Advertiser vs. consumer

By Mrinal Khullar



This is a great clip that captures the issue we IMCers are battling regarding our approach to marketing communications. I think it accurately and hilariously depicts how out of touch with consumers mainstream advertising can be. It also points to the importance of having a dialogue with consumers versus a one-way relationship. Other than the humor, I think this clip truly emphasizes the importance of what we’re studying here at Medill. Understanding consumers as more than demographics or psychographic descriptions is critical to our process. Certainly, database information on purchase behavior is imperative to our understanding. But so is getting to know consumers as people first, consumers second.

Mrinal Khullar is a student in the Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications program at Northwestern University’s Medill School. She can be reached at mrinalkhullar2011@u.northwestern.edu.

Adventures in consumer insights: Decoding college undergrads

By Anne Mahoney

“Consumer insights” are easy to take for granted. They generally are subtle- sounding observations such as “men need to embrace a new definition of masculinity,” which Draftfcb did for Dockers. It may seem a trivial process on paper, yet unearthing and correctly predicting trends and behaviors takes finely tuned intuition and research. They make or break campaigns with big budgets at stake.

This summer, I received firsthand experience in the market research process through my residency program with iris worldwide, a marketing, advertising and experiential agency. My team, consisting of Katrina Greenwood, Susan Monahan, Megan O’Malley and myself, were tasked with understanding U.S. college students and developing a sustainable tool to track ongoing trends on campus. Our initial reaction, following the excitement: Gulp.

After meeting with our client sponsor in New York, we had ideas buzzing around our heads and seven weeks left to complete the project. The best advice we received was from Professor Michelle Weinberger, our consumer insights expert-in-residence, who said, “Don’t think – just start doing.” So we did.

In that time, we mapped out a four-stage process before it was time to “ship” the final product. We enlisted a bevy of research tactics, such as in-depth interviews, focus groups, ethnography at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a survey taken by students at more than 60 U.S. colleges and universities. We combined that research with other published articles, weekly brainstorms and loads of ice cream from George’s, our unofficial headquarters.

The result was an identification of seven values that currently manifest themselves within college campuses paired with timeless tensions every college student encounters. The values, combined with technology, media usage and communications channels, can then be interpreted specific to consumer brands and transformed into marketing opportunities.

Our team had the opportunity to present to iris and its client, glacéau, a Coca-Cola company that produces beverages such as Vitaminwater and smartwater. Brand managers even participated in a workshop where they put the values to work for their own brands, creating a number of potential campaigns in under an hour’s time.

Not only was it an incredibly rewarding experience, the residency project gave my team a real-world application of consumer insights and how they are critical to the IMC process. It’s now impossible to view a marketing message without also thinking, “What’s the insight there, and how’d they get it?”

Anne Mahoney is the Social Media Director at Vitamin IMC and a student in the Integrated Marketing Communications graduate program at Northwestern University’s Medill School. She received the “Most Questions Asked” award at youth summer camp, and is still unrelenting in asking “Why?” She can be reached at AnneMahoney2010@u.northwestern.edu.

The Pepsi Refresh Project: Inside the Secret Formula

A Conversation with David Dreyer of TBWA\CHIAT\DAY

In January, Vitamin IMC ran a post about Pepsi’s decision to spend millions on a program called the Pepsi Refresh Project instead of investing in its traditional Super Bowl advertising spots. Little did we know that the concept was developed by a team from TBWA\CHIAT\DAY Los Angeles that included Medill IMC alum David Dreyer. Vitamin IMC Social Media Director Anne Mahoney was fortunate enough to have a conversation with David on the strategy and IMC elements behind the successful project.

On Strategy

“Pepsi wasn’t going to be the first to do philanthropic work or social media, and didn’t want to be a ‘me too’,” said Dreyer.

So how did TBWA\CHIAT\DAY propose capturing the essence of the Pepsi brand in an authentic way that resonated with consumers?

“Pepsi has always been at its best as a catalyst for change. In the Great Depression, it doubled the amount of ounces for the same cost. During World War II, it adopted its patriotic red, white and blue colors. It was always leading culture.”

The Pepsi Refresh Project was an idea formed from consumer insights. The Pepsi Refresh Project gives financial grants to anyone’s causes or ideas that gain the highest number of votes. With enthusiastic support from Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi and company bottlers, the TBWA\CHIAT\DAY developed its rollout plan to the public.

“It was very deliberate – a marathon and not a sprint,” said Dreyer. “Refresh was launched in 2009 when we talked about it [to the public], and in 2010 we acted on it.”

Grant submissions began online in January 2010, with a cap of 1,000 on a first-come, first-serve basis each month. To give an idea of how popular the Pepsi Refresh Project has become, that 1,000-submission quota was reached in 30 minutes when opened for April.

On Engagement

The Refresh Project gives Pepsi the extra marketing power Super Bowl commercials fall short on – customer engagement. Where companies pay millions for celebrities to endorse their brands, Pepsi now has celebrities coming to them wishing to participate. Rihanna, Jenny McCarthy, Eva Longoria and Mariska Hargitay are just a few who have submitted grant ideas.

A great example of how the Refresh Project has helped its consumers is the case of Johnny Greenshield, a 14-year-old who won $25,000 with his homemade video of a new aerodynamic hood invention for buses.

On Demographics

When I think Pepsi marketing, I think of Gen Y as the ideal target audience. David had an intriguing response to that assumption.

“Pepsi symbolized youth, but some of its most loyal consumers are boomers. It needed an idea that bridged gap between millennials and boomers. Both groups are powerful agents of change, but because of psychographics rather than demographics.”

Do you think that boomers are too far outside of the internet age to participate?

“The majority of ideas are submitted by boomers, and they are the fastest growing demographic on Facebook,” Dreyer continued. “They have time, are computer-savvy, and it’s a way for them to keep in contact with friends and family.”

The Pepsi Refresh Project is an integrated marketing campaign that we’re continuing to keep an eye on. I’d like to give my personal thanks to David Dreyer for sharing his insights with Vitamin IMC.

--Anne Mahoney

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Anne Mahoney is the Social Media Director of Vitamin IMC and a student in the Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications program at Northwestern University’s Medill School. In the 90s she tried to win Deion Sanders gear through the Pepsi Stuff promotion. She can be reached at AnneMahoney2010@u.northwestern.edu.