Offering Larger Selections of Beer at Restaurants Leads to Incremental Consumption, New Study Shows

According to Alcoholic Beverage DemandTracker, a recent study on alcohol consumption behaviors in the United States, 33% of alcohol drinkers who visit restaurants regularly report  that they are more likely to order beer when offered a large selection of beer brands at a restaurant.  And 26% of them are likely to order more servings of beer than they would have otherwise.  Offering a larger selection of beer also encourages more brand experimentation and re-connecting with brands used in the past, with 36% of consumers saying they are more likely to choose a brand they haven’t tried before and 19% saying they are more likely to order a brand they have not drunk in a long time.  Only 28% say that a larger beer selection has no effect on their beer consumption or brand selection.

Those who drink craft beers regularly (at least once per week) are especially likely to say that a large selection of beer brands at a restaurant leads to higher beer consumption.  44% of craft drinkers say that a large selection of brands makes them more likely to order beer, and 34% of them are more likely to order more servings of beer.

“Encouraging restaurants to offer larger selections of brands is a great way for the beer industry to increase consumption,” said David Decker, President of Consumer Edge Insight.  “A larger list of brands encourages people to choose beer, to experiment more, and to have more than one serving.  This is especially true for consumers who drink craft beers.”

Alcoholic Beverage DemandTracker provides an in-depth analysis of the key economic and attitudinal factors impacting alcoholic beverage demand. Data for the most recent wave of Alcoholic Beverage DemandTracker was collected in June via an online survey of over 2,500 US consumers, age 21 and over, designed and weighted to be representative of the US adult alcohol-drinking population.  Some of the topics addressed include drivers of change in alcohol category consumption, the impact of economic factors and secular trends on overall alcohol consumption and by category, channel behaviors, ways to increase category consumption, and numerous brand metrics.  The research covers the beer, spirits, wine, cider, and flavored-malt beverage categories including the largest brands in each category.

To learn more, call David Decker at (203) 504-7558 or send an email to ddecker@consumeredgeinsight.com