A Day In A Life of A Shopper Marketer

It's never been easy to explain to the industry outsiders what shopper marketers do all day long. The CPG industry is vast and omnipresent, but its marketing's inner workings are complex and hard to grasp. It takes a good year or two for the newcomers to fully immerse themselves into their roles and build a solid mental map of the shopper marketing discipline.

We created this infographic to help those who are:

Curious about the industry and discipline
Newly hired and looking to quickly master the domain
Working to recruit the next generation of shopper marketers
Looking for ways to demystify their career for family and friends

A day in the life of a Shopper Marketer Infograhic - FINAL-1

WHAT is a Shopper Marketer?

Definition by Shopper Marketing Experts:
The systematic creation and application of elements of the marketing mix to affect positive change in shopper behavior in order to drive consumption of a brand.

Why is Shopper Marketing Important?

Rise of Omnichannel Shopping:
Shoppers now have a plethora of channels to buy from. Online and offline experiences are blending together.
Growth of Retail Media:
Retailers have become powerful media channels, drawing more national media budgets.
Increased Shopper Expectations:
90% of shoppers say a personalized experience is appealing.
$1.3 Trillion: Projected 2025 U.S. retail e-commerce sales.

Key Insight:

By placing the shopper at the center of their business model, CPG manufacturers can find common ground with retailers. This shared focus enables joint business objectives and strategies.

New Marketing Skills + New Strategies = Win with Shoppers!

But What Do Shopper Marketers Do?

UNDERSTAND CONSUMERS
- Determine key consumption opportunities by working closely with Brand and Consumer Insights groups.
- 86% of marketers say it’s very important to create a customer journey.
UNDERSTAND SHOPPERS
- Qualitative Shopper Research – Gain deep, emotional insights and develop shopper empathy.
- Analytics and quantitative data – Gain insight into what shoppers do, drilling into their behavior and purchase history.
DEVELOP CHANNEL PARTNER STRATEGY
- Come up with insights-based big ideas to deliver mutual benefits for both Brands and Retailers.
- Develop KPIs to align Shopper Marketing and Joint Business Planning (JBP).
DETERMINE YOUR MARKETING MIX AND TACTICAL EXECUTION
- Work with agencies to develop tactical plans, creative executions, buy media, and project manage to ensure all deadlines are met.
- In 60 seconds, more media is created than can be consumed in a lifetime.
CONDUCT POST-PROMOTIONAL ANALYTICS
- ROI, or impact on sales & profit: Was there a sales lift? Did it pay out?
- Impact on shopper behavior: Did the program drive shopper loyalty, trip frequency, or increase basket size?
- Tactical performance: How did each tactic deliver impressions and engagement, and did they drive conversions?
- Retailer compliance: Did retail partners offer feature and display support for our programs?

Skills and Personality Traits to Succeed in Shopper Marketing

Mental Flexibility and Comfort with Ambiguity:
Plans will constantly change. Surprise is the name of the game. Keeping up with change and adjusting plans on the fly will be required.
Compelling Storytelling:
Be able to link the emotional aspects of shopper insight to the quantifiable, practical business opportunities. This requires a balanced right- and left-brain approach.
Cross-Functional Communication:
You will need to influence your colleagues without formal authority. Being a persuasive communicator is a must.
Financial and Budget Acumen:
Know your numbers. You will need to keep the complex budgeting process under control.
Tenacity:
You will hear "no" a lot, so you must bounce back and keep going.
Analytical Acumen:
Understand what data exists and what business questions it can answer.

What Does an Ordinary Day Look Like?

8:00 AM:

Arrive at the office and plan the day.

8:30 AM:

Attend Sales team meeting, discusswins and challenges across buyer desks, upcoming JBP meetings.

9:00 AM:

Meet with agencies to review promotional concepts. Give feedback and align on next steps, budgets, and deadlines.

10:00 AM:

Drive to retail customer HQ officetogether with sales counterparts. Present shopper insights and activation ideas as part of JBP meetin.

1:00 PM:

Meet with new media vendor offering to test their new tactics. Discuss pros and cons, case studies and agree on pilot costs.

2:00 PM:

Meet with marketing analysts to review a post-promotion analysis presentation. Develop a narrative to explain the results, finalize deck for total team share-out.

3:00 PM:

Visit stores to observe retail execution of current programs, capture competitors’ in-store activity and talk to store managers.

4:00 PM:

Attend planning meeting with a Brand team to discuss upcoming new product launch, brand strategies and discuss opportunities to activate with retail partners.