Optimizing In-Store and Television ROI: Interview with Matthew Keylock of dunnhumbyUSA and Bill Harvey of TRA

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Each year at theARF Annual Convention, we are proud to give the stage to groundbreaking research. This year, attendees will have the chance to learn the results of a massive study fromTRAanddunnhumbyUSAthat attempts to redefine how we think about marketing tactics and brand sales. We spoke withMatthew Keylockof dunnhumbyUSA andBill Harveyof TRA about their work.

ARF: Explain why this is such a landmark study.

Keylock and Harvey:There has never been a systematic, multi-case study undertaken that allows marketers to quantify the synergy of price cuts, in-store marketing and television advertising tactics. This is the first time that household-level data are being used to address the impact of these tactics on the individual household, and the first time it is being done on such a broad geographic scale. Previous studies have focused on small market research or marketing mix modeling, and that can present a challenge when marketers seek to translate and action those insights on a larger, more general scale. Meanwhile, the TRA/dunnhumbyUSA study leverages anonymous household-level purchase behavior data from 60 million households across the U.S. and the second-by-second measurement of TV viewing habits from more than 2 million set-top box households. The scale of the data allows for a more granular understanding of brand purchase behavior and ROI of marketing approaches. For this particular study, TRA and dunnhumbyUSA focused on heavily advertised CPG brands that average upward of $20 million in television advertising within the categories of toothpaste, yogurt, and cereal; and the impact of brand marketing messages within the three tactics previously named: price-cutting, in-store marketing and television advertising. The study breaks new ground in the industry for its robust representation of each of the three tactics, which allows a more thorough analysis.

ARF: What kinds of synergies did you find between TV and in-store? TV and price? Did these finding surprise you?

Keylock and Harvey:Within the advertising and marketing community, we have historically accepted an inverse relationship between pricing and television advertising. Traditionally, for example, when brands go dark on TV, it is commonly believed that consumers are more price sensitive to the brand at the point of purchase in-store and when the brand is heavily advertised, they are less price sensitive. We are excited to give ARF attendees a closer look at how these important tactics work in tandem and independently to drive brand sales.

ARF: How could your findings impact the way marketers determine and plan for ROI?

Keylock and Harvey:The study may lead to a common set of metrics for brands that apply across price cuts, in-store promotions and television advertisements. These findings can provide guidance for more accurate media buying and more strategic and effective allocation of marketing funds to determine budgets that will account for these marketing tactic synergies. Guidelines derived from this study have the potential to significantly impact the coordination of in-store promotion and television advertising. With the complete results of the study, media planners will look to scheduling and placing television advertisements as they relate to in-store promotions and price cuts. In addition, there is an opportunity to address challenges within the industry around "big data." Many marketers struggle to effectively leverage their "big data" assets yet databases continue to grow in size and complexity. By giving marketers access to sophisticated measurement tools, that data can become valuable by creating the right insights to drive brand sales and sustainable business results.

Want to hear more? Matthew Keylock and Bill Harvey will be speaking at the ARF Re:think 2012 Convention on Monday, March 26. Register now!

Matthew Keylock, Senior Vice President, New Business Development & Partnerships, dunnhumbyUSA is recognized as an industry leader in building winning customer strategies, helping to transform some of the world's largest enterprises, including major retailers in North America, Europe and Asia. Keylock is responsible for building dunnhumbyUSA's capabilities and customer base, providing foundational data solutions, insights, products, communication and media for companies within the retail, manufacturing, financial services, telecommunications, travel, automotive, utilities and e-commerce industry segments. Keylock also works to enhance and develop strategic partnerships that expand dunnhumby's capabilities and innovation strategies.

Bill Harvey, Vice Chair and CRO, TRA, Inc. has spent over 35 years leading the way in the area of media research with special emphasis on the New Media. As the 24 year-old strategy head of the American Research Bureau (now Arbitron), he invented the Area of Dominant Influence or ADI, an audience-based definition of television markets that Nielsen emulated as the DMA, and which was called by Sales & Marketing Magazine "the most widely used marketing tool in the world today". ADI has profoundly influenced the advertising and television industries. Founder of Next Century Media and New Electronic Media Science, third party research companies serving 70+ of the top 100 advertisers, as well as most of the major cable and satellite operators, networks, agencies, and other research companies; first to turn set top data into TV audience data to media research standards; leader of standard setting process in media measurement through ARF, AAAA, ANA; former executive of Arbitron, Interpublic, Grey Advertising, and OpenTV. Inventor of addressable commercials and passive peoplemeter concepts, consulted on PPM and Scanamerica with Arbitron, developed first automated marketing mix modeling system for General Foods. Initiated and spearheaded the writing of the industry privacy principles for the ANA, AAA, and ARF joint task force CASIE (Coalition for Advertiser Supported Information and Entertainment).

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