SVB Industry Research: The New Deal

Winning A Battle

The Annual SVB Industry Survey is closed. I've never posted those words on a blog before because that has never been news. But last Friday, because of the lack of industry response, I was convinced this would be SVB's last survey and in another first, I had to let the industry know that.

I interpreted the continuing annual trend of fewer survey responses as the industry making a universal statement that our research wasn't worth spending the 13 minutes it takes on average to complete it. I can't analyze blank cells, so without a response from wineries, I can't write the Annual State of the Industry Report with the same level of analytic support. How else am I to interpret the disastrous survey response?

I knew last Friday if I couldn't get at least 200 more responses in the 4 remaining days of this 3-week survey, there was no sense in continuing, and this was going to be the last survey the bank would produce - and the good news is I would get my November and December holidays back! So the close of the survey has now apparently become news to many people, including my family. How did we end up with responses?

Is this the Last SVB Industry Survey?

Images from Pixabay

I am trying to put the pieces together to arrive at a decision to continue or discontinue the Annual SVB Industry Survey, and I need your help to decide.

Almost 20 years ago I recognized there was a severe lack of good data and benchmarks, so I came up with the idea to start an industry survey. It was a novel concept for the era and was immensely successful. For the first time, small wineries had real business information to help in decision-making.

We gave the complete set of information and analysis to respondents and also used it to formulate pieces of the SVB State of the Industry Report. We've been fully underwriting the effort at substantial cost and producing results free of charge ever since. It has to be a labor of love on our part. I don't think anyone would confuse it with a for-profit initiative! But we are at a crossroads.