NEW YORK - A new Nielsen Category Shopping Fundamentals study explores the U.S. consumer??s mindset when it comes to purchasing alcohol beverages. How do they plan? How engaged are they? What influences them?

Key findings include the fact that consumers typically postpone spirit purchases until they venture out to make other purchases. While consumers largely plan their trips to make spirit purchases, the spirit purchases themselves only trigger 39% of the trips. Combining alcohol marketing communication with consumer packaged goods is key for activating these types of purchases.

Traditional beer drinkers are planners. Overall, beer consumers exhibit a high level of planning and habitual in-store behavior. Mainstream domestic beer consumers are purpose-driven, consuming 78% of their purchases on the same day. Marketers can break through their habitual behavior through usage occasion marketing, highlighting a variety of settings to consume and share the beverage.

Craft beer consumers, on the other hand, are much more impulsive. Craft beer drinkers make purchases without having a specific occasion in mind. These consumers are attentive to in-store marketing triggers, providing opportunities for specialty and seasonal beers alike.

Wine drinkers are explorers and make their purchase decisions in-store. Compared to the beer and spirits categories, a high level of wine purchase decisions are made in-store (37%), and consumers make 70% of their product decisions at the shelf. Engagement with the category begins even before visiting the store.