MIMA Summit Liveblog: Breakout #2

Posted on October 1, 2008

For breakout session #2, I chose the Marketing Mix challenge. Interesting to see how four different marketers would approach the launch of a new product using a three-month marketing budget and with Minneapolis/St. Paul as a test market. Really dug the approach of the first presenter, Luba Smulka from General Mills’ consumer insights team. Eric Boyles from Medtronic had a great approach as well; he packed a lot of great data/thinking into just three slides.

Overall, very interesting. Now, let’s see what the audience is asking about…

  • People are wondering about the lack of social media in everyone’s mix. The response from the panel is that the three month trial needs to build a real-world experience before engaging social media online. Great insight from Luba: just because you build it, they won’t come. It’s about building the experience first. Get them to try it so they will start talking about it.
  • Did you think the budget was realistic and how closely did you stick to it? What would you do with twice as much money?
    Patty Henderson responds that for proving whether audience will try/buy yes. As far as testing marketing vehicles for national launch, would like more money. With twice as much money, she’d use the same approach but with broader tactics.
    One of the guys (can’t see who, I’m sitting on the floor!) responded that he’d double the timeframe to 6 months instead of 3.
  • Question from Twitter about the role of package design in all of this.
    Luba assumed that good, communicative packaging was a given. Would also use the packaging as a vehicle for couponing.
  • If and how would the current state of the economy affect your mix?
    Couponing and sampling becomes more important to get into the consumer’s budget. Couponing is effective across all income brackets.
  • How would this plan change if the test market was Manhattan and not Minneapolis?
    The mic went out, so I have no idea how they answered this, but it’s a fascinating question.

I’m sitting near an outlet in the back of the room to keep my laptop charged. Not comfortable at 9 months pregnant and I’m pretty sure my foot just fell asleep.