SYMPOSIUM “ACT FOR CHANGE”
INTERVIEW: “DIGITALISING WINES & SPIRITS”
INTRODUCTION
On 20 and 21 June 2022, international professionals and experts gathered at the Cité du Vin in Bordeaux for the second edition of the Symposium “Act for Change”. These two days of talks were organised to shed light on the major changes and impacts on the production and distribution of wines and spirits by 2030. It was an opportunity to get together and discuss, exchange ideas, and work together to better prepare ourselves for the challenges that await the wine world in the coming years.
As a key figure in the digital arena, the Google search engine has become an essential tool for professionals in all sectors, including the wine & spirits industry. As the digital transition (or digitalisation) has intensified, the issues of SEO, having a digital presence and access to goods, services and information have become central to companies’ marketing and communication strategies. This transformation will have a profound effect on the world of wine & spirits, as Cyril Grira explained.
SPEAKERS
During the session, Cyril Grira, Retail & Omnichannel Director at Google France, answered questions from Robert Joseph, a wine expert, consultant and producer.
THEME: THE DIGITALISATION OF WINE & SPIRITS
MICRO-TRENDS & CURRENT CONDITIONS
Within Google, we have many tools: YouTube, Maps, Analytics, Gmail, and so on, but our “superpower” remains our search engine. It is very important to analyse this data as it mirrors our own behaviour. In recent years, we have been able to identify three micro-trends in the wine industry:
• Accelerated demand in our search engine. We have seen increased interest of more than 30% in the “wine” category since 2019 in France, and practically the same trend internationally. Even this year, in 2022, despite a difficult context overall, we are witnessing increased interest of 6% compared to the previous year.
• Complexification of marketing. The wine industry requires exploration and innovation: 80% of the search terms are generic, i.e. non-specific. Users first search for appellations and grape varieties, then they look up producers.
• Increased interest in local produce and sustainability. We hear a lot about e-commerce and online sales, but in reality, the search “winery near me” is in the top 10 searches within the sector. The search term “organic wine” has multiplied three-fold. This demonstrates a real interest in the matter.
To return to the use of generic search terms, this can be explained by several factors. Firstly, there is a lack of knowledge among consumers, who use Google to fill in the gaps. This is also due to a lack of visibility of small producers who often do not have an optimised website. Some small retailers may have websites or networks, but do not indicate their activity on Google MyBusiness, though this is a very powerful and important tool.
(Cyril Grira, Retail & Omnichannel Director, Google France)
GROW THROUGH SEO AND GOOD DIGITAL PRACTICES
Indexing and referencing are very important tools nowadays to establish a commercial strategy. It is a way to boost visibility, traffic, and potentially even sales. To set up a good search strategy, we have identified 5 pillars: Automation, Audience, Accessibility, Attribution, and Assets.
But even if we hear a lot about e-commerce, it would be more accurate to talk about “omnicommerce”: a combination of online and physical points of sale, which is more in line with reality and allows us to better measure the impact of our strategies. In addition, there is a trend towards OtoO (online to offline) which consists of searching for a product online and then going to the shop.
(Cyril Grira, Retail & Omnichannel Director, Google France)
PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION: A MAJOR CHALLENGE
Privacy is a big change in our industry that is based on data collection, but privacy is a good thing. It is necessary to restore trust with consumers and combine algorithms, machine learning and user practices. One example is the Google Arts & Culture Foundation, which uses technology to harmonise and augment metadata to improve searches. The algorithm continues to learn and evolve, as do we.
(Cyril Grira, Retail & Omnichannel Director, Google France)
A DIGITAL FUTURE SERVING THE REAL WORLD
We note that user practices evolve with reality. At Google, we have gradually moved from the world of words to the world of images, then to the world of videos. This evolution is logical. YouTube has also been observed to be increasingly used as a search engine. The good news is that YouTube has new ways to generate engagement and it is very easy to measure returns on investment. But the wine industry could also take inspiration from other sectors such as fashion and beauty, which use many different formats to innovate and tell stories.
When it comes to the future of technology, leading companies such as Meta are predicting the future of commerce in the metaverse. As far as wine is concerned, it is difficult to imagine it in this digital space, since it is above all an experience rooted in reality. At Google, we believe that digitalisation should first and foremost help real people and work directly with them.
(Cyril Grira, Retail & Omnichannel Director, Google France)
About Vinexposium
Vinexposium is the world's leading organizer of wine and spirits trade events with a portfolio of iconic and recognized events. The group also draws on its digital portal Vinexposium Connect to maximise the scope of its events and serve the industry’s business interests across the globe 365 days a year.
