Get to Know Melissa O'Keefe
To learn more about Melissa, from why she loves shopper marketing to her favorite travel spot, check out her interview below!
I love shopper marketing because...
I've enjoyed the challenge of keeping up with the ever-changing retailer landscape. They are constantly evolving and there are so many retailers for our CPG clients that it can be challenging to keep up, but it keeps things fresh and exciting. It's also exciting to be able to impact conversion at the bottom of the funnel when a shopper is making their final choice of what they're going to buy. We’re showing a consumer why a brand’s product fits their lifestyle and is a better choice for them than another option –ultimately helping them make their lives easier with our client's products. That's always a bonus, right? It's fun to prove your value as a brand to a consumer versus just being another item in the pantry. I've also enjoyed focusing on the evolved eCommerce shopper marketing approach in the last several years at VMLY&R. When I first started in my career, it was very “old school” shopper marketing, lots of in-store activations, but now it's so cool to see the innovative omnichannel approaches and the focus on how a brand shows up on the digital shelf. eCommerce adoption has grown so quickly after COVID. People are finding that it's very convenient to buy groceries online and either have them delivered or go pick them up.
The best advice I've received in my shopper marketing career is...
To challenge the status quo. As an agency partner, we always have to bring fresh thinking and innovative opportunities even if, and especially if, the clients don't ask for it. We can partner with vendors or our creative team to bring new, out-of-the-box ideas to our clients when they are in their brand’s world and have so many different things on their plates. As an outside partner, we need to continue to push. Another great piece of advice is to remember that we're not saving lives here. Work/life balance is so important, so use working time very efficiently to really make the most out of working days. I think that's an important aspect of our careers as well and really puts things into perspective.
The coolest or most important trend I see today in CPG...
Social commerce. I would say a couple of years ago it was like “ooh, should we test on TikTok?, I don't know” and now it's just exploding with growth across several channels, not just TikTok, but a lot of different social platforms. The ability to purchase at the moment is so accessible now. We've done a couple of social commerce tactics with some of our programs and have seen really great results with influencer partners and whatnot. I think it's just becoming more and more attainable for CPG brands and more accepted by consumers too. Traditional brands need to act like “digitally native” brands to win with consumers in today's landscape. A couple of years ago, we saw these digitally native brands that weren't even on shelves in stores popping up across Instagram feeds, and that's becoming more of the norm. Traditional brands that have been around for a long time need to focus on what can they do to show up in that space.
Something I've learned in the past week is...
Be careful about how you go about taking over a company. Watching the Twitter drama unfold has been a very unique case study in business approaches and what not to do. I've been reading articles about it and watching some videos with Elon Musk. It’s just wild to watch and I've learned what not to do if I were buying a company. I feel bad for the Twitter employees who are being impacted by their new owner’s rash, at least seemingly rash, decisions and behaviors because it does impact people's lives. It will be interesting to continue to watch.
If I weren't in shopper marketing, I would want my career to be...
Something along the lines of therapy – helping people through life’s challenges, changes, and different life stages. I think human behavior is so interesting and it kind of ties to what I do now. I really like that aspect of shopper marketing. I would also enjoy building things. I like to refinish furniture and do crafts. Making things could be cool and very different.
My favorite travel spot is...
I have so much more to see! I haven't seen everything I want to yet but, so far, I think my favorite has been the Big Sur area of California. I did a road trip on Highway 1 up the coast from Los Angeles to Monterey and the scenery was just unreal. I like the vibe in that section of California, it’s very low-key, and there are lots of people surfing. Then that’s paired with the beauty of the landscape, the hiking, and the ocean. Being from Minnesota, anytime I see the ocean I think it’s amazing. I didn’t grow up with that, so I just really liked that area. I would go back for sure, but I definitely want to continue to see new places too.
If I could have an unlimited supply of one thing, it would be...
Probably time. I feel like I never have enough time to do all things I want to do, whether it's at work or around the house or with my kids, so time…and coffee.
If Hollywood made a movie about my life, the person I would like to see cast to play me is...
Linda Cardellini. I've been watching Dead to Me and I really like her. I think she’s cute and a good actor. She also wrote a book recently!
I love Breaktime Media because...
I've always had a great experience with Breaktime and it's been so easy to work with them.
I love working with the team. I've always had a great experience with Breaktime and it's been so easy to work with them. They’re super helpful – if I have a business problem or question from a client, I've called them up and said, “what can we do” or “do you guys have any thoughts on this.” They’re great partners to brainstorm with and bring strategic opportunities forward. And the guaranteed engagements driving results is a no-brainer for me and for my clients. I love that you're getting a guaranteed interaction versus traditional media where you're not sure what you're going to get as far as click-throughs and add-to-carts. I think that's a bonus for sure. They also have great customer and client service. It’s super fun to work with them!
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