NielsenIQ

How technology, talent and innovation are propelling the market research firm to become the world’s most powerful data provider.

The rapidly changing dynamics following the onset of COVID-19 is rewriting the playbook for retailers and manufacturers around the globe. Businesses need to analyze better, decide faster, and make proactive, strategic plans rather than rudderless, reactive responses, and there is no better source for precise, accurate, consistent data than NielsenIQ, whose vibrant history and rich legacy of delivering trust and transparency has stood the test of time.

An Advent International portfolio company and the industry’s leading provider of the most complete, unbiased view of global consumer behavior, NielsenIQ has operations in nearly 100 markets, covering more than 75% of the world’s population. Powered by a pioneering data platform and fueled by rich analytic capabilities, NielsenIQ enables bold, confident decision-making for the world’s leading consumer goods companies and retailers by providing full visibility into what people buy both online and offline, where and how they buy it and the shifting shopper behaviors that are taking place over time across products and channels.

NielsenIQ’s vibrant legacy dates to 1923, when Arthur C. Nielsen created the first-ever index to measure drug and retail store sales and market share—arguably the most prevalent KPI in any boardroom today.

Leading Transformation for a New Era

Jeanne Danubio is president of North America and Global Clients for NielsenIQ. Having worn many different hats at NielsenIQ over the past three decades both in North America and globally, Danubio has learned that with big changes come big opportunities. In this IndustryWired exclusive, Danubio reflects on one of the most pivotal years in the history of food retailing, along with her forecast for what she believes will further transform the landscape in 2021 and beyond.

In the age of the super-empowered omnichannel consumer, Danubio is guiding NielsenIQ through one of its most transformative periods as it creates the foundation for the next century of omnishopper, consumer and market measurement. As the leading consumer intelligence authority, the company recently embarked on an expansive rollout of a multi-product suite of omni solutions which encompass shopper behavior and attitudes, consumption, sales, and share trend tracking. Products are grounded in NielsenIQ’s proprietary industry truth sets and will enable retail trading partners to more accurately and precisely measure shopper behaviors than ever before.

“Our legacy of quality has paved the way for the launch of the industry’s most trusted source of omni-intelligence,” says Danubio. “Everything we’ve done up to this point has led us to build the most accurate view of the omnichannel landscape. While trends may change,” she continues, “NielsenIQ’s unmatched integrity and commitment to data science and analysis remains true and trusted across the globe.”

Driving Transformation with Technology

NielsenIQ is no stranger to being a driver of progress. The company is leading the conversation around the macro and micro trends that are currently reshaping the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and retail landscapes by “leveraging metrics that matter and sparking a movement for marketers to modernize the current measurement mindset,” says Danubio. “Shopping and consumption behaviors have transformed dramatically in recent years and marketplace fragmentation will continue to accelerate.”

As such, retail trading partners’ needs for accurate, precise data to measure the shifts in shopper behavior and leakage has never been greater, explains Danubio. “The dramatic changes in consumer behavior, particularly over the past year, have left gaping blind spots as a result of rampant e-commerce adoption and the economic impact from COVID-19,” she says.

With shoppers increasingly switching between online and offline retail channels, it’s clear why eliminating blind spots is critical. Online CPG sales in the U.S. exceeded $160 billion last year, driven by an influx of 22 million new online CPG shoppers in 2020. Today, 40% of CPG shoppers are omnishoppers, according to NielsenIQ’s Omnishopping Fundamentals Survey.

“The future of shopping is omni and today’s consumers should be seen as either a current or prospective omnishopper,” Danubio affirms. “Brands must now know exactly who their customers are and fully understand their behaviors to predict what they will need in the future. A complete, connected picture of the omni-experience is now essential because companies with the most robust, accurate view of the omnichannel marketplace will be best positioned to win.”

Significantly, NielsenIQ’s omni solution delivers critical insights that clients can stake their decisions on. However, as opposed to a single panel or POS data, NielsenIQ harmonizes multiple, complex data sets that combine data science expertise that spans 100 years and the latest technology in machine learning and AI. As such, NielsenIQ is the industry’s only provider of omni insights that leverage an omnishopper consumer panel and multiple POS data sources, offering the breadth in coverage and product level granularity that are critical to serving brand specific needs.

Disruptive Technologies as the Catalyst of Innovation

In today’s proliferated, post-pandemic data environment, leveraging accurate and actionable insights has become increasingly challenging and costly. The pandemic-inflicted wave of online shopping, Danubio adds, has unleashed a new wave of operational complexities for most grocery industry players—particularly those whose data is often stored on disparate platforms. Conversely, Danubio says NielsenIQ harnesses its big data engines, cloud computing and artificial intelligence to connect these sources in a highly efficient, centralized and cost-effective manner to streamline collaboration between retailers and manufacturers, including  pricing and promotions.

“With millions of dollars in investments toward product innovation, distribution strategies, market expansion and advertising, we understand the need for insights that are secure and stable vs. those that are compiled with conflicting findings and misaligned information that leads brands down a wrong path,” says Danubio. “We’ve designed our entire ecosystem to enable clients to move as seamlessly across solutions as consumers do across channels: Sales and share measurement of the marketplace through NielsenIQ omni sales combined with shopper and brand diagnostics through NielsenIQ omnishopper.”

Outperforming the Odds by Leveraging Novel Solutions 

Another key point of differentiation for NielsenIQ is its Connect Partner Network, which Danubio says is “the largest open ecosystem of tech-forward solution providers for CPG manufacturers and retailers. Using the company’s data as connective tissue, partners can create more relevant and accurate results.” On the other hand, she notes, “Clients can work with innovative partners who deliver results aligned to the way they measure success, helping them navigate the volatility of the CPG industry. As members of the NielsenIQ’s network, partners have access to an array of services, including streamlined access to the company’s data.”

NielsenIQ partnered with Microsoft to build its Connect data platform, which “democratizes one of the world’s  data sets to bring forward how brands and retailers can truly understand and resonate with their consumers. Clients receive a predictive understanding of consumer behavior given Connect’s global scale, and true openness that allows customers to bring in their own data sets.”

In its latest move to further accelerate its consumer insights superiority, NielsenIQ in May acquired Label Insight, the industry’s most trusted source of product attribute data and the largest product metadata platform globally. The strategic acquisition brings to NielsenIQ best-in-class product attribute data—spanning preferences such as sustainably sourced, free from specific allergens or ingredients, keto friendly, low sugar and gluten free and covering roughly 99% of all online consumer queries across over 80% of U.S. food, pet, and personal care products.

The acquisition positions NielsenIQ to become the most comprehensive and robust data provider within the $175 billion health and wellness space, says Danubio. “Currently, 80% of consumer health and wellness preferences are not being met when searching for products online. The addition of Label Insight supercharges our mission to help retailers and manufacturers better meet the needs of the health and wellness–focused consumer with a one-stop shop of powerful solutions for the digital future.”

As the only provider of both platforms, NielsenIQ is poised to become the industry’s source of truth, strengthening the relationships between manufacturers and retailers to better serve the ever-changing consumers.

Lightning Round

What motivates you as a leader in the analytics industry?

The rapid pace of change and how quickly things are evolving in terms of fragmentation and algorithmic retailing that are driving shifts from stores to people to personalization. I’m also motivated by the important role NielsenIQ plays in the industry’s evolution.

What is your advice to budding analytics professionals?

The most important piece of advice I would offer is to always remember: Accurate data really matters. Correct decisions can’t be made with snippets of data; instead, you must have a holistic view based on accurate measurements to arrive at the right conclusions.

What is the most rewarding aspect of your role?

What I find most rewarding is building a team and witnessing their passion to uncover solutions for new opportunities and challenges as well as the collaboration that is collectively defining our company’s next chapter of delivering unrivalled omnishopper intelligence.

What one piece of advice would you give to your 23-year-old self?

I’ve always searched for a big problem to solve and then go after it, and my career has essentially followed suit. So, the advice I would give to my 23-year-old self would be: Don’t get caught up in what’s next because it will find you.