The ARF Annual Conference, (aka Re!Think) is the destination for the world’s insights, analytics, and marketing leaders providing unparalleled discovery, networking, and inspiration.

Gain first hand access to carefully curated and original research—these actionable truths will meet today’s challenges.

Featured Presentations

The ARF’s Annual Conference was held on March 20-21, 2017 in New York City where over 50 presentations were held on the latest insights in advertising research.

Welcome Day 1
Scott McDonald, Ph.D. – President & CEO, the Advertising Research Foundation

The organization’s mission is to deliver truly neutral, unimpeachable research to advance the practice of advertising and marketing.

KEYNOTE: How Creativity Helped Achieve Peace
Jose Miguel Sokoloff – Global President, MullenLowe Group Creative Council, Co-Chairman & CCO, MullenLowe SSP3

The ‘why’ and ‘how’ behind a propaganda campaign, based on insights, to demobilize Colombian guerillas and end Colombia’s 52-year civil war.

Due to copyright restrictions, this video has been modified from its original version.

KEYNOTE: Winning in a Dynamic Marketplace
Wendy Clark – CEO, DDB North America

How brave brands and agencies are changing everything — from insights to operating models — to succeed in an always-on, real-time reality.

Thank you to our speakers, attendees, and sponsors!

Main Stage Presentations

› Access Trip Reports – Monday
› Access Trip Reports – Tuesday
› Access White Paper

Monday, March 20, 2017

Go to Tuesday »

Welcome Day 1
Scott McDonald, Ph.D. – President & CEO, The ARF

KEYNOTE: Winning in a Dynamic Marketplace
Wendy Clark – CEO, DDB North America

Wendy Clark discussed how brave brands and agencies are changing everything – from insights to operating models – to succeed in an always on, real-time reality. She presented two mini-case studies, State Farm & McDonald’s. Lessons learned:

Data can be used as intelligence to build sharper briefs, data enables creativity. When data is used incorrectly, it kills creativity.
Human behavior happen in micro-moments that become macro stories, which can become mega trends. Agencies need to work on these three nodes – micro, macro, and mega.
How we work is equally important as what we make.

› Access presentation slides

Spotlight Nielsen Session

Insights from the CBS Campaign Performance Audit (CPA) Program
David Poltrack – CRO, CBS Corporation; President, CBS VISION; Board Member, The ARF
Leslie Wood, Ph.D. – CRO, Nielsen Catalina Solutions
Helen Katz – SVP, Director, Global Analytics & Insights, Publicis Media
Amaya Garbayo – Associate Director, Media, Kellogg Company
Carl Marci, M.D. – Chief Neuroscientist, Nielsen Consumer Neuroscience

David Poltrack lead a combination presentation and panel discussion on the CBS Campaign Performance Audit (CPA) Program, whose aim is to plan, design, and assess advertising campaigns. Best practice from the CPA research:

Test Your Message
Maximize your weekly reach
Get the most of “Recency”
Precisely target potential consumers
Consider Context

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ARF Original Research: How Advertising Works 2016-2017
Optimizing Mobile Research: Speaking the Consumer’s Language
Chris Bacon – EVP Global Research Quality & Innovation, The ARF

The ARF commissioned original research in 2017 to experiment with the use of emojis and other mobile-friendly response options. Partnering with research firms GfK and FocusVision, aided by generous contributions of IPSOS, ResearchNow, and SSI, the ARF surveyed more than 12,000 consumers on either a PC or smartphone. The outcome:

The survey experience was the same or better on a smartphone using emojis
The data was the same between emojis, numbers, and text
The number of drop outs was cut in half across all devices – smartphones, tablets, and PCs

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Creating Effective Mobile Advertising – Part I
Manuel Garcia-Garcia, Ph.D. – SVP, Research & Innovation: Global & Ad Effectiveness, The ARF

Mobile ad spend is at $43 billion and growing, but 62% of campaigns today are not using mobile in an optimal way. Creative experts offer the following guidelines:

When it comes to length of the creative, over half say that shorter is better
Adapt experience for the mobile screen, with simple, larger images and text
Establish relevance early on
Test and track performance
Target and customize message for location, time of day, demographics, interests, and psychographics

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Networking Lunch +
#SeeHer Marketers Roundtable
Douwe Bergsma – CMO, Georgia Pacific
Fiona Carter – Chief Brand Officer, AT&T
Bob Liodice – President & CEO, ANA
Moderator: Shelley Zalis – CEO, The Female Quotient; Co-Founder, #SeeHer

Industry leaders shared insights about new Gender Equality Measure (GEM) scores for #SeeHer, an industry movement lead by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA):

Gender inequality is unacceptable and damages the brand
There is a strong need to develop accountability as a first step in order to stimulate change
The challenge is to create advertising and entertainment that accurately portrays girls and women.

Slide presentation is not available.

Spotlight Nielsen Session
Uncovering the Consumer’s World
Kelly Abcarian – SVP, Product Leadership, Nielsen
Glenn Enoch – SVP, Audience Insights, Nielsen

Nielsen executives will reveal trends and insights that put consumers back at the center of the media and advertising marketplace.
Presentation is not available.

Creating Effective Mobile Advertising – Panel Part II
Nick Law – Vice Chairman, Global Chief Creative Officer, R/GA
Sarah Watson – Global & NY Chief Strategy Officer, BBH
Moderator: Nicholas Moore – Executive Creative Director, ROAR

Learn the “why” and “how” behind their most impactful mobile advertising campaigns.
Slide presentation is not available.

Due to copyright restrictions, this video has been modified from its original version.

KEYNOTE: From Storytelling to Story Making: Connecting Consumers to Priceless Possibilities
Raja Rajamannar – Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, MasterCard

Today’s “connected consumers” are always-on, multi-screening and multitasking, with the power to make or break a brand, literally at their fingertips. While the world has changed, Mastercard continues to be guided by the insight that experiences matter more than things.
Presentation is not available.

Closing Remarks
Scott McDonald, Ph.D. – President & CEO, The ARF

Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Welcome Day 2
Scott McDonald, Ph.D. – President & CEO, The ARF

KEYNOTE: How Do You Build a Brand That Lasts?
Jennifer Sey – CMO, Global Brands, Levi Strauss & Co.

The average brand lasts 15 years. Levi’s is a 143-year old brand. Jennifer Sey discussed what brands can learn from Levi’s longevity as the “youngest oldest brand in the world”:

You tell stories about your brand that has meaning and you create the conditions to let people tell their own stories.
It’s not just about data and media placement, you need to look at the artistic side that creates yearning.
Create more fans, create more stories by being at the center of culture while also being at the forefront of things.

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Spotlight Nielsen Session

Improve Ad Effectiveness Through Psychological Triggers
Pat Pellegrini, Ph.D. – President & CRO, Simmons Research
Bill Harvey – Executive Chairman, Bill Harvey Consulting, Inc.

Psychographics is the study and classification of people according to their attitudes, aspirations, and other psychological criteria. Simmons tested 204 new Psychographics along with 569 existing ones. They found that:

Holistic psychographics predict brand choice
Psychological triggers evoke connection to motivation
Psychographics are more differentiating than pure demographics, they explain the WHY of brand usage better

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Late-Breaking Industry Research
The Cross-Platform Puzzle: Solve for Offline Impact
Monica Bannan – SVP, Nielsen.
Fred Leach – Director, Marketing Science Research & Development, Facebook, Inc.
Leslie Wood, Ph.D. – CRO, Nielsen Catalina Solutions

How digital and traditional media are driving business outcomes both on and offline.
Presentation is not available.

ARF Original Research: How Advertising Works 2016-2017
Unveiling The ARF Context Effects Model
Horst Stipp, Ph.D. – EVP, Research & Innovation: Global & Ad Effectiveness, The ARF
Jasper Snyder – EVP, Research & Innovation, Cross-Platform & Media, The ARF

ARF’s How Advertising Works initiative aims to uncover new insights on context insights, particularly in terms of types, best practices, and ROI. The following best practices were identified:

Media and platforms that the target consumes attentively are likely to produce more of an impact. Consider both highly rated, popular content as well as niche programs with a devoted fan base.
Consider media brands and content that match with the brand and the ad, to take advantage of halo effects. Create ads that match content.
Beware of competing ads that may diminish positive context effects. Proximity to content (e.g. first pod position) may be advantageous.

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Innovate or Get Out!
Charles Buchwalter – President & CEO, Symphony Advanced Media
Jeffrey Graham – Global Director, Sales Research, Twitter; Board Member, The ARF
Steven Rosenblatt – President, Foursquare; Board Member, The ARF
Kristy Vance, Ph.D. – Global Director, Media Insights, Unilever
Moderator: David Kohl – CEO, Morgan Digital Ventures LLC

An interactive panel discussed the barriers to innovation and how start-ups and big organizations could best work together. Key takeaways:

Develop a culture of risk. If you create a culture that penalizes failing, you will never succeed. Double the failure rate, engage in rapid experimentation, “fast failure.”
The biggest cost is opportunity cost (e.g. Blockbuster, Kodak). What is the cost of not failing? Shift the metrics.
Develop enlightened management that can give leeway to start-ups and knows the value of delegating to junior people. Middle managers should have metrics to incentivize innovation.

Presentation is not available.

KEYNOTE: How Creativity Helped Achieve Peace
Jose Miguel Sokoloff – Global President, MullenLowe Group Creative Council, Co-Chairman & CCO, MullenLowe SSP3

This keynote presentation outlined the why and how behind a decade long effort to demobilize Columbian guerrillas and help end Columbia’s 52-year civil war. The strategies behind each campaign was based on a continuous learning process, esp. listening to the actual guerrillas and their families, and focusing on common humanity. They concentrated on what unites us, not what divides us.
› Access presentation slides

Due to copyright restrictions, this video has been modified from its original version.

Closing Remarks
Scott McDonald, Ph.D. – President & CEO, The ARF

INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT — Monday, March 20th

Impact of Context on Video Engagement
Vanessa Singh, Ph.D. – Manager, Client Service, Neuroscientist, Nielsen

Learn which characteristics of online platforms generate the most attention and impact from their video ads.

Featured Presentations

Main Stage Presentations

Monday, March 20, 2017

Tuesday, March 21, 2017

INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT — Monday, March 20th

INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT — Tuesday, March 21st

INSIGHT: Crack the Code on Consumers — Monday, March 20th

INSIGHT: Crack the Code on Consumers — Tuesday, March 21st

IDEA: Translate Insights Into Creative — Monday, March 20th

IDEA: Translate Insights Into Creative — Tuesday, March 21st

IMPLEMENT: Make Magic in the Media — Monday, March 20th

IMPLEMENT: Make Magic in the Media — Tuesday, March 21st

IMPACT: Measure for Success — Monday, March 20th

IMPACT: Measure for Success — Tuesday, March 21st

INGENUITY: Disrupt Your World — Monday, March 20th

INGENUITY: Disrupt Your World — Tuesday, March 21st