Co-Chairs
Bob Tomei
President, Consumer and Shopper Insights, Information Resources Inc.
Bio »
Mike Twitty
Director Shopper Insights The Americas, Unilever
Bio »
Kate Whittington
Director, Guest Insights, Target Corporation
Bio »
ARF Executive
Joel Rubinson
Senior Research Consultant to the ARF and President, Rubinson Partners, Inc.
Shopper Insights Council
Upcoming Meetings
OCTOBER 26, 2010 • 2:30–4:30PM EST
Details to be posted. Please check back.
DECEMBER 7, 2010 • 2:30–4:30PM EST
Details to be posted. Please check back.
Past Meetings
MAY 11, 2010
Understanding Shoppers – Aligning the Retailer and Manufacturer Perspectives
Please join us May 11th at the ARF NY offices for the first Shopper Insights council meeting of 2010 and to welcome our newest co-chair, Kate Whittington – Director, Guest Insights, Target Corporation.
Kate will be joined in NY by Mike Twitty from Unilever and other leaders of the ARF shopper insights council from Johnson & Johnson, Symphony IRI Group, and Smart Revenue, sharing their perspectives on where the retailer and the manufacturer look at opportunities from shopper understanding in the same way, and where the discrepancies are.
Then, Larisa Mats from Kraft Foods and Christina Engelhardt from Cymfony will present their work on “Using Social Media to Understand Today’s Shopper Behavior”.
Finally, we will discuss plans and ask for volunteers regarding the “Path to Purchase” working committee.
PRESENTATIONS FOR THIS MEETING AVAILABLE FOR ARF MEMBERS ON POWERSEARCH
(copy and enter presentation title into PowerSearch after logging onto My ARF)
NOVEMBER 12, 2009
Today’s Economy (A Retailer and Consumer Perspective) and Understanding the Path to Purchase
This council meeting tackled two of the most important issues today:
1. Recession’s impact on shopping patterns including the perspective of a leading retailer, Stop and Shop
The Recession Effect: Marketing to Women with Children in a Economic Downturn
Elizabeth Harris – SVP Director of Strategic Planning, RIVET Global
Impact of the Economy: A Retailer Perspective
Peter Kohutanycz – Director of Consumer Insights, Stop and Shop
2. The revolution in marketing thinking from what the ARF calls “Path to Purchase” and what Procter’s new CMO calls “Store Back”. He says, “"Store Back" means that marketers must ALWAYS have the store in mind when developing a new product, a new idea, a new statement: "If it does not work at the store, it's a miss".
ARF shopper insights council leadership described its plans to create a “path to purchase” working committee and heard comments from a reaction panel.
PRESENTATIONS FOR THIS MEETING AVAILABLE FOR ARF MEMBERS ON POWERSEARCH
(copy and enter presentation title into PowerSearch after logging onto My ARF)
AUGUST 20, 2009
In-Store Media’s Impact on the Shopper: What’s the Right Model?
Finding the Shopper in Shopper Insights ... Panel Discussion: How should the media world think of Shopper Marketing?
Are marketers under invested in shopper marketing? Is putting advertising right at the point of purchase like “recency” on steroids? Or, is it a place where no one looks at an ad for more than a fleeting glance? To answer these questions, the ARF has brought together rock stars from the shopper and media world who aren’t normally on the same panel to discuss how the media world should think of Shopper Marketing.
Panel included Herb Sorensen, TNS-Sorensen Associates; Erwin Ephron, The Ephron Consultancy; Paul Donato, The Nielsen Company; Mike Hess, Carat Insight.
PRESENTATIONS FOR THIS MEETING AVAILABLE FOR ARF MEMBERS ON POWERSEARCH
(copy and enter presentation title into PowerSearch after logging onto My ARF)
MAY 12, 2009
Translating Shopper Insights into Strategy and Solutions
Learn about purchasing decisions made pre-store and in-store and how consumer segments and shopper segments differ. Smart Revenue, one of the ARF’s newest members and DS IQ shared their perspectives.
PRESENTATIONS FOR THIS MEETING AVAILABLE FOR ARF MEMBERS ON POWERSEARCH
(copy and enter presentation title into PowerSearch after logging onto My ARF)
FEBRUARY 23, 2009
Kickoff Meeting of the Shopper Insights Super Council
PRESENTATIONS FOR THIS MEETING AVAILABLE FOR ARF MEMBERS ON POWERSEARCH
(copy and enter presentation title into PowerSearch after logging onto My ARF)
Meeting Notes
Virtual Testing: Activation at Retail
Winning the Last Mile
Defining the Power and Importance of Shopper Insights Research
Virtual Store Simulation: The Road to Industry-wide Adoption
Council Chairs
Bob Tomei – President, Consumer and Shopper Insights, Information Resources Inc.
As president of IRI’s Consumer and Shopper Insights practice, Robert Tomei overseas growth, development and management of the company’s Panel, Testing and Loyalty businesses.
Tomei is a recognized industry luminary and market research veteran with more than 25 years of experience in the CPG industry. He has a distinguished track record in general management, global marketing, developing innovative client solutions and creating strategic partnerships to drive profitable revenue growth, both in the United States and internationally.
Joining IRI from TNS, a leading global market insight and information group, Tomei served as president, TNS-U.S. Areas of Expertise & Marketing and global head of TNS’ 6th Dimension Access Panels. In this role, he oversaw Brand and Communications, Product Development and Innovation, Stakeholder Management, and Retail and Shopper Insights practices. In addition, he managed and directed TNS’ online access panels in the U.S. and internationally.
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Mike Twitty – Director Shopper Insights The Americas, Unilever
Michael Twitty is the Director of Shopper Insight for Unilever in the Americas. He is responsible for ensuring that Unilever’s Senior Leadership carries a vital sense of the shopper to every decision they make.
Mike is the author of Unilever’s landmark research on food shopping in America, “Trip Management: The Next Big Thing” and several other nationally recognized research reports on shopping.
Mike holds a Master’s Degree in Psychology and has practiced various types of market research and consumer psychology for Unilever since 1984. He is active in the Shopper Insight community and is a two-time past chairman of Shopper Insights In Action, the national organization of shopper insight professionals.
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Kate Whittington – Director, Guest Insights at Target Corporation
Kate Whittington is the Director, Guest Insights at Target Corporation. Her team is responsible for providing insight and inspiration about Target guests to partners throughout the company, with a focus on Merchandising, Marketing and Stores.
Ms. Whittington has been with Target since 2004, serving first in the Strategy & Research group. Prior to joining Target, Ms. Whittington worked at McKinsey & Co. in their Minneapolis office, where she specialized in consumer banking, retail, and nonprofit consulting.
Ms. Whittington holds a B.A., magna cum laude, in computer science and political philosophy from Carleton College in Northfield, MN. She also received an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School, where she graduated with high distinction as a Baker Scholar.
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ARF COUNCILS SPONSOR
NOTE: ARF Council sessions are closed, member only sessions and cannot be covered by the press without prior approval from the ARF President & CEO.
Council’s mission
Provide an industry forum to define and implement the emerging discipline of Shopper Insights research, agree to its basic principles and share “best demonstrated practices.” Such practices will improve the flow of marketing spending as marketers, retailers, and agency partners learn how to bring value to people via the shopping processes and experiences they engage in.
Meeting/registration notes
Council meetings are open to ARF members only. Learn more about the benefits of ARF membership.
Meetings are listed in Eastern Time and held in our New York City office unless otherwise noted.