Programme

Looking back on the last 50 years of consumer understanding, we find that there is too much emphasis on top of mind and if you don’t try to understand why, you are going to be at a loss. A loss for the “why? “ and “what you can do?”. Innovative consumer researchers understand the why behind the data and what can be done with the insight.

This workshop will highlight how measurements of consumer mind mapping and subconscious behaviour are used to understand the reasons behind the insights and how the information can be used to create better products. Very hot as a consumer and market research topic, the consumer understanding field has a variety of approaches that try to measure emotions and subconscious behaviour through implicit measurements and observations. This workshop presents innovative research tools to measure emotional reactions, 'low/non-attention' responses, and observations of behaviour. The scientific goal is to understand new aspects of consumer behaviour. The practical goal is to drive consumer selection/purchase behaviours. The workshop speakers will talk about new research tools that are not based on direct questions but instead use other types of questions, new types of analytics, and new approaches to observe and quantify emotional and behavioural responses.

During the workshop, we will hear how emerging research tools can be used to understand consumer behaviour and predict optimisation routes for new product launches. The speakers will show how the new approaches have an advantage over traditional testing by providing richer and more actionable results in strengthening emotional and product connections with consumers during front end innovation and new product development stages.

Workshop overview:
•    Introduction: Research tools of the innovation insights leader
•    Mind Genomics, getting to the 'MRI' of the mind
•    Behavior mapping, use of idiographic analysis to provide real understanding around unique behaviour patterns
•    Quantitative anthropology, optimising products through actual consumer behaviour
•    Qualitative Multivariate Analysis (QMA) and Quantitative Preference Mapping (QPM) in product development

Facilitators

Dulce Paredes, Vice President Consumer Insight and Marketing Research Flavour, Takasago International Corporation (USA)
Dulce Paredes manages global, strategic and special consumer insights and marketing research projects for
the Flavour Division. Takasago is one of the top 5 global flavour and fragrance houses. Dulce has over twenty years of R&D experience in consumer packaged goods companies with specific emphasis on food and
beverage and health and beauty products. Previously, she led Avon’s Global R&D Consumer Sciences Group where she championed innovative consumer guidance research and efficient consumer perception claims testing. Dulce also managed the Consumer and Sensory Sciences Group for Kraft’s east coast based businesses (beverages, cereals, desserts). She also worked at Pepsi Cola Company as a product developer for international Pepsi brands and as a principal research specialist.


Jacqueline Beckley, President and Founder, The Understanding & Insight Group (USA)
In 1999, Jacqueline Beckley formed The Understanding & Insight Group which specialises in the rapid front-end design and development of marketable products and services. A tireless innovator and building upon a three decade business career, Jackie created a proprietary system for discovering and quantifying the deepest consumer motivators. The U&I Group has forged astute market strategies that have been responsible for more than 300 successful product launches in the last 11 years. The U&I Group’s strategic direction is the impetus for successful products found in markets and households around the world.

Jennifer Hanson, Founder and CEO, Sequoia Partners (USA)
Jennifer Hanson helps everyday consumer products better connect with consumers through better product designs and more relevant messages. She is regarded as an industry thought leader, both in innovation and insights, and actively speaks and writes about the need for revolutionary change and how to achieve growth through product renovation and innovation. Before founding Sequoia Partners, Jen held positions leading innovation strategies and solutions for Kraft Foods, PepsiCo and Diageo. She began her career as a consultant for marketing companies working in the consumer goods, financial services and health care industries.

Kannapon Lopetcharat, Managing Director, S.P.R.I.M. (Thailand)
Kannapon Lopetcharat has over ten years of R&D experience in sensory, psychophysics and consumer research with consumer packaged goods companies with specific emphases on food, flavour, fragrance, health and beauty aids, and personal care products. During his tenure in Avon’s Global R&D Consumer Sciences Group, Kannapon led many consumer-innovation projects, managed many multi-cultural and international consumer studies and developed many new product testing methodologies to enhance innovation and claim substantiation. Kannapon was a manager in the Consumer Science Insight Group for Unilever HPC in the US.

Dr. Melissa Jeltema, Independent Consultant (USA)
Dr. Melissa Jeltema received her Ph.D. In Food Science, with an emphasis on food functionality, from Michigan State University.  After spending two years as Assistant Professor at Michigan State, she joined Philip Morris in the analytical group working on analytical/sensory correlations.  She was then asked to join the Sensory Group at Philip Morris. 

Dr. Jeltema spent 30 years at Philip Morris/Altria, ending her career as Director of Consumer Product Research.   In this capacity, she was responsible for moving the Sensory group from a service organisation to a highly regarded strategic partner with Product Development, advising on product designs needed for research and acting as the consumer translator. Currently Dr. Jeltema is an independent consultant, working primarily with The Understanding & Insight Group LLC and is the chair of the Curriculum Advisory Panel for U&I Training LLC.  

Sponsors/Partners