After Quirk’s New York in March 2020, I sat down with my coworkers at a nearby taco joint – the last restaurant I’d visit for months – and collectively we came to the realization that not only would Quirk's Chicago probably not be possible (it wasn’t), but we weren’t sure what would be possible in the coming months.
A year and a half later, we were finally back in New York – this time donning masks and hand sanitizer – to host our third safe and successful in-person event in 2021, despite the unpredictability of the past 18+ months. And yes, it looked and felt different than it did before. We got used to flashing our vaccine cards, smiling with our eyes and bumping elbows instead of shaking hands. But the same sentiment was echoed by event-goers: Although live events look a little different, the connections made have been deeper and more meaningful.
Speakers, exhibitors and attendees alike came armed with their trademark eagerness to share learning and make connections – along with a willingness to flex to make it happen. Here are a few sessions that embodied that eagerness, and that have stuck with me in the days following the event.
Intelligent design in insight
Sarah DaVanzo, L’Oréal’s vice president of insights and foresight, began her career transforming insight for South Africa’s gold industry, and she came to the Quirk’s Event carrying plenty of gems from her expansive career to share with the marketing research community.
DaVanzo highlighted the importance of reclaiming lost gold from the insight process – all of the scraps of research and “micro insights” that we tend to leave behind. And she also warned against the temptation of taking shortcuts in insights. “You might make something. But it might not be useful, and it’s definitely going to be dirty.”
Finally, DaVanzo offered a perfect metaphor for the marketing research industry: “There are a lot of moving variables when prospecting for gold, and just as in insights, we’re always pulling pieces together…what we’re looking for is a true nugget of insight.”
Driving inclusion in the industry
Kicking off Day 2 of the Quirk’s Event, Suzy’s Abel Flint sat down with Nick Graham of Mondelēz International and Julianna Hessel of PepsiCo to discuss the importance of LGBTQ+ representation – not only in advertising campaigns but in their respective organizations. The panel covered the ways companies often do and don’t engage with this audience authentically, and they offered a variety of suggestions for how brands can continue to support their LGBTQ+ consumers beyond Pride month.
Graham pointed out that sometimes representing specific experiences will resonate better with the community at large than very general ones. “In an attempt to try to represent the community sometimes we oversimplify and forget just how complex the community is.”
Differentiate and stand out on the shelf
Frederick Wildman’s Hilary Ruesch was joined by BEESY CEO Elys Roberts to share a case study on how the beverage brand created a new look for their prosecco that would perform 33% better than their current design. Pouring a bag of M&Ms into a large wine glass, Ruesch demonstrated that differentiating a prosecco brand among 343 other brands in the U.S. would be no easy task. “If you can’t win on-shelf, you’re never going to get to trial,” says Ruesch.
We’re looking forward to hosting in-person events once again in 2022 – don’t forget to mark your calendars!
Chicago (April 11-12, 2022) | London (May 4-5, 2022) | New York (July 20-21, 2022)