SOWINE / SSI Barometer 2010: Internet, Social Networks & Wine in France

SOWINE / SSI Barometer 2010: Internet, Social Networks & Wine

The French use online media twice as much as print media to prepare their wine purchases.

The SOWINE / SSI barometer 2010 shows that new technologies, Internet and social networks play a pivotal role in determining wine consumer behaviour in France.

French consumers are thirsting for information!
Research conducted by SOWINE and SSI shows that 70% of French consumers consider wine to be a "special" product, different from other alcohols, although 63% deem themselves to be new or inexperienced consumers. 78% of respondents consider it necessary to do some research before buying their wine.

The survey also reveals that when preparing a wine purchase, consumers use the Internet as a primary source of information, ahead of paper purchasing guides or press magazines.

Wine and food: the most popular topic among blog readers and forum users
In addition to winemakers' websites, consumers also pay considerable heed to information found on blogs and forums. 45% of readers and users specifically log on to blogs and forums that cover wine and food: 87%
trust the information they find there.

Wine purchasers are more active on social networks
The survey shows that wine purchasers are frequent users of social networks (26% more than average), either to find information, advise others, or simply to chat.

Average purchases are almost four times larger on the Internet
The barometer highlights the differences between wine purchasing behaviour online and offline. Average web purchases are almost four times as large as conventional purchases. However, 60% of consumers who prepare their wine purchases on the Internet actually end up buying in a real shop. This all goes to prove the importance of new technologies in purchasing decisions, wherever the product is finally bought!


SOWINE is a marketing consultancy that specialises in wines, champagnes and spirits. It supports its customers through their strategic planning right up to the roll-out of their communication tools. As an expert in online marketing and communication via social networks, SOWINE publishes a standard-setting blog on marketing in this sector: sowine.typepad.fr.

SURVEY SAMPLING INTERNATIONAL (SSI) is the world's leading provider of sampling solutions for marketing professionals. Through Internet, telephone and mobile, B2C and B2B solutions, SSI helps marketing professionals access millions of respondents in over 50 countries.


Survey conducted with a representative sample of 1,003 French nationals between 22 and 29 January 2010 through Computer Assisted Web Interview.


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Sylvain Dadé
Co-founder & Associate Director
SOWINE Agency
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