VinQuest 2008 - U.S. Consumer Direct Wine Sales Report
Hello Everyone,
For those interested in research data on consumer direct wine sales & marketing, we are happy to share the top-level results from our recently completed VinQuest 2008 Consumer Direct Wine Sales survey.
Key findings of this year's research reveal:
* Total direct sales by U.S. wineries in 2007: $2.8 Billion
* Year-over-year change in consumer direct sales at established wineries in 2007: - 2%
* Tasting room sales growth in 2007: 29%
* Wine club sales decline in 2007: -4%
* Online wine sales growth in 2007: 3%
* Phone order growth in 2007: 33%
* Direct mail sales decline in 2007: -11%
* U.S. wineries projecting consumer direct as their fastest growing sales channel in 2008: 57%
Despite a sluggish economy and rising fuel prices, winery sales managers remain upbeat about prospects for growth, with most wine regions forecasting direct sales gains of 10% to 20% in 2008.
Bottom line is that most U.S. wineries saw little or no growth from consumer direct sales in 2007, but an increasing number of wineries in all U.S. wine regions pushed total consumer direct sales to record levels last year.
Three items may be of special interest to this group...
1) The critical role of direct marketing. When we looked at the differences between top sales performers & their less successful competitors, the key differences weren't in sales mix, location or winery size...the key differences were in the size of winery marketing lists & frequency of contact. Although effective use of email marketing was a predictor of success, the effective use of telesales really stood out as a best practice in 2007.
2) Online wine retailers are making a difference. Although we're still crunching these numbers, U.S. wineries seem to think they sold about 2% of their wine through online wine retailers in 2007. Total sales through this channel were likely in the $200 to $400 million range for 2007.
3) Shipping is still a big problem. Seems like state enforcement is working its way down to even the smallest wineries as shipping regulations are by far the #1 barrier to direct sales growth cited by U.S. wineries in 2007.
We hope you find this information useful in your wine marketing...
Happy Selling!
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