Millennial Generation and Environmental Sustainability: The Role of Social Media in the Consumer Purchasing Behavior for Wine

Giovanni Sogari,Barbara Aquilani,Lorenzo Zanni,Tommaso Pucci

doi:10.3390/su9101911

Giovanni Sogari, Barbara Aquilani + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su9101911

Copy DOI

Abstract

In the coming years, social media technology will have a crucial role in environmental involvement and in encouraging sustainable behaviors in the wine industry. Sustainable development is becoming a crucial topic for many consumers. Also, in the wine industry much research has been carried out to decrease the environmental impact, with a particular focus on renewable energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, pesticides reduction, water and waste management, biodiversity, soil and landscape preservation. In recent years, social media technologies have gained increased attention for their potential to amplify environmental concerns and encourage sustainable behaviors among people. This study aims to study the role of social media in the consumer purchasing behavior for wine between the millennial and non-millennial generations. A total sample of 2597 Italian wine consumer responses were collected and a structured questionnaire was used to test our hypothesis. The main results show that the greater the import the consumer places on the product/process dimension of environmental sustainability, the higher the self-selection in market segments. This is true for both millennials and non-millennials. The results show the power of social media to increase sustainability awareness and consecutively influence the consumer’s buying behavior for wine (higher price segment). From a marketing perspective, companies should improve their capacity to share and communicate their environmental activities through social media.

Highlights

In the last decades, the European wine sector has experienced significant and rapid market changes, especially with a strong decline in consumption among traditional wine countries [1,2,3].While price, grape variety, sensory properties, and brand are still considered the most important factors when purchasing a wine [4], new attributes like sustainability are growing in importance [5]
The recent literature focused on the Italian wine sector shows how wines produced with a sustainable method can achieve a premium price compared to a common wine
This study aims to answer two main research questions: first, how do different wine environmental sustainability beliefs influence the wine buying behavior between millennial and non-millennial generations? Second, what is the role of social media, used for searching for information on wine, as moderator of the relationship sustainability-buying behavior in millennial and non-millennial generations?

Summary

Introduction

Grape variety, sensory properties, and brand are still considered the most important factors when purchasing a wine [4], new attributes like sustainability are growing in importance [5]. Sustainable production practices are becoming more and more important in the wine industry to create a positive image of the sector and a tool for wineries to be more productive and competitive [6,7,8,9]. Sustainability claims do not yet have a positive appeal with the majority of consumers. One of the reasons might be because sustainable aspects of the production process are considered credence attributes that consumers cannot ascertain during the purchase or use of the product [3,9].

Objectives

Methods

Conclusion