Millennial Generation and Environmental Sustainability: The Role of Social Media in the Consumer Purchasing Behavior for Wine

Giovanni Sogari (), Tommaso Pucci, Barbara Aquilani and Lorenzo Zanni
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Tommaso Pucci: Department of Business and Law, University of Siena, 53100 Siena SI, Italy
Barbara Aquilani: Department of Economics, Engineering, Society and Management, University of Tuscia, 01100 Lazio, Viterbo, Italy
Lorenzo Zanni: Department of Business and Law, University of Siena, 53100 Siena SI, Italy

Sustainability, 2017, vol. 9, issue 10, 1-16

Abstract: In the coming years, social media technology will have a crucial role in environmental involvement and in encouraging sustainable behaviors in the wine industry. Sustainable development is becoming a crucial topic for many consumers. Also, in the wine industry much research has been carried out to decrease the environmental impact, with a particular focus on renewable energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, pesticides reduction, water and waste management, biodiversity, soil and landscape preservation. In recent years, social media technologies have gained increased attention for their potential to amplify environmental concerns and encourage sustainable behaviors among people. This study aims to study the role of social media in the consumer purchasing behavior for wine between the millennial and non-millennial generations. A total sample of 2597 Italian wine consumer responses were collected and a structured questionnaire was used to test our hypothesis. The main results show that the greater the import the consumer places on the product/process dimension of environmental sustainability, the higher the self-selection in market segments. This is true for both millennials and non-millennials. The results show the power of social media to increase sustainability awareness and consecutively influence the consumer’s buying behavior for wine (higher price segment). From a marketing perspective, companies should improve their capacity to share and communicate their environmental activities through social media.

Keywords: environmental sustainability; buying behavior; market segmentation; price; social media; Millennials; wine (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (19)

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