Notes from the audience of the Festival of Marketing

Picture this: a warmer than average October day, a room filled with marketers from all walks of life, each armed with a notebook, a pen, and a cup of coffee. It’s Festival of Marketing Day, and, as I’ve run out of pages, I’m ready to read out my notebook to who wants to listen.

Kill complexity

First out to talk to the troops is the fearless marketing maestro Mark Ritson. I’m not going to describe my anticipation and excitement for this session, but by the end I was vigorously (some might say too enthusiastically) clapping my hands.

What is changing in marketing? In a gripping talk about marketing duels and enlightenments, Ritson questioned the very bedrock of marketing strategies: “Much more often than not, segmentation is pointless”. You heard that right—80% to 90% of the time, segmentation misses the mark. He referred to Samuel Brealey’s article, “Anti-personalization: The best ad for one is the best ad for all,” emphasizing the need to simplify marketing strategies as what’s good for one person tends to be good for most people.

With the role of segmentation changing, is targeting also losing the battle? The double-edged sword of the digital era is micro-targeting. Did you know that the narrower your audience, the more engaging your copy must be? Yes, the targeting is more accurate, but is it effective, or necessary? Ritson talked about a return to mass marketing – not meaning targeting “everyone” but all potential buyers, albeit with a more sophisticated approach. So, after a wild swing towards complex targeting, it seems that mass marketing might be making a return. Tesco, for example, is already putting in place successful two-speed strategies –mass marketing through TV advertising, and more accurate targeting through digital channels.

The battle on positioning is one that we’re fighting daily at Keen as Mustard, and Ritson’s words hit home: “Positioning isn’t an end; it’s a way to get customers to associate your brand with your core attributes.” Say goodbye to those long, wordy statements. If you want it to work keep it short, sweet, and focused on what sets you apart from the competition. And here’s a wakeup call: “British consumers wouldn’t care if 94% of brands disappeared.” In other words, nobody cares about your brand as much as you do. So, kill the complexity and focus on cut-through.

Sharp videos

Cut-through and engagement are battles that Preethi Sundaram, Director of International Marketing at Vimeo, is fighting too. Did you know that 82% of internet traffic is video? Here’s the punchline: only 1% gets viewed to completion. At Keen as Mustard, we’re strong believers in the power of images but what is it that gets engagement? The advice from Vimeo is that “Ugly works”. Go straight to the problem and talk about that. Don’t be afraid of raising that difficult question. And in a time where screens are only getting smaller, and the available content is multiplying “Have a face at the beginning”, building that emotional human connection from the start can keep viewers till the very end. If you have already worked with us on video content this isn’t news to you, as we’ve certainly asked “do you have any consumer interviews? Any Voxpops?”. Voices, faces and human emotions are the unbeaten star of the show.

The Order of the Long-Term Brand Building

The Festival’s marketing warriors talked about one of the battles that is closest to our hearts: mental availability. As Anouschka Elliot, MD at Goldman Sachs says: “Mental availability is extremely important.” It’s key to brand success, especially in a B2B context. But – of course there’s a but – convincing the C-suite and stakeholders of its worth is not an easy win. It’s the ongoing marketers’ dilemma of how to demonstrate to a number-hungry board, that saliency is what the business needs for growth.

On the same panel, PwC and Jellyfish Global reiterated that mental availability shouldn’t be confused with awareness (more on this later), and that the marketing funnel is limiting. It’s good to have a simple structure to follow, but it should be adapted and evolved depending on the single organisation and its customers. Tom Roach, the Vice-President of Brand Strategy at Jellyfish International, reworked the standard marketing funnel saying goodbye to the classics—awareness, consideration, conversion—and marching towards the new —build, nudge, and connect. It’s a whole new emotional layer. An extra spice to your marketing for that extra kick.

Next up, The B2B Institute was also ready to fight the battle for mental availability. And just to clarify, with mental availability we mean increasing the probability that your brand comes to mind in different buying situations; “which is the most customer-centric marketing goal,” said Peter Weinberg Global Head of Development at the B2B Institute. “To win the market you need to win the minds” says Peter, the true ‘Knight of the Order of the Long-Term Brand Building’. And isn’t it true? Especially in a busy context like insights.

Something else we often repeat to our clients is that most buyers in B2B are future buyers (referring to the 95:5 rule by the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute for Marketing Science), and that’s why mental availability is so crucial for growth. However, there’s still an obsession with lead generation, mostly based on the illusion that because it’s measurable it works – and we see that all too clearly in the insights industry. This lead-only mindset is opening a space to feed the top of the funnel for those who are willing to put some eggs in the long-term basket, and work on “memory-generation” rather than lead-generation. “Prime the market with what we called pre-suasion rather than persuasion,” said Peter.

A single front

In other words, you can’t influence a buyer you’ve never reached. It’s a losing battle. The marketing “circle”, as The B2B Institute call it, should be much larger than the sales one – to allow for greater reach – but they should both strongly align. However, a study from the B2B Institute found that the average alignment between marketing and sales is only 16%, meaning that the two departments are talking to different buyers. There is a lot to be done in the B2B marketing space, but starting with understanding that mental availability will give you a strong – and essential – advantage over your lead-gen-obsessed competition is key. And we all know that “numbers” are king in our industry, so look for some signs that signal an increase in mental availability. Sales being one of them (more reach, more leads), but also hiring (high mental availability could bring 95% higher response to recruitment), and marketing (determine what is that increased the chances for your buyers to become leads).

Marketing is a discipline that is often not understood or misunderstood (even by marketers themselves) – hence why it can be demoralising, and it can feel like shouting at the wind. But what I’ve learnt from this event is that there is a lot of alignment amongst marketers as to what works in B2B generally that we can apply to insights. Worldwide experts, global company leaders, professors, creatives, and consultants, all maintain a compact theoretical and practical stronghold to win the old battles of building brands long-term, feeding the top of the funnel, aligning with sales, keeping it simple, and being customer centric. And, even if our only weapons are the double-edged swords of digital, the marketing funnel, and almost unmeasurable successes, we’re relentlessly, unanimously, pursuing our mission.

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Insights from Diageo, Under Armour, DeBeers and The Economist on choosing their insight partners.

There isn’t an app for clients to swipe to find their perfect insight partner. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t get noticed. At IIEX Amsterdam, Colonel Mustard Lucy Davison led a dynamic panel discussion about how end clients find and engage with new insight partners. Panellists, including Efrain Rosario, Head of Global Futures and Shopper Planning at Diageo, Diana Mitkov, Senior Management of Demand Insights and Analysis at De Beers, Helen Devine, UX Research Manager for The Economist Group, and Marion Hoek-Koudenburg, Director of Consumer Insights and Capability at Under Armour, shared their experience and about the best way to engage with them.

Here’s how you can win their hearts.

Communication is key

‘Emails are a big issue, don’t assume that everyone wants to hear what you have to say and particularly don’t send emails asking for an appointment next week… I get forty of those a day’ says Marion Hoek-Koudenburg.

The simplicity of an email seems like an easy way to get around the sweaty palms and awkward silences of a face-to-face or telephone interaction. However, a generic, unsolicited email or an automatic meeting request is also a good way to end up ignored or discarded into the trash folder. All panellists agreed that crowding the inbox, is no way to showcase your individuality.

What they recommended instead, is to attend IRL forums like IIEX and ESOMAR as there are ‘a lot of suppliers in one place, and I can go around and find out what people are doing’. Talking openly with others at events about your work is a way to not only get your face out there but is a way to connect with colleagues in your field as a human as well as a professional.

Another key channel cited by the panel is podcasts. End clients like to tune in in their own time and keep up to speed with what agencies have to offer without having to scroll through an unwanted email or read a lengthy article.

Facts speak louder than words

Even before you’ve secured that “first date”, it’s important to think about what makes you different from everyone else out there. Don’t offer up a laundry list of services but demonstrate what sets you apart, then build on that to generate trust and credibility for a successful partnership. As Efrain Rosario at Diageo states ‘Anytime an agency comes to me with a tangible use case where they’ve applied for someone else’ it’s hard to not hear ‘look this is the kind of tangible value we can get by doing this kind of work’ (click here for our article on best practice for case studies). Showcase what makes you different: your thinking, a point of view or philosophy, the real impact you helped a client achieve, and the experience you have under your belt.

No one likes a catfish

All our panellist agreed that ‘word of mouth is one of the most important ways to find out about working with someone new’ – so we cannot overstress how important a good reputation is.

It’s important to be aware of the risks companies take when bringing on board a new partner, which is why it’s so imperative to practice accountability and openness when working. You are who you are – so be true to yourself. Agencies that provide honest reflections on their own skills and limitations, that don’t pretend to be anything other than what they are, start the relationship off in the right way for both parties.

Experience is key

Of course, if we are talking about reputation, you must deliver top-quality work every time, to make yourself stand out from the sea of other firms. A good insights partner needs to know what it means to run a marathon, not a sprint. The brands on our panel look for partners that can identify touchpoints throughout the consumer journey and use them to optimise their research for growth. To do this you need to think broadly and know where you fit in. Our panellist said they are looking for agencies who can ‘crunch data and whenever we have access to bigger data sets, they can extract the most out of it’. These suppliers are sought out for their ability to use statistical methods, analyse data, and identify trends and patterns that can inform strategies and produce long-term success.

On top of broader business analysis skills, the clients on our panel also seek insight partners who have a solid qualitative understanding of consumer attitudes, behaviours, and drivers. In an internet-driven world, consumers can access more brand options than ever, so an in-depth picture of wider consumer behaviour beyond the brief, is needed.

A cheap date?

End clients are also feeling the pinch, one of the panellists has ‘been asked to cut a third of my budget’. Maintaining a strong partnership and team spirit is crucial when times get tough. By working together through experimentation, leveraging pre-existing information, or conducting a pilot project, insight partnerships can form to establish effective collaboration practices and build strong relationships that last.

It’s not always love at first sight, and getting noticed in a busy crowd can seem daunting. But by communicating your strength effectively and using the right channels to reach your prospects, you can ensure clients will swipe right!

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Here at Mustard, as a women founded and led business, we foster an environment of diversity. The work of Women in Research and the MRS’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion reports have been vital elements in promoting and advocating for women in insights. As profession continues to evolve, there has been a growing push towards recognising the value of diversity in all areas of business.

But we have far to go. MrWeb’s new ‘Raidar’ ranking published earlier 2023, showed that in the top 40 global insights companies ranked, only one had a female CEO. https://www.mrweb.com/results/raidar2023118151910.htm#table. At this rate, according to WIRe’s 2022 Gender and Career equity survey, we will reach parity of male: female CEOs in 2067. This is in spite of the finding that companies with female leaders scored higher overall job satisfaction, with 26% of workers saying they were extremely satisfied with their jobs as opposed to male-led insights companies that only scored 19%.

The waste of talent and potential is bad enough but in order to truly reflect the needs and perspectives of all those we reach out to for research, it is imperative that we first ensure diversity within our own company structures. We must encourage women not to just sign up to work in insights, but also facilitate their advancement to more senior roles. Only by embracing the true diversity of society can we effectively and authentically represent the voices of the public through our research.

Which is why we at Mustard would like to offer our sincere gratitude to Greenbook for providing a platform for our own woman in leadership, Colonel Mustard Lucy Davison, to chair a panel of female leaders to discuss the topic at IIEX Asia Pacific. The panel included Juda Kanaprach, the co-founder and chief commercial officer of Milieu Insights, Nikki Lavoie, currently the head of global experience strategy at Savanta and former CEO and founder of Mindspark, Lara Truelove, the program leader for SAP’s Centre for experience management, and Bharati Dixit, who is currently utilising over 15 years of design and market research experience as the lead in UX Research for HP.

Together they shared their experiences as women in market research, their insights into what needs to change, their perspectives on how they elevate the voices of women in research, and how they recruit and manage diverse teams to achieve success – not just in support of themselves but the industry at large. Creating opportunities for women to share their experiences, insights, and perspectives is a crucial step towards achieving gender equality in the workplace this is particularly important in market research, where the ability to understand and represent diverse perspectives to deliver accurate and insightful findings is paramount.

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Back in December, we challenged you to find out your communication style with our Hollywood-themed quiz. Well, the results are in of the world’s first and only survey of insights professionals about communication. 260 of you completed our quiz and now we  are opening the envelope to reveal what we learnt about the insights profession.

First of all, although the quiz was a bit of fun the issue is no joke: 63% of you stated that communicating data and insights is challenging. This challenge carries through in the overall results distribution – fewest were best actor (16%) and the majority were best cinematographer (33.5%), followed by the best director (24%) and best supporting actor (24%).

Overall, this result appears to reinforce the image of insight people as slightly ‘behind the scenes’, technical and low profile when compared to other professions. The best cinematographers make a huge difference to a movie but don’t get the accolades – name one. This is reinforced by the responses to the question about communication style, with most researchers describing themselves as collaborative (37%) or consultative (34%) rather than charismatic (15%) or creative (14%).

The biggest communication challenge which 37% of researchers said they struggle with is always assuming people know what they mean. We’re going to come back to this in a future blog on developing the essential consultancy skills to ensure you and your audience are fully in tune. It’s not just about avoiding jargon and not making assumptions, but about the ‘two ears, one mouth’ approach – realising that communication is a two-way street, with listening more important than speaking.

It’s worth noting that the slightly recessive tendencies that many of you cited, did not follow through to how people described their behaviour in meetings with 40% of you saying you love bringing new ideas to the table and providing creative spark and just 14% preferring to listen than talk. Given that listening skills are crucial to communication, perhaps that balance needs to be redressed. It seems that within a smaller group researchers love to shine and be inspiring.

We’re here to help all researchers make the most of the roles they are playing and achieve an Oscar no matter what the film. Fame is a flavour, and Mustard makes it pop. Want to learn more about your star power potential in communication? Get in touch!

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I recently had the opportunity to be a part of the Market Research Benevolent Association’s webinar discussing the topic of mental health and wellbeing in the workplace, hosted by Jennifer Perry from the MRBA. The panel featured experts from the market research industry, such as James Pickles from James Pickles Coaching, Amanda Hammond from Opinium, Paul Vittles from The Jordan Legacy and Ben Tuttle from Hope Guardians, who shared their insights and experiences on how to create a mentally healthy workplace.

Breaking the stigma

For me, the most important lesson that came out of the webinar, was that mental health issues are more widespread in the workplace than people think. When you’re suffering with poor mental health, there’s a tendency to feel isolated and lonely, so you forget that many other people are facing similar issues. The webinar highlighted that regardless of gender, age or job title, mental health can affect everyone. It was enlightening to hear professionals in the market research industry speak openly about a topic that has previously been perceived as taboo. Webinars like this help break boundaries, which enable conversations to take place that wouldn’t have happened even five/ten years ago.

Another important part of the webinar I found empowering was learning about how industry professionals are helping people who are struggling with mental health issues. Ben Tuttle shared the mission of his company, which is to provide mental health support services to organisations and their employees. Ben emphasised the importance of creating a safe and comfortable environment for employees to talk about their mental health and delved into the value of therapy as an option. From experience, the normalisation of speaking about therapy, or even reaching out to a therapist takes enormous courage. It’s not something that’s easy for everyone but can also be the first step to healing and recovery – I know this from experience.

James Pickles’ story of his mental health struggles and recovery is a powerful reminder of the importance of mental health in the workplace. I was deeply moved by his bravery and honesty in sharing his experience, and it resonated with me as I could relate to the struggles he faced. His journey shows that mental health issues can happen to anyone, regardless of their job title or perceived level of success. It also illustrates that mental health is not a linear path and that it’s possible to recover and come out stronger on the other side.

Amanda Hammond also shared how organisations can educate employees on the signs and symptoms of mental health issues and encourage them to support and reach out to their colleagues. I completely agreed with Amanda’s observation that mental health can affect everyone in unique ways. This can make it quite difficult for employers to understand when someone may or may not be suffering, which underlines the importance of speaking honestly about how you’re feeling to find the correct solutions.

What studies say

Another important topic that was covered during the webinar was workplace accommodations for employees with mental health conditions. Paul Vittles  discussed the research that The Jordan Legacy did with MEL Research on suicide, which found that suicide is the leading cause of death for men under 45 in the UK. He emphasised how organisations can provide flexible working hours, remote work options, and accommodations for therapy or medication schedules to help mitigate the risk of suicide among their employees. It is important for employers to understand that mental health conditions are just as valid and deserving of accommodations as physical health conditions and that these accommodations can have a significant impact on the mental well-being and safety of their employees.

Moreover, the webinar underlined the importance of addressing the root causes of stress in the workplace such as unrealistic workloads, lack of clear communication, and lack of support. By addressing these underlying issues, employers can create a work environment that promotes mental well-being rather than contributing to mental health issues.

Overall, the MRBA’s webinar reinforced the fact that mental health and wellbeing in the workplace is a crucial topic that should not be ignored. By promoting open communication, empathy, understanding, and addressing root causes of stress, employers can create a work environment that not only benefits their employees, but also leads to increased productivity and job satisfaction.

Sources:

• To find out more about HopeGuardians, click here
• To find out more about James Pickles Coaching, click here
• To read more about The Jordan Legacy and MEL Research’s study on suicide and suicide prevention, click here
• To learn more about how to stay mental healthy at work, click here

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A huge congratulations are in order for our Colonel Mustard, Lucy Davison, as she becomes a two-time honouree of the Insight250 award at this year’s ESOMAR congress.

Lucy was recognised for her achievements over the last year, which includes presenting to the QRCA on building fame, her expert channel on GreenBook, presenting at IIEX in Austin, and her fireside chat with Bic at this year’s Quirk’s Media event in New York. It’s been a year full of achievements for Lucy and the Mustard team, so it’s very well deserved (if we can say so ourselves).

The Insight250 award features 250 members of our community, spread across 46 countries in 6 continents. Everyone featured is a leader and winner in their field.

Congratulations to everyone featured this year.

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We at Mustard Towers were delighted that ESOMAR recently returned to action in the UK with its first in-person event in over three years. As a (somewhat) new recruit in the MRX and insights industry, I quickly realised that ESOMAR has an excellent reputation. In case you didn’t know, ESOMAR is the global community for people working in data, research and insight. I couldn’t wait to get stuck in and see what ESOMAR’s UK Summer Event had in store for me. I set my goals to meet as many new people as possible, learn what ESOMAR has to offer young people like me, and gain more understanding of what the future has in store for the world of data and insights.

MRX has changed a lot throughout these past three years (a whole global pandemic later), so there were many talking points people wanted to discuss and catch up on. The main theme of the event was ways of working, and what the impact has been on us.

Before we got stuck into that, Crispin Beale, Group President at Behaviourally and UK ESOMAR representative, began the evening by introducing interim CEO of ESOMAR Pravin Shekar. He then welcomed the new permanent CEO, Dr Parves Khan. It was great to witness the torch passing, as both Pravin and Parves outlined the importance of ESOMAR’s mission to bring the market research community together. Mainly by maintaining positivity, respect, and honesty in the industry on a global scale. Dr Khan’s credibility and enthusiasm as well as her advocacy for diversity and female empowerment in data and insights, make her an excellent choice for ESOMAR’s new CEO.

The main highlight of the evening included UK ESOMAR representative and Colonel Mustard, Lucy Davison. Lucy chaired a thought-provoking debate with some leading clients in the data and insights industry. The panellists included Shehnaz Hansraj, Head of Insights and Research at Viking Cruises, Alex Wheatley, Head of Data and Insight at the National Theatre UK (also an ESOMAR UK Rep), Danny Russell, Strategic Advisor at Danny Russell Consulting, and Komal Sahni, Head of Insight at L’Oreal.

The discussion started with a debate on how the pandemic has created big changes to working environments. When asked if anyone would return to full-time work in an office, it was interesting to see that not a single person raised their hand. The luxury of working at home is now the norm for many. However, as the conversation demonstrated, we can’t always gloss over its disadvantages, in particular to younger members of the team, which is why hybrid working is essential.

As Shehnaz Hansraj pointed out, there are challenges in creating visibility. Especially in a home environment when you can’t be on the ‘shop floor’. While many in insights have embraced working from home, the debate highlighted the need to maintain in-person networking, a positive work culture, and collaboration to create new ideas.

Undoubtedly, in the next few years, people will seek answers on whether working from home genuinely increases productivity. One thing’s for sure, communication will be key, as Alex Wheatley mentioned during the debate. Teams must have open conversations about what works for them if individuals want to work from home—having the freedom to define what works and what doesn’t will be vital in ensuring everyone’s on the right page and productivity isn’t compromised. And, as many of us would agree, to Danny Russell’s point, let’s stop inviting people to meetings when they aren’t needed – just because it’s online doesn’t make it any less of a waste of time.

Another important discussion point throughout the evening was how the MRX and insights sector could entice young professionals into the profession. Many audience members were keen to stress the value of integrating young people into the workforce for fresh perspectives and to encourage diversity. It was good to hear Pravin and Parves explain how ESOMAR works with local associations and universities, with the aim of helping emerging researchers and moulding them into professional jobs – not just in the research field but also in the wider data and analytics fields.

There were noticeable links between the discussions on working environments and attracting young people into the MRX and insights industry. Young professionals – speaking as one myself – are often in favour of the post-pandemic adjustment of working from home. However, they’re also becoming more vocal about what they need from their superiors. What’s encouraging is that the more experienced people in the room had their fingers on the pulse and were aware of this. It’s hopeful for young people who want a career in the industry, but the execution of how we attract them by upholding their values and desires is critical.

One thing’s for sure; I came away from my evening at the UK ESOMAR Summer Event feeling even more enthusiastic about the industry. There’s a passion and zest in MRX that is somewhat understated, and it helps that everyone is friendly. I look forward to the next ESOMAR event – bring on Congress 2022!

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In the world of insights and research, marketing (if done at all) is frequently focused on short-term, tactical, lead generation. Agencies and suppliers come to us because they want more leads and see marketing as a support for sales and new business. In a digital environment, this seems to be an easy win. Create content to drive traffic and give you leads for your website, encourage clicks, capture data, measure, and target – and Bob’s your uncle. The problem is that this approach very often leads to disappointment and frustration.

A recent study by Professor John Dawes from the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute helps us to understand why. Hold on to your chair because you might be about to have a jaw dropping moment…the research reveals that 95% of your potential customers are not in the market for your services right now and possibly won’t be for months or even years. Indeed, only 5% of B2B buyers are looking to buy at any given time. What is more, contrary to popular belief, there’s nothing you can do to convince a potential customer to think about entering the market earlier, because they already have what they need, and they won’t need to change it any time soon.

Let’s start from the beginning. Most of you will already be familiar with The Long and The Short of It the 2013 paper by Binet and Field with the IPA. This introduced the idea that brands should be spending 60% of their budget on long-term brand building and 40% on activation and direct targeting. The key insight is that you need to build memorable and meaningful connections over time to build brands and this will help your tactical marketing to work. But this was entirely based on research into B2C advertising.

The new study looks specifically at B2B marketing. It shows that if you want to grow, you need to invest in building mental availability with the 95% of your potential buyers who are not going to click on a link or respond to a CTA any time soon. Having high mental availability means being remembered; being top of mind when a prospect does think about buying your services. Customers need to be aware of your brand, and most importantly they need to have a strong emotional attachment to it, even in B2B.

This is a long-term effort especially in the lengthy and complex B2B sales cycle. To be successful your marketing needs to build and refresh memory links to your brand, which will activate when customers are ready to buy. But the study also reveals that 95% of B2B marketers expect to see significant sales within the first two weeks of a campaign . So, it is inevitable that there is a great deal of disappointment and frustration.

To build these memories, you need a marketing strategy that differentiates you from the competition and gives you a strong story and point of view; a strategy that will make you famous. Using long-term brand building activities, you can tell your story and shape the perception customers have of your company.

The main challenge for all insights firms is awareness. Yet, tactical digital marketing is not going to solve your awareness problem. What the 95:5 rule teaches us is that short-term tactics mostly hit prospects who aren’t going to buy anytime soon. Your money and time are mostly wasted.

So, does your marketing focus 95% on long-term brand building?

If the answer is no, you need to switch your focus immediately towards building brand awareness; defining and communicating your brand story and building your profile as an expert in your industry, creating engaging content to support it, implementing a PR and media plan to make you stand out within your market. When you’ve sorted out these aspects, you’ll make a long-lasting impression in no time (pun intended, of course).

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Greenbook’s IIEX events explore the intersection of technology and insights. Is there a better place to host IIEX Europe than Amsterdam? It’s a trendy hotspot for many individuals and communities, and MRX is no different. So, you can imagine how excited I was as a (slight) newcomer to the industry to hop onto the Eurostar, arrive and take in the eternal beauty of centuries-old canals, before attending the two-day wonder of ‘one of the most cutting-edge consumer insights events in the world.’

The event attracts an eclectic mix of individuals, from research entrepreneurs, data scientists to insights and marketing professionals. Together we all took to the iconic Beurs van Berlage to bask in new ideas. The event did not disappoint. The new technologies and platforms I experienced there allowed me to see the world of insights in a new and dynamic way.

Day One

Day one saw Colonel Mustard, Lucy Davison, start the day early as she opened the proceedings with ResearchGeek’s Jake Pryszlak and Gen2 Advisors’ Gregg Archibald. As the rest of Team Mustard crept from the back of the main stage to the front for the beginning of the day’s sessions, it was clear that the audience was ready and intrigued by what was to come throughout the day.

Immediately, the sessions got off to a great start. Nyssa Packard, Senior Director of Insights and Head of User Research & Data Science at Skyscanner, taught us why we should ‘kill’ the Net Promoter Score once and for all. Giving misleading data, leading to the wrong decisions, and disgruntled researchers, it was interesting to explore the pitfalls of NPS. As a concept NPS has been around since 2003 – Nyssa reminded us that it’s crucial to make progress and move to using better alternative metrics.

This year’s IIEX Europe event was extra-special for Keen as Mustard as our very own Iosetta Santini presented for the first time. In what was a highlight of the event, Iosetta took us back to school with the ABC of PR, as part of Insights Marketing Day. Insights Marketing Day which is designed to give insight agencies and suppliers guidance on their marketing, was integreated as a parallel session within IIeX this time. Obviously, I’m biased, but I’ve never seen someone command the stage as successfully as Iosetta. She delved into the unwritten rules of PR and explored the crucial need for PR in the world of insights.

It would also be remiss not to mention that Mustard design director, Simon Dunn, also did a great job at Insights Marketing Day, sharing his expertise on how Insights and market research professionals can map keywords to create differentiation and target clients distinctively.

The integration of Insights Marketing Day also gave me the pleasure of watching some genuinely thought-provoking sessions by Patrick Olszowski, CEO at Outrageous Insight and Adam Gray, co-founder at DLAignite. It was good to understand just how crucial marketing is in the market research and insights industry, and what we could to alleviate the sector together.

Day Two

This year IIeX was all about generations, sustainability, and inclusivity – every other session covered one of these topics to the extent that at times presenters would shoehorn these elements into presentations. Bizarre in an insights and technological-themed event, it did seem that some presentations relied on these themes to draw people but did not deliver.

On the other hand, Word on the Curb’s Hayel Wartemberg and Isabelle Cotton delivered an insightful and thorough analysis of how building inclusive communities in market research is vital to provide cultural nuance from under-represented groups. It made me admire the work Word on the Curb does to capture cultural shifts in modern society – and most importantly, it felt authentic.

Another stand-out session, which genuinely got the heart of what IIEX is all about – the intersection of technology and research – was by Alex Johnson, Director at Jigsaw Research. Alex exhibited just how handy technology can be when capturing practical insights by sharing his learnings from creating Jigsaw’s Whycatcher platform. The platform has WhatsApp integrated into its service, enabling people across the world to use it. It was ineresting to learn about how simple yet effective these concepts can be and good to hear how Alex learnt from failures to deliver success in an agile and effective way.

IIEX Europe has been a stand-out, especially for me, as a newcomer to insights. We need these events for people to come together, network, and ultimately learn from each other. I’m not sure how the quality compared to previous years, but it was an excellent way for me to integrate and feel at one with the industry. Despite a few repetitive conversations on some topics, it really clarified where the industry stands at this time. There are so many great people to learn from. And what’s better is that so much can change in 12 months, we’ll all be back ready to see what the world of insights has to say in 2023.

The post Trends, teasers and triumphs: A recap of IIEX Europe appeared first on Keen as Mustard Marketing.

When it comes to communicating insights, most people still rely on that dull event, the debrief. All our efforts are squeezed into one hour of bar chart hell. When we should be scintillating and exciting, we are studious and exhaustive. What can we do to change this?
Where better to look for inspiration than Hollywood?! The glitz, the glamour, the lights, the camera, the action. The FAME.

Here are my thoughts on what we can learn from Hollywood to ensure we get the attention we deserve and the recognition we desire.

First of all, it’s worth mentioning, when you think about the way movies are marketed and promoted, they always have a full integrated campaign around them. It’s these different elements working together that build fame. So although I have here a list of six, we need to use them all if we want to get results.

1. Stars
Hollywood is most famous for its stars. Whether directors or actors, from the Hollywood walk to the movies themselves, it’s all about the stars. When people think of the movie Titanic, they think of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. So, you need to think, who from your team can be your Kate or Leo? Sometimes your best presenter (actor) is not the most senior person or the person who ran the project. Be prepared to put your best presenter forward.

2. Titles, and one liners
Film titles are the first thing we hear when a film is announced. Before the cast, the trailer, before anything, it’s the title. With the latest Avenger films the discourse around the title was almost as big as the film itself. The snappy, clever or just plain irritating titles are ones we never forget. So think about what you call your project. Don’t call it ‘Results of Q3 tracker’. No one will come.

Then there are the one liners, which act like hooks to get us intrigued. ‘Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn’ – you don’t even need to see the film to know where it comes from and what it is about. So think about a one liner to describe or refer to your project in a way that is really engaging.

3. Trailers
Blockbuster films have blockbuster trailers. And these trailers tend to hold the excitement, get the fans interested and start the fan theories. These blockbuster trailers set blockbuster records, Spider-Man: No Way Home received 355.5million in 24 hours on YouTube, the most for a trailer ever. Think about making three minute video trailers of your project. Just a few key highlights, but in film format, will often be all you need to get people engaged and excited.

4. PR
There is an elaborate PR scheme when it comes to promoting a film, from social media, to news articles and those all important Graham Norton interviews. Even when a film is not immediately due, the PR machine will whirr. So think about sharing the value of what you do all the time, work out key internal influencers, speak to people, use all available channels to publicise what you do, prime your audience for the project completion.

5. Target
Hollywood films are targeted toward different people. Paw-Patrol and a Period Drama have very different audiences and will be carefully planned and targeted for those audiences. They may both be movies, but they will be very different. So why do we in insights consistently do the one report or debrief for all audiences? Tailor your materials, understand your audiences and use different channels to reach them.

6. The Premier
Finally, think about the premier. The glitz and glamour all come together. Make this your debrief. Stage it, add some excitement and roll out the red carpet. Make the material interactive and increase your engagement. Sell your insights in the most exciting way you can.

Want to know how to make this work for you? Get in touch with us and we’ll share how we use our FAME model to add some Hollywood razzle dazzle to your insights communication

Keep an eye out for our upcoming webinar based on Hollywood and the FAME model and what you can do to give your insights FAME.

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