Could Vino Volo Become Millennials' "Go-To" Brand in Wine Education + Discovery?

Our conversation with Doug Tomlinson of Vino Volo got me thinking about how Millennials will learn about, share, and purchase wine in the future. 

As both Bill and Arsani pointed out, Millennials have already become the country's core wine drinking demographic. Tori's post highlights how millennials are eager to develop their wine knowledge and broadcast/share their wine preferences. 

However, there is still no "go-to" brand for wine education + discovery. A number of online-only apps are aiming to fill this role. Apps like Vivino and Delectable aim to be the "Trip Advisor" of wines. You can log and rate wines, check reviews, compare prices and learn about each wine. You can even follow your friends, making it a social network.

Right now, a major issue with these platforms is the "data entry" aspect: after each time you enjoy a bottle of wine, you have to photograph and upload the label, or you have to search for the wine manually. Another problem is that the experience component, which Tori pointed out in her last post, is missing.

With these issues in mind, I think Vino Volo is well-positioned to build this relationship with the millennial consumer and become their partner in developing wine knowledge and preferences. They could build on an app like Vivino, and integrate the in-person experience and tasting portion that these apps lack. And the semi-captive settings that Vino Volo is already targeting could be the perfect place for millennials to further their wine knowledge and tastes.

Airport/skiing/concerts/travel time is typically either social time, or dead time. If you are traveling with friends, you can share in the experience of identifying your wine preferences and discovering new wines. As we've learned in this class, people like to share their preferences and identify with certain wines. Consumers like to say they are into wine, in the same way that they like to say they read the Economist. And if you're traveling alone, you can convert the miserable "dead" time in an airport into time where you can experiment and develop your interest. Then if Vino Volo became a distributor, you could in theory have them ship you the wine that you enjoyed in your travels to serve at your next dinner party. There could even be a gamification aspect. 

This strategic shift online and to the role of "wine authority" will help increase customer loyalty and fend against competitors in the travel/leisure wine bar space. I have been working part-time on a loyalty program for a start-up, and I have learned that while a lot of companies have "loyalty" or points programs, true loyalty comes from a customer's relationship with a brand, and high switching costs. By serving as an online companion to log, track, recommend and share wine preferences, Vino Volo can create a "stickiness", or loyalty among its customer base in a more integrated and organic way.

While becoming a "wine authority and online distributor" would mean a shift away from their current core competency, it is a growth play that in my opinion would be worth the execution risk.

The question for Vino Volo is whether they should build or buy (or partner) in order to gain this online and distribution capability. 

Interested to hear other people's thoughts!