecast.
Looking to the coming 1 – 3 years, survey respondents were optimistic about increasing market share for the “better for you” and “zero alcohol” categories, with 34% expecting “good” or “great” growth for the “better for you” category, and 29% anticipating “good” or “great” growth for “zero alcohol” wines.
Industry Events, Key Markets and Social Media Usage
Another noteworthy nugget was the preference for in-person events vs. virtual events by a 2 to 1 margin. The survey also suggested that the walk-around tasting isn’t dead.
Denver and Chicago were highlighted as key focus markets in 2023, followed by Boston, San Francisco, Seattle, Austin and Miami.
Some of the most interesting findings were about social media usage. While it’s not surprising that Instagram was the preferred social platform for doing wine business, it was a surprise to note that almost half of the respondents reported using TikTok in their work. TikTok-users skewed younger in age with 58% under the age of 40; 6% were 60-plus. Overall, the survey found that social media channels were used for business fairly evenly across the tiers of the trade.
“We learned a lot with this year’s survey,” said Gillespie. “We plan to make this annual, building upon this year’s learnings to continue to inform wine marketing activities into the future.”
About Colangelo & Partners
Colangelo & Partners (www.colangelopr.com) is the leading fine wine and spirits integrated communications agency in the United States, sought after by top brands and industry players for the quality of their results, creativity, and return on investment. The professionals at Colangelo & Partners work with integrity and passion to influence how US audiences perceive their clients: Earning consistent, high-quality positive media coverage; organizing signature events; strategizing and executing standout digital campaigns, and implementing trade programs that strengthen relationships within the industry. Colangelo & Partners’ clientele includes global, instantly-recognizable brands and passionate, up-and-coming vignerons and distillers; regional and national institutions; and technology and e-commerce companies innovating in the beverage alcohol sector
About Wine Opinions
Wine Opinions is a U.S. wine industry research provider, offering both trade and consumer insights. Wine Opinions maintains the only national trade and wine consumer research panels in the industry, and performs both quantitative and qualitative research.
