What’s driving low and no alcohol trends in Australia
The social trends and audience behind healthy drinking behaviour
While the pandemic and lockdowns made some people more likely to grab an alcoholic drink, audience interest in low alcohol or no alcohol drinks keeps growing online, both globally and in Australia.
But what events are driving Australians towards the #sobercurious lifestyle? And which brands are piquing their interest?
According to data from our sister company Pulsar, social conversation and search interest in low-no-alcohol peaked in April ’21-Oct ’21 as the press announced a $1 million government grant (as part of the Australian Government’s Modern Manufacturing Strategy) was awarded to Modus Operandi Brewery to manufacture a non-alcoholic ale, NORT. The mentions of low/no-alcohol experienced a peak in June, leading to Dry July and Sober October.
Mention metrics show that health and socialising are major motivational drivers for Australians when choosing a drink of the low/no-alcohol variety. The two are closely related, as prominent tags associated with low/no-alcohol mentions are #mindfuldrinking, #soberissexy, and #soberdating.
Meanwhile, popular millennial and gen z media outlets like Fashion Journal and Refinery29 are reporting on how-tos and the benefits of sober dating. Young Australians are reading that by avoiding the booze, their anxiety is reduced, and they are setting themselves up for relationship success.
Mental health improvements associated with the trend aren’t the only benefits being publicised; the physical gains are too. Australian media personality Erin Holland told Women’s Health Magazine that her preparation for the popular reality series SAS Australia involved a strict no-alcohol rule. Rugby union Wallaby player Radiko Samo credited a no-alcohol stance to his improved performance on the field.
The data also suggests Australians genuinely enjoy the taste of low/no-alcohol beverages followed by ethical reasons. For centuries, abstinence from alcoholic drinking has been tied to ethical beliefs, but open discussion and acknowledgment of Australia’s amoral history keep this motivator current. Aboriginal-owned and led non-alcoholic craft brewers SOBAH advocate for this and aim to break toxic Indigenous stereotypes by providing “healing opportunities outside the reliance on government funding and control.”
Globally, drinks like beer, vodka, and whiskey tend to be more popular, but Australian consumers are hitting the spirits and mixers. Non-alcoholic cocktail bars were springing up across Australian metropolitan areas like Brunswick Aces in Melbourne, giving non-drinkers a chance to socialise without feeling left out. From hotels to online delivery services, hospitality businesses connect with Aussies’ healthier lifestyle choices. In particular, small-batch distilleries and breweries utilising bush tucker flavours are getting covered in widely read hospitality and entertainment sites like Broadsheet.
Australian-made distilleries are also proud to represent the small-batch, independent ethos which aligns with the Aussie tendency to support one-of-kind artisanal producers over big-name brands.
British and Australian brands Seedlip and Lyre’s appear as the most mentioned across media platforms between July-November 21. In the news, Aussie founded Lyres had taken out best non-alcoholic spirit for their Italian spritz at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. Seedlip took out two non-alcoholic spirit awards in the Australian Drinks Awards held in November 2021.
While we might expect fitness enthusiasts to be discussing the benefits of lowering alcohol consumption online, a deep dive into the different audiences talking about low alcohol brands reveals this is a popular conversation amongst more niche subcultures.
Across twitter, discussions of non-alcohol spirits are popular amongst Australian bookworms. Popular non-alcoholic brands like Lyres and Seadrift use old-fashioned or themed storytelling as part of their branding language—an aesthetic that lets literary lovers know they ”can enjoy the mirth and merriment of a soiree or shindig” without alcohol. This group is also keen to share with their community the book they are currently reading and a matching mocktail.
This trend continues to grow as Aussies aspire for optimal performance at work, in their social and romantic lives, and for their overall wellness. The data shows Aussies celebrating and sharing their alcohol-free experiences with their digital communities, and with the backing from the government and smaller brands taking out big awards, this trend continues to offer Australians an opportunity to get on the wagon.
Insights promote action and change with stakeholders
Research, measurement and evaluation needs to promote action with relevant stakeholders including the general public. It’s easy to fall into a trap of measuring something because you think you should or because someone has asked for a few charts on a communication team's activity. But your stakeholder engagement strategy is missing an opportunity to create long term impact with key audiences.
Stakeholders (internal and external) are an effective resource for driving change and shifting narratives. Stakeholders are a crucial avenue for advocacy of communications activity but are usually not provided with the necessary information. They need motivation to change their behaviour and support your objectives.
A project that champions this is the Media and Gender research the Isentia insights team produced with Sport New Zealand. This research examines how women are portrayed across sports news in New Zealand and shines a light on where there is work to do. The research itself is engaging and builds rich insight into an area often not looked at on this scale. The most success lies in how research helped motivate and support behaviour change within the primary stakeholder - the media.
Move stakeholders with data-led evidence
Editor of The LockerRoom, Suzanne McFadden, said this study encourages national representation of women in sport,
“A surge in women's sport in NZ media, but a fall in female bylines, highlight the latest Sport NZ study - which also shows where LockerRoom leads the pack.”
Jennie Wylie, Netball New Zealand’s Chief Executive said to Radio New Zealand, that media coverage plays a vital role in female participation in sports,
"What we do know is the cost of our young people not participating in sport, and the gap for young women and girls in that participation, it plays out in terms of media coverage, so if you can't see it, you can't be it."
Sport New Zealand was able to build a stakeholder engagement strategy using data and research that goes beyond numbers. It encourages those at the source of reporting to strive to improve.
Here are some tips on how to rethink your approach to research and evaluation, so your organisation can do the same:
4 considerations for your stakeholder engagement strategy
1. Don’t only focus on your own activity
It’s easy to fall into the measurement trap of focusing on your own activity and neglect your audience and sector. It’s important to understand if your communication is successful, but you're missing key opportunities (and threats) that you can only see if your research lens is wider.
2. The value of pre-research
Research performs at its best when used to determine where you should be going instead of only where you’ve been. Bring research into your planning early and give insight into what your audiences already experience as well as their responses and their preferences, so you can tailor your organisation’s activity based on evidence.
3. Use your evidence to generate conversations
Engage all your stakeholders in the research process and as early as possible to increase their investment in the results, regardless if it means changing their own behaviour. The more measurement and research is collaborative and unites stakeholders within a common purpose, the more effectively it will spur change.
4. Measure more than once
Changing audiences and information requires your organisation’s research lens to focus on what's relevant to your objectives and audiences.
Talk to the experts about how Isentia insights can refocus your stakeholder engagement strategy
Ultimately, research should help drive conversations, and in those conversations is where you can create change. It doesn’t always work the first time, so be persistent - it’s worth it!
Contact us to discuss how we can create a tailored measurement programme that supports your goals.
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Thought Leadership
A targeted stakeholder engagement strategy in 4 steps
To have an impactful stakeholder engagement strategy you must use the right data-led insights to drive interest in your objectives.
Sustainability in businesses, and where to draw the line
With consumers taking more of an interest in living a sustainable lifestyle, many companies are prompted to take steps to reduce their environmental impact and embrace sustainability.
However, what happens when companies make false claims that they are more sustainable than they actually are? This is where greenwashing comes in. Greenwashing is when a brand frames itself to be environmentally conscious for marketing purposes but is not making any notable sustainability efforts.
We analysed conversations on greenwashing among Malaysia's social media users powered by Pulsar's data.
Our study shows that the term "greenwashing" is not as widely used when consumers call out practices that mislead the people with positive communications on environmental and sustainability practices when it is not.
'Investment', 'banking', 'ESG', and 'sustainability’ are just some of the keywords most commonly used when Malaysians talk about greenwashing.
Consumers tend to be sceptical and raise concerns with sustainability claims as they question the effectiveness and legitimacy of such initiatives. Some have linked such "green efforts" as a tactic for cost-cutting and even for financial gains.
Malaysians talking about greenwashing online lean slightly more towards males. In terms of age group, the 18 to 24 years old have shown stronger interest in the topic.
They are most interested in watching movies and TV and have high media affinity with some of the nation’s prominent media outlets such as Astro Awani, The Star, and Bernama. They tend to be sentimental, particular, and analytical.
The top three audience segments we have identified talking about greenwashing are The Green Lovers, The Informers, and the Activists
The Green Lovers who are passionate about sustainable lifestyle are highly interested in entertainment and social issues. Their choices are driven by a desire for well-being.
The Informers, on the other hand, follow media outlets such as Astro Awani, The Star, and Bernama and tend to share content that concern the people with their networks. Their desire for organisation drives the choices that they make.
The Activists describe themselves as advocates for social issues. They follow political figures such as Khairy Jamaluddin, Syed Saddiq, and Hannah Yeoh. They are philosophical, authority-challenging, and empathetic.
Despite having different interests, their purchase decisions are likely to be influenced by online advertisements, brand names, and social media.
Sustainable businesses are focused on continuous improvement and long-term goals. They seek to promote the health of a company and the community in which it operates while balancing these goals with the need to develop profit.
However, despite efforts to campaign for sustainability and adhere to ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) standards, some industries such as banking, oil and gas, and fast fashion have been called out for greenwashing. Consumers have also pointed out initiatives such as the RM0.20 plastic bag pollution charges by the public sector for missing the ESG mark for seemingly profiting from the use of plastic bags.
Generally, these sectors have been criticised for failing to fulfil their 'green commitments’ adequately.
Greenwashing can be harmful to a company’s reputation in the long run. As many consumers are focusing on ‘conscious consumerism’, companies are expected to live up to their sustainability goals.
Get in touch with Isentia today to learn more about what consumers are saying about your company and brand in relation to greenwashing.
Credit keeps the world economy moving, with Visa, Mastercard and American Express brand names easily identifiable across the globe.
These providers have traditionally been part of the world’s invisible machinery for most of the world. And yet, looking at the sharp incline in social mentions from 2019 to 2022, we can see a definitive shift taking place, with each of these brands increasingly becoming part of conversations worldwide.
This report will explore the associations attached to each brand, the audiences engaging in the global conversation, and how spending behaviours and customer incentives intersect with these different audiences and online communities.
To do so, we analysed over half a million English-language posts between October 2021 – February 2022 from the UK, USA, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, Laos and Brunei.
The data sources, meanwhile, include Twitter, Reddit, and other forums.
You may download the full whitepaper by filling up the form below to learn more about this report.
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Whitepaper
The online credit card conversations in Singapore
This Global report sheds light on international trends and zeroing in on how credit card incentives are discussed in Singapore.
Isentia, the leading media intelligence and insights solutions provider in the Philippines and Asia-Pacific, has created a report documenting the first 30 days of the Philippine Presidential Election campaigns.
The Philippine presidential candidates have had various campaign strategies since their announcements via mainstream and social media. The public has had varied reactions to their movements.
The study seeks to comprehend the themes and sentiments of the media and digital public discussions on the identified candidates since the official campaign period from 8 February 2022 to 9 March 2022.
This Isentia initiative has undergone quality checks by Isentia's insights counterparts from Indonesia and Vietnam to ensure an unbiased analysis.
Fill up the form below to download the whitepaper and read more.
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Whitepaper
The Philippine presidential race campaign period at a glance
The Philippine presidential candidates have various strategies for their campaigns since their announcements via mainstream and social media.
