The New Year brings in resolutions – new fitness regimes, travel plans, cooking classes, learning languages – new. December, being the jammed-pack month that it always proves to be, has a habit of leading consumers to “Dry January” due to endless holiday parties, too much champagne, dinners with colleagues, and the stress of traveling over the break. Before you know it consumers are aiming to restart by hitting their internal refresh button and setting a new tone that will inevitably lead to their “Best Year Yet.” Insert Equinox.
Then comes week two of the New Year.
Millennials drink more than half of the wine in the U.S. and this trend doesn’t stop because of a new gym membership or goal for 2017. Research has taught us that people are creatures of habit. And while goals are always impressive to set, haven’t we learned that balance is key?
Now consumers are settled back in work and their social calendars are looking similar to last year. Marketers are beginning to notice that their audience is re-evaluating their New Years Resolutions in a realistic manner. This time provides brands with an opportunity to speak to their target in an inviting and open way. Millennials, specifically, need to be invited by companies to be contributors to the overall brand story, forming an emotional connection and creating a believer.
We are all storytellers. It is in our blood. And nothing goes better with wine than a good story. It is the best pairing. How often do you hear a good story over a bottle of Gamay or make a big business decision over a bottle of Bordeaux?
As the Millennial wine consumer reassess their drinking habits in the New Year, the education process from brands becomes even more important. The target wants to be in the know – they want to learn about where the wine comes from, why they are drinking it, how it is different from the wine that the person next to them is consuming. The more information that they are powered with from the brand, the more the consumer is able to speak to it and enjoy their experience with it – while telling the story about the wine with their own personal connection to it. When brands spend time on the education process, it allows the consumer to understand what they’re drinking and truly be a part of the conversation. By fostering an opportunity for the consumer to understand the product, they are able to LEARN which often times is the underlining goal for their New Year Resolution anyway.
At FOMOVINO, the wine stories are the backbone of the company. Visitors are able to learn about a featured winery or explore the region behind the bottle, and they can sign-up to be a part of Wine Skool’d, an education program held in an intimate 16 seat classroom on a weekly basis. Wine brands reach Millennials in multiple ways – explaining the celebrity behind it or the new packaging for the bottle. The power behind teaching the consumer about the grapes and the history of it, will lead to a consumer that becomes a believer. Think of the wise saying, knowledge is power.
Consumers will continue to shoot for “Dry January” in some way, shape or form, and the marketers that challenge their target to aim for balance, exploring opportunities like enjoying the world of wine in a new way – a way that allows the target to feel like they are still staying true to aspects of their New Year Resolution, through educating them on the category and the products – those marketers will ultimately win.