The Australian online wine-buying consumer: Motivational and behavioural perspectives

Abstract

Wine is particularly suited to various dimensions of the internet and hence creating a brand image that will attract and retain consumers is the conundrum of the online wine retailers. This article outlines the findings of a primary ‘field’ research study with a final sample size of 1377 using an online-administered structured questionnaire to obtain information about behavioural and motivational perspectives in relation to the Australian online wine-buying consumer. The research sought specific answers to the group demographic profiles of the principal adopters of the internet medium, security and site navigation issues and past wine-purchasing behaviour of the online wine buyer. It was found that the security of personal financial information was the most important risk perception aspect while website functionality rated as the most important navigational issue. Online wine buyers were mostly well-educated, high-income males in the 35- to 44-year-old age group. Wine was confirmed to be both an information- and price-sensitive product in the online retailing context.