To benchmark basically means to compare something against a set standard. Therefore in order to be able to do benchmarking, performance indicators (PIs) must be established. They are empirical data, barometers, dials or signals.

Unfortunately there is no centralised research database for wine tourism in Australia at present and all cellar door studies executed to date have been of an ad hoc nature. This information has value, but its usefulness varies greatly in terms of the region in which it was conducted and the winery/s for which it was executed. The information collected also tends to have limited use unless it is conducted frequently and is collected on a regional basis. It can't usually be compared against other regional data due to timing differences and methodology.

Questionnaire
By using a generic cellar door survey questionnaire included in this Cellar Door Research Kit, you can obtain your own set of data that can be compared in subsequent surveys. The type of data you collect can be customised to your needs, and depending on how big your sample is, you may need specialised assistance in analysing and interpreting the data. However, most wineries should be able to establish a simple spreadsheet to input and analyse the data reasonably easily.

Begin by reading the introduction titled 'How to Conduct a Cellar Door Survey'. Then move onto the sample 'Cellar Door Visitor Survey' and the 'Analysis of Cellar Door Visitor Survey Results'.

These tools have been provided by Dr. Johan Bruwer of Adelaide University, who has extensive experience conducting these and similar surveys. For assistance with this tool, email Dr. Bruwer at johan.bruwer@adelaide.edu.au.