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Case Study
McBride Sisters Revamp
Building Community & Awareness at Scale
As the largest black-owned wine brand in the US, The McBride Sisters Wine Company's products can be found both online and in major retailers- no small feat.
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This speculative design addresses how the brand can leverage existing resources paired with user feedback, to increase its customer base, build community, and ultimately- increase revenue.
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Challenge
Overview
The McBrides Wine Company seeks to increase their revenue, post-COVID through wine-club subscriptions and retail sales. Additionally, they’re interested in building brand awareness and visibility, while fostering a sense of community amoungst existing and prospective customers.
Vanessa Conlin, MW, head of wine at the retailer Wine Access, echoed George’s idea that wine was no longer seen as an “elitist beverage” [by Millennials] although she said that they still “honor it as a special product at every price point”; and although they have always embraced the idea of presenting wines in a humble way that is rooted in storytelling , they [wine sellers] are now investing more time into different channels to connect such as Instagram and podcasts to find all the various places where their potential clients are spending their time.
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Source: “Wine Industry Experts Discuss A Shift In Marketing For Millennial Generation,” Forbes.com, Published: October 29th, 2020
- Forbes.com
User Interview
Findings
8 Participants Surveyed
Qualified users were wine enthusiasts , keen on social activities, and familiar with virtual interactions. Below you'll find the top insights gathered from the 8 qualified interviews.
Product Discovery
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I want to be able to quickly and easily search for wine based on my wine preferences.
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I like to discover new wines in social situations.
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I want to be able share my experiences, trying new wine with others and build connections
Social Interaction
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I want to be able to enjoy wines with family and friends
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I want to meet and enjoy the company of others
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I want to have virtual experiences that feel real
Personalized Experiences
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I want to be able to quickly view my go-to wines and check out.
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I want to be able to leave my thoughts on wines that I try and like or dislike, so I remember why I may or may not want to purchase it again.
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I want recommendations on wines that I might like and events I would enjoy when I’m logged in or through email/newsletter.
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"Their [Reserve wine] designs feel very new age, psychedelic, and rooted in it's culture "
- Benay, 31, Holistic Business Owner
How
Might We...
... create a more cohesive design for the site, to ensure users feel confident in what is offered, and comfortable navigating the site's pages.
Solution:
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Key design elements mentioned in User Interviews were leveraged to create a design guide. The colors, fonts, and textures used in the prototype reflect the essence of the Reserve collection's bottle designs, and the abalone featured on the original site's Wine Club section on the home page.
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"I enjoy learning about how they're best paired and how it might complement what you're having it with. "
- Carlos, 41, VP of Asset Wealth Management
Feature-Conscious
Prototype
Existing Experience:
Opportunity:
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Create a way for new and existing customers to better understand wines in a virtual (online) setting, before purchasing.
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Eliminate the need to leave the site during the selection process to view reviews and potential food pairings on alternate websites.
Solution:
The Prototype:
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The ‘Sort Products’ feature provides an easy way to filter wines by collection, wine type, tasting notes, price point, and region, encouraging exploration of new wines that match user preferences.
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Product pages now provide community product reviews, tasting notes, and recommended pairings to support decision making when purchasing wines- a nod to the expert advice users value when shopping for wine, in person.
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Products with a similar flavor profile are recommended below the chosen product to encourage larger purchases and site exploration.
"I like that we're able to learn a lot at [wine] tastings, and that food or chocolate is usually paired with the wines"
- Sydni, 40, Program Coordinator
Feature-Conscious
Prototype
Existing Experience:
Opportunity:
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Increase a sense of community, while increasing brand visibility and awareness.
Solution:
The Prototype:
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Users are shown upcoming virtual and in-person events on the website's home screen and on landing pages for relevant products.
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Users are incentivized to ‘bring their friends’ with group discounts, for events and tastings.
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Like-minded small businesses are invited to co-host product launch events and tastings to increase brand exposure and create new avenues for new customer interactions.
"In order to create truly resonating products, ones that answer real, unmet needs — focus equally on the design your users see and on the transparent, intangible factors that the experience is built on."
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Source: “Beyond Usability: 3 User Experiences Reshaping Their Industries,” nngroup.com, Published: February 19th, 2017
- Sarah Gibbons, Nielsen Norman Group
Retrospective &
Next Steps
This speculative project was initiated with the goal of understanding how to increase revenue and customer engagement. It was quickly revealed through User Interviews and eventual card sorting that customers were simply confused by the existing e-commerce experience.
My hope is that the proposed solutions are implemented to support the customer journey, and that the McBride Sisters Wine Company reaps the benefit of that effort.
Recommended Next Steps:
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Include your Instagram feed on your homepage, to encourage site visitors to follow the brand and share posts with their social network.
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Leverage a Service Blueprint* geared toward events, to increase the in-person events attended by the McBride Sisters Wine Company team members, to increase brand visibility- at scale.
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Recruit a field marketing team and task them with identifying events that attract the target user provided in this case study, and apply the Service Blueprint* to the development and implementation of events.
*Service Blueprint Case Study- Coming soon
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