13 June 2013 Consumer perceptions of wine brand names

A project instigated from within the New Zealand wine industry has resulted in a unique Lincoln University study that examines the relationship between brand names and consumer expectations of quality and price.

Lincoln University is the only New Zealand university that offers an undergraduate degree programme in Viticulture and Oenology, and prides itself for undertaking wine-related research from the ‘grape to the glass’.

In August 2010 when the New Zealand Winegrowers invited Dr Sharon Forbes to present at the annual Romeo Bragato wine conference in Marlborough, sales staff at Tohu Wines asked Dr Forbes if having a Māori brand name was an advantage or disadvantage for the winery. Unable to answer, and with no previous relevant research to refer to, this question resulted in Lincoln University instigating a world-first study.

Before examining the consumer perception of wine brand names, the project had to categorise the wine brands. Dr Forbes and Commerce Master’s student Rachel Grout analysed 550 New Zealand wine brand names and split them into seven relevant categories: regional, geographic, Māori, animal, humorous, surname, and international.

The wines that were rated most highly for quality were the Māori named wines, while humorous and animal name brands came out the least favoured and were also ranked in the lowest price bracket.

The results show that a brand name does indeed have considerable influence on whether a consumer would purchase a bottle of wine and their perception of its quality and price.  Dr Forbes says, “What this study shows is that wine marketing strategists should, amongst other things, avoid humorous brand names if they are aiming to position their wine at a premium quality and price level.  Not only might humorous names create negative perceptions, depending on the brand positioning strategy, they could also detrimentally affect the winery’s economic performance.”

For more information, read the full article on page 34 of the University’s research profile publication Transform.