Millennials.

Who they are.

What they like to drink.

And how to reach them.

What wine company today doesn’t want to know that?

It’s all about the next generation, and how to win them over as future consumers.

It’s also a popular query here at Enolytics, so today I’d like to take a moment to look at it from a different angle.

From the angle, that is, of the millennials themselves.

One of the most encouraging patterns we’re seeing is the interest in our work by young people – business school students, for example, new professionals, and those poised to rise to decision-making positions in the near future. Data is (or has always been) an organic part of their life; that may explain why there isn’t that explanatory hurdle to jump in order to see its applications.

Whatever the case is, they GET data straight away and, believe me, they’re busy figuring out the best ways to use it.

So what are the questions that they are asking? Not about the formalities of wine per se, but about how they see data being useful to wine.

Here are ten questions we’ve been asked by millennials from Italy, France, Africa, China, and the U.S.

1. My culture doesn’t care about the traditions or the culture of wine the way you do in Europe and the U.S. For us, it’s just a drink. That’s all. So I think I should be looking at single-serving packaging, and I want to understand the seasonality of demand. How can data help me with those things?
2. What KPIs are valuable in terms of the environment and sustainability?
3. How do consumers talk about my family’s brand? How do they talk about brands that are similar to ours, in markets where we don’t have distribution yet?
4. What are the most valuable KPIs in terms of viticultural practices?
5. What are the most useful operational metrics related to winemaking and the supply chain?
6. We can mostly figure out who our top six or eight markets are. What are the next 12 to 15?
7. Once you build the interactive dashboard for us, how long can I access it? I know I’ll have more questions, the more I play around with it.
8. We generate data internally but the reporting is rudimentary. Can you help me understand my business better based on my own data?
9. Can we get continuous data provided to us? We want to see trends and understand how our strategy is affecting consumer interest.
10. Can I work for you?

If this is any indication of what’s ahead, we better lace up our boots. We’re in for a fantastic ride.

As always, I look forward to your responses, ideas and questions. I sincerely appreciate your interest.