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theses

The United States Mid-Atlantic wine production region is experiencing a rapid expansion that raises the demand for market segmentation and a consumer needs study. However, only a few studies target the Mid-Atlantic region, creating a shortage in local consumer market analysis. To respond to the demand from the industry, this research employed an Internet based consumer survey as the primary source of data to understand the behaviors and needs of consumers living in the New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. A wine drinking frequency based market segmentation strategy was implemented to identify frequent wine consumers and the target markets in the region. The potential of wine tourism was also evaluated. Using descriptive statistics, I found that Mid-Atlantic wines were considered table wines for everyday consumption. Consumers in the Mid-Atlantic states preferred marketing through interpersonal communication, especially through their social networks. However, the perceived quality of Mid-Atlantic wines was low, causing a low consumer retention rate in this region. With the use of logistic regression and decision trees, my results demonstrate that super core wine consumers (consumers who drank wine more than once a week) are males; married; and age 45 years old or above; and reside in New Jersey. On the contrary, Mid-Atlantic wine target markets are young (<45 years old) super core consumers who are also wine enthusiasts (those who actively collect information about wines). Hence, both the super cores and the Mid-Atlantic wine target market consumers express a great interest in wine tourism. Specifically, winery tours are popular among older males and consumers who learn about wine through winery tasting staff. Based on the results, I suggest that wine business owners in the Mid-Atlantic Region continue to improve the perceived quality of their wines and build a positive image of the Mid-Atlantic wine production area. It is recommended that wine business owners in Mid-Atlantic region develop unique distinguishing features that will enable them to target consumers and differentiate themselves from the general wine market.

ETD_8590

M.S.

Includes bibliographical references

by Chen Yue

doi:10.7282/T3R78JFT

ETD graduate

The author owns the copyright to this work.