Claire Wang shares fascinating insights into the psychology of wine pricing. She discusses groundbreaking research that reveals how the perceived value of a wine bottle can significantly impact our enjoyment of it. Is it really true that a $12 wine can taste better when it's labeled as a $40 bottle? Claire delves into the behavioral science behind our wine experiences and why storytelling matters in the world of wine.
Claire also highlights a study that challenges common beliefs about wine preferences. Through blind tasting experiments, it was found that less experienced wine drinkers often preferred cheaper wines when unaware of their price. This episode emphasizes that wine doesn't speak for itself; rather, the narrative behind the wine is crucial for enhancing appreciation and enjoyment. Tune in to understand how marketing and perception play a vital role in the wine industry.
00:00
Welcome to the best five minute wine podcast with Forrest Kelly.
00:18
So you mentioned about why a $12 bottle of wine tastes better when you're told it costs
00:27
Tell me about everything that goes into that statement.
00:31
Well, I guess, you know, that statement firstly has a lot of behavioral research backing it
00:41
And, you know, the most famous one probably came from those researchers from Stanford
00:46
and California Institute of Technology, where they ran this experiment.
00:52
They invited like, you know, a group of people and they split this group into two.
00:58
The first group, they give them a bottle and they told them it costs $5 a bottle.
01:04
The second group, they told them that it's $45.
01:07
And as both groups are drinking their wine, they send those people to do MRI scan.
01:13
So they actually, you know, scan their brain activity while they are swallowing the wine.
01:19
You know, don't ask me how they get this like technical things done, but this is what
01:24
And what they have found is those people who were told that they are drinking a $45 bottle
01:31
genuinely enjoy the wine more.
01:34
So they can see more blood flow into the brain region where it lights up.
01:38
So I think the explanation behind this is that, you know, when we interpret information,
01:45
we never interpret things by vacuum, you know, we always have some sort of like knowledge
01:52
and then we see things through that filter.
01:55
So even though those two wines are exactly the same, but when you were told that it's
02:00
worth more, your brain is kind of preparing itself for a better experience.
02:05
And then as a result of that, it shifts your perception.
02:09
And you know, this phenomenon, we see this all the time, not just in wine, but you know,
02:15
my background is in pricing.
02:17
And we have seen this in many similar studies, you know, where they tell a group of people
02:23
that this costs more.
02:24
And as a result of that, a group of people will just enjoy that more.
02:29
And you know, in marketing, you can call this as a marketing placebo effect, because when
02:33
people believe they are paying more, they genuinely believe that they are buying something
02:38
that has better quality.
02:39
Yeah, I mean, it can go either way.
02:43
You're right, because sometimes what also happens is, you know, when you pay a very
02:48
low price for some customers, they would think that, is this even real?
02:53
You know, they will start suspecting the quality of what you have.
02:56
So in pricing, we know that customers, they have this, you know, they always have this
03:01
range where below which they will think the quality of the product is not trustworthy
03:07
enough for them to buy, above which they will think you're trying to rip them off.
03:11
So it's all about finding that sweet spot.
03:14
It happens in business, and it also happens in wine a lot, when somebody will give you
03:19
something and will, it speaks for itself.
03:22
Say that's an expensive lie.
03:25
Oh, because nothing ever speaks for itself, right?
03:30
And if you don't tell people the story behind it, then they will just not appreciate it.
03:35
And let me give you another research, because I generally find this really interesting.
03:40
So, and this study has been published in Journal of Wine Economics a while ago, where they
03:48
study a group of people, basically they put people on blind testing.
03:53
And then, you know, there are some experienced testers, and there are some people who just
03:58
enjoy wine, but they might not have deep knowledge about wine.
04:04
And what they found is that for people who were not trained, they actually prefer the
04:11
So this is kind of like, you know, contradicting to what we've been told about the price, right?
04:16
When they know they're drinking something more expensive, they think it tastes better.
04:21
But when they didn't know, they actually prefer the cheaper wine.
04:24
So how do you, and I guess this is the part where storytelling comes in, right?
04:30
When we say quality sells and speaks for itself.
04:32
In this case, it doesn't, because those people, even though they've been given a better product,
04:37
they couldn't be able to tell the difference.
04:40
So unless you tell them what they are drinking, why they should appreciate that more.
04:45
So I think it doesn't matter how good your product is, like, you know, you need to give
04:50
people not just the story, but maybe some of the winemaking technique or whatever, depending
04:56
on who you talk to.
04:57
For someone geeky like myself, I love to know the winemaking process, because when I know
05:03
the process, I start appreciating like the effort behind it, and then I start to enjoy
05:09
So I guess, you know, it's up to individual, but the point here is wine never speaks for
05:16
You need to give it a meaning so that your customers who are enjoying the wine can see
05:22
the story behind it.
05:23
Thank you for listening.
05:24
Tell your friends and pets.
05:33
Please like and follow.
05:36
Please like and follow.
No lines match your search.
