--- title: "Smart Recommender for Wine & Spirits Verticals" slug: "smart-recommender-for-wine-spirits-verticals-1" description: "Smart Recommender for wine and spirits helps Insider One customers recommend taste-based picks, pairings, premium upgrades, and occasion gifts." updated: 2026-10-20T14:00:30Z published: 2026-10-20T14:00:30Z canonical: "academy.insiderone.com/smart-recommender-for-wine-spirits-verticals-1" --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://academy.insiderone.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Smart Recommender for Wine & Spirits Verticals Wine and spirits buying is shaped by taste, occasion, discovery, and gifting. Product type, price tier, brand loyalty, and food pairings all influence choices, and many purchases happen around special occasions or when restocking a home bar. This article shows how to use Smart Recommender in Insider One to guide discovery, suggest pairings, and support gifting. It includes an A/B test walkthrough for pairing cross-sells and strategies for each page type. > [!NOTE] > **Before you start:** Make sure your product catalog includes the attributes this article filters on, such as Category, Taste, Occasion, and Tier. Create missing custom attributes on the **Product Attributes** page and mark them as filterable. ### What you can achieve with Smart Recommender #### Taste-based discovery Show lists such as "Fruity Whites" or "Smoky Whiskeys" based on taste profiles and preferences. #### Pairings for every bottle Recommend food pairings, mixers, or accessories such as openers and shakers on product pages. #### Gift sets for occasions Suggest bundles such as an "Anniversary Wine Duo" for holidays, birthdays, or corporate gifts. #### Easy reordering Show previously purchased or frequently bought bottles on the homepage. #### Checkout add-ons Recommend bitters, snacks, or miniatures on the cart page to raise average order value (AOV). #### Category-based personalization Adapt the homepage to shoppers who prefer wine, spirits, or cocktails. #### Attribute-based suggestions Use Attribute Affinity with grape variety, alcohol content, or region. #### A/B testing Test placement, pairing logic, and messaging such as "Editor's Picks" versus "Trending Now." ### Walkthrough: Boost AOV with pairing cross-sells Wine purchases are often tied to an occasion, such as hosting a dinner. Recommending items that complete the occasion raises AOV. This walkthrough tests two cross-sell strategies on wine product detail pages: - **Variant A:** Recommend cheese pairings. - **Variant B:** Recommend glassware. #### Step 1: Create the recommendation strategies Navigate to **Recommendation Strategies** and click **Create**. Configure the first strategy as follows: 1. Select **Product Detail Page** as the page type. 2. Select **Purchased Together** as the algorithm. 3. Enter the number of products to recommend. 4. Exclude products purchased in the last four weeks. 5. Add a filter for the category attribute: Category + is + Cheese Pairings. Create the second strategy with the same settings and change only the category filter: 1. Category + is + Glassware. **Note:** Keep every other setting identical between the two strategies. If more than one setting changes, you cannot tell which change caused the difference in results. #### Step 2: Launch the campaign Navigate to **Web Smart Recommender** and click **Create**. 1. Select the integration method for the widget. 2. On the **Segments** step, select customers with a low AOV under **Purchasing Behavior** and set your threshold. 3. On the **Rules** step, use **Page Rules** to target the product detail pages of wines. 4. On the **Design** step, assign one strategy to each variant and set the traffic allocation for each variant. 5. Click **Edit Design** to open the **Advanced Product Card Designer** and customize your product cards. 6. Select the locales and stores where the campaign appears. 7. Review the campaign details, confirm that every setting matches your goal, and click **Launch**. **Note:** Every attribute you show on a product card must exist in your product catalog. To show more information, create custom attributes on the **Product Attributes** page. #### Step 3: Track campaign metrics 1. Navigate to **Smart Recommender Analytics**. 2. Find your campaign in the **Campaign and Variant Metrics** table. When the test period ends, click the campaign name. 3. Compare Direct Revenue, Average Order Value (AOV), and Conversion Rate for the two variants. This shows whether cheese pairings or glassware raise AOV more for low-spending customers. 4. If one variant clearly wins, set its traffic allocation to 100% so every visitor sees the better strategy. After you find a winner, test other pairings, such as decanters or gift boxes. #### Step 4: Optimize your campaigns After the campaign has run long enough to collect data, use **Smart Recommender Analytics** to improve it: - **Engagement funnel:** Review product impressions, click-through rate, add-to-cart rate, and conversion rate to see where shoppers drop off. - **Campaign and variant performance:** Compare AOV, Conversion Rate, and Direct Revenue in the **Campaign and Variant Metrics** table, then refine or scale the winning variant. - **Product-level impact:** Open **Top 100 Product Analytics** to see which recommended products perform best. Give extra visibility to strategic products that perform below expectations. - **Category trends:** Use **Category Analytics** to find the categories that drive the most conversions, and decide whether to prioritize them or promote weaker ones. ### Use cases by page type #### Home page ##### Taste-based collections Show the most viewed bottles for a taste profile, personalized to each shopper. 1. Create a strategy with the **Most Popular** algorithm. 2. Turn on the **Enhance recommendations based on Attribute Affinity** toggle. 3. Add the filter Taste + is + Fruity. 4. If you do not have a Taste attribute, create it on the **Product Attributes** page. **Tip:** Try titles such as "Discover Fruity Favorites" or "Explore Bold Reds." ##### Occasion-ready picks Show best-selling bottles for an upcoming occasion, such as New Year's or a dinner party. 1. Create a strategy with the **Top Sellers** algorithm. 2. Add the filter Occasion + is + New Year. 3. If you do not have an Occasion attribute, create it on the **Product Attributes** page. **Tip:** Run this campaign in the weeks before each occasion and change the filter value as the calendar moves. #### Product detail page ##### Cocktail essentials Recommend the mixers, syrups, or bitters that go with the spirit the shopper is viewing. 1. Create a strategy with the **Purchased Together** algorithm. 2. Add the filter Category + is one of + Mixers, Syrups, Bitters. 3. Exclude recently purchased products. **Tip:** Try headlines such as "Make It a Perfect Pour." ##### Upgrade to a premium bottle Suggest a higher-tier bottle in the same category, such as an aged reserve next to a mid-range whiskey. 1. Create a strategy with the **Trending Products** algorithm. 2. Add two filters: Tier + is + Premium, and Category + matches the item they're currently viewing. Connect them with an **AND** connector. 3. If you do not have a Tier attribute, create it on the **Product Attributes** page. **Tip:** Try headlines such as "Try This Aged Reserve." #### Category page ##### Trending in this category Show the bottles gaining the most interest this week in the category the shopper is browsing, such as red wines. 1. Create a strategy with the **Trending Products** algorithm. 2. Add the filter Category + contains + the category they're currently viewing. 3. If your categories are hierarchical, select the **Expand the category filter to include recommendations from the next category if there aren't enough products to display** checkbox, so the widget still fills when the current category has few products. 4. Turn on the **Enhance recommendations based on Attribute Affinity** toggle. ##### Limited-time deals Show the most discounted bottles in the current category, such as sparkling wines. 1. Create a strategy with the **Highest Discounted** algorithm. 2. Add the filter Category + matches + the category they're currently viewing. 3. Leave Attribute Affinity off. #### Cart page ##### Pairings to add Suggest popular add-ons that suit most carts, such as snacks, bar accessories, or mixers. 1. Create a strategy with the **Most Popular** algorithm. 2. Add the filter Category + is one of + Snacks, Accessories, Mixers. 3. Leave Attribute Affinity off. **Tip:** A/B test copy such as "Complete Your Bar" and "Add the Finishing Touch." ##### Reach free shipping Show products that help shoppers reach your free shipping threshold. 1. Create a strategy with the **Checkout Recommendation** algorithm and set the spend threshold (for example, 100 USD). 2. No filters are required. Attribute Affinity is optional. **Tip:** Use copy such as "You are 12 USD away from free shipping." If you do not offer free shipping, use **Purchased Together** instead. ### Related articles - [Algorithm Descriptions](https://academy.insiderone.com/docs/algorithm-descriptions) - [Recommendation Strategies](https://academy.insiderone.com/docs/smart-recommender-recommendation-strategies) - [A/B Test Recommendation Strategies](https://academy.insiderone.com/docs/ab-test-recommendation-strategies) - [Smart Recommender Analytics](https://academy.insiderone.com/docs/smart-recommender-analytics)