Marketers often think about how important it is to communicate all of a product’s key benefits to their consumers directly on the pack—using images, colors, logos, words, typography, etc. But very often, this overload of information makes the design extremely complex and difficult to understand.

Last year more than $290 million was spent on advertising the automotive industry in New Zealand, with 77% of this spend going to the promotion of vehicles. That’s approximately $223M being spent to target potential car buyers.

Shortcuts and automation are top of mind as consumer chase ways to overcome everyday obstacles to effortless living. For FMCG companies, the task at hand involves adapting and enhancing their solutions to do more than keep pace—they’ll need to stay ahead of the pace.

How prepared would you be if inflation took hold again? In some ways, it has already started. Learn how to build price and promotion strategies for a fast-paced economy.

Image-conscious Aussies are avid trendsetters who like to stand out from the crowd, try to look stylish at all times and wear designer labels to improve their image. According to the emma CMV survey for the period April 2017 - March 2018, over 3.7 million Australians aged 14+ identify as being image-conscious.

For many large, multinational global brands, other companies don’t become competition until they’re operating at the same scale and in similar markets. As a result, global companies often don’t pay much attention to the small brands that operate well outside of their global peripheral vision.

Protein - a compound that builds and repairs muscle tissue - is driving a health food craze sweeping the globe. With demand and interest increasing, the opportunity for manufacturers to boast their products’ protein content and drive growth is large.

For years, confectionery, crisps and soft drinks were the most popular go-to snack choices for the British consumer. But over the last five years, we’ve seen a dramatic shift in the world of snacking.

Australian households are buying healthier packaged grocery products thanks to greater health education and awareness, along with supplier innovation bringing in a range of better-for-you alternatives. However, this growing demand for healthy products is yet to be fully realised when it comes to fresh produce.

Aligning your organization toward common goals is challenging, especially when the goals change. That’s because it’s common for marketing teams to operate in silos. Most marketing organizations are split between marketing and media, and the split is compounded by multiple layers up and down the org chart.

Australian television’s night of nights, the 2018 Logie Awards, shone not only on television, but also on social!

If you can’t see it, it must not be there, right? In the FMCG market, this couldn’t be farther from the truth. That’s because every category has a certain concentration of brands that aren’t top of mind for many, but they have the ability to shift the overall landscape if conditions are right.

Whether you call it football, soccer, or “the World Game”, there is no denying the FIFA World Cup 2018 has captured Australia’s attention with a strong performance from the Australian team as well as many exciting moments as the world’s best vie for the iconic golden trophy. Twitter and Facebook have exploded with action as fans take to their second screens with 676,500 total interactions so far, despite most matches being broadcast into the early hours of the morning.

With the growth of streaming apps available through the TV glass come new opportunities for advertisers to connect with consumers in the living room. In the past year alone, we've seen an almost 10% increase in the number of people who have access to a connected TV device.

Convenience retailers and Manufacturers have a huge opportunity to tap into the needs of time-poor, health conscious shoppers in New Zealand. To realise this opportunity, we need to know what these shoppers’ motivations are. Are they aspiring to be healthy, or are they truly healthy people?

From a global perspective, prospects for the remainder of the year appear largely positive. In Q1, confidence grew across Western Europe, the economic recovery in Latin America looks promising in a number of markets, dollar sales of FMCG in North America performed well, and growing disposable incomes across Asia-Pacific are having an effect well beyond the immediate region.

For the last decade or so, Millennials have been the generation that every brand has sought to engage as their spending power has grown. With this generation now past teenage years, however, digital advertisers are shifting their focus to the succeeding generation, Generation Z or Gen Z.

There has never been a more dynamic and challenging time to be a marketer. Since the advent of the internet, fueled by available high-speed access and ignited by the proliferation of powerful new devices, marketers have more access to consumers than ever before.

Regardless of whether you call it football or soccer, it’s a sport with massive global appeal and fan interest. In fact, more than 40% of people 16 or older in major population centers around the world consider themselves interested or very interested in following football, more so than any other sport.

A hot summer has sparked a rise in sales for both beer and wine in New Zealand. Over the 16 weeks to 25 February 2018, beer generated almost $379.3 million in sales across supermarkets and liquor stores - an increase of 6.3% ($21.3 million) on last summer.

Online New Zealanders now spend close to half a standard working week (18 hours) getting their digital fix, up from 15 hours in 2015. Accessing the internet from a mobile device is now well and truly commonplace for nearly 8 in 10 (78%) online Kiwis- up from 65% in 2015.

The DMP serves as the nervous system for your organization’s digital ecosystem helping you unify, make sense of and unlock the value of disparate streams of data, uncover and build valuable consumer audiences, and reach those high-value audiences with personalized messaging in real-time across the digital ad ecosystem.

Today, access to information is unprecedented, consumers are empowered to make smarter buying decisions and marketers have amassed immense quantities of data about consumers. Technology has transformed many industries permanently, but perhaps none as much as marketing.

The traditional channels and your traditional consumer will most likely not be where your growth will come from in the next few years. Despite facing the lowest growth environment we have had in decades, the opportunity for growth is there if we think small.

When it comes to sport, it is the willingness to prepare to win that sets apart the most talented athletes and the best teams. And with the Australian sports industry facing an unprecedented level of change and disruption, it has never been so important to prepare for what’s to come in order to stay ahead of the game.

Looking across thousands of product launches using Nielsen BASES' rich database, we’ve observed three common causes of innovation failure that often don’t get the attention they deserve.

We expect lifestyle, the “little and often” trend, technology and location to be four of the key influencers on shopper’s behaviour in 2018, which, if executed well, will be true foot traffic drivers for c-store retailers.

New Zealand grocery shoppers are the most promotion-driven in the world. Almost six in every ten dollars spent on groceries in 2017 were sold on promotion - well ahead of other developed markets around the globe.

With digital now a critical channel for brands, it’s no surprise that they’re actively looking to better understand and measure returns in the space. They’re also actively looking to social media and sponsorships as a way to amplify their digital returns.

Bananas are nature’s non-stop energy snack, and despite higher prices shoppers are still enjoying their sweetness.

One FMCG category that is seeing significant growth, and is indicative of shifting spending in emerging markets, is beer. So what can beer tell us?

Understanding who this meal kit shopper is and their reasons for choosing this emerging consumption model is key to unlocking future opportunities for both retailers and brands.

When it comes to shopping, New Zealanders are increasingly digital, with two-thirds shopping online in the last 12 months - up from 37% in 2006 and expected to hit 83% by 2026.

Now in place, the minimum pricing of alcohol regulation in Scotland means that a single unit of alcohol cannot be sold for less than 50p. And as a result, the stronger the drink, the more expensive it will be. So what effect might that have on consumption?

Over the past 12 months, fresh salad sales have soared compared with the previous year, up 10.6% in dollar sales in Australia. Examples of fresh salad include serving size lettuce bags and premade salad mixes.

When it comes to growth, it’s hard to ignore what we’re seeing in emerging markets. In fact, they’re currently generating two-to four-times the FMCG growth of developed markets. But just because the big picture boasts big opportunity doesn’t mean capitalizing on the right opportunities is easy.

We love our carrots, with 94% of Australian households purchasing this staple every year. While most shoppers purchase standard carrots, some are also purchasing specialty carrots, giving consumers more reasons to buy the category and creating new pockets of growth.

Marketers need to think more strategically beyond cheap tricks, making things pink, or adding female icons to labels to reach women.

This month, all eyes will be on the U.K. market as a sugar tax on drinks goes into effect there, encouraging consumers through price to reduce their sugar consumption. No doubt the Australian Federal Government will be watching, as they consider a ‘sugar tax’ here in Australia.

The only metric that never changes is sales, which begs the question: Will we eventually see an industrywide guarantee on sales?

2017 was a good year for global consumers, with consumer confidence ending the year at a near-record level. Notably, 51 markets finished the year with higher confidence than they did in 2016, and the gains were bigger than 2 points in 46 markets.

Fresh research has revealed interesting insights into how Australians shop and eat celery. Shoppers enjoy the versatility of this vegetable: eaten in salads, as part of a recipe, and often munched on in its natural state – raw.

Australians love to munch on an apple, and we spend a sizeable amount every year to keep the doctor away! New research shows, however, that while we love our apples, we aren’t as loyal to our favourite variety as you’d think. Nielsen has published new data on the apple category that reveals how Aussie consumers shop across the category.

Given today’s competitive landscape, brands that leverage proven go-to-market strategies will likely be more successful than those that simply move forward without careful thought and preparation.

Competition to light up Kiwi homes is high, with new energy companies bringing their offerings to the table. Across New Zealand there are more than 30, together spending over $33 million dollars on advertising in 2017.

Despite a drop in sales, beef still remains the most popular meat protein for Australian shoppers, with fresh beef representing close to one-third of all meat value sales.

One consumer product category that shows promise is snack foods. A rare global growth story, snacks are satisfying consumer cravings around the world—in fact, the snacking business grew US$3.4 billion globally in 2017.

Sport really is Australia’s favourite past time and with the introduction of more channels, platforms, leagues and codes, our hours spent watching sport in Australia has gone up by 8% since 2014. With more eyeballs on TVs and screens, and fan bases growing, the opportunities to reach and resonate with the captive Australian sports fan are massive.

New regulations restricting the sale of codeine to a prescription only medication has left retailers and manufacturers with a keen interest in the future trends in analgesics. In 2017 codeine was worth $170 million dollars, making up 20% of the analgesics industry. Understanding where this value may move to is key for the pharmaceutical industry in the coming year and beyond.

More than any other consumer industry, beauty and personal care are driven by trends. New trending ingredients, formulations, colors and brands come around every season. Walk into your average retail store and you’ll see this reflected on shelves.

There’s a new retail revolution underway, and it’s going to affect the global food industry in ways the market hasn’t seen before. The revolution comes at the hand of store-branded products, which continue to gain share across all major geographies.

The continued growth of the grocery e-commerce channel is undeniable with 403K new households adopting online shopping. Australians are overcoming online barriers of physical inspection and doubts about quality and accuracy. In the past 12 months there was a 22.9% increase in new grocery online shoppers, as well as a small increases in spend per trip. In fact, the average household purchased online on 6.7 occasions over the last 12 months, and with the average online transaction of $107.85, up from $104.65 last year.

While sales of fast-moving consumer goods in some traditionally successful markets like the U.S. saw signs of softness in early 2017, opportunities for growth are still readily available if you know where to look.

Consumers today have access to a wider array of products than ever before thanks to globalisation and connectivity. So when it comes to country of origin, just how much does being a 'local' or 'global' brand influence the purchasing behaviour of consumers in Australia and New Zealand?

Five years ago, mainstream alcohol segments drove the majority of the alcohol sales growth in New Zealand. More recently, niche products have emerged, and Kiwis are increasingly opting for more premium and unique beverage offerings.

As a result of more digital entertainment options, Australians are consuming more content and changing how they consume it. Knowing the Australian entertainment consumer provides new opportunities for Australian brands to engage and connect with them on a more personal and emotional level.

Compared with the everyday consumer products we buy frequently, like paper towels and boxed cereal, durables have a much longer shelf life. Items like electric razors, coffee makers and irons fall into this category, and they play key roles in the everyday lives of consumers—yet in much different ways than fast-moving consumer goods do.

What do dental chews for pets, adult incontinence undergarments and sweetened light beer have in common? On the surface, absolutely nothing. A closer look, however, reveals that each solved a specific "job to be done."

The esports industry is growing quickly, with new leagues, teams and distribution channels. And this growth is attracting new high-profile esports investment from brands, media organizations and traditional sports rightsholders.

When it comes to alcoholic beverages, Baby Boomers (Australians aged 55+) are a segment not to be ignored. Compared with the overall Australian 18+ population, this important demographic segment certainly enjoy a drink, with more than two-thirds saying they have consumed an alcoholic beverage in the past month, compared to just over half of Millennials (aged 18-34) and 64% of Gen X (aged 35-54).

Bringing attention to the importance of assortment is easy. It’s getting it right that is highly challenging. Here are the top six hurdles companies face in building an optimal assortment.

The “input button,” an often misunderstood piece of remote control real estate, unlocks a wide range of content for consumers with an array of devices, and it’s no longer invisible to audience measurement.

The world is changing. Fast. The way we work. The way we travel. The way we watch videos and shows. The way we simply interact with each other. And because the pace of change is happening so incredibly fast, it can be hard to understand what, and just how much, change has happened over a week, month or year.

As marketers seek greater accountability in today’s increasingly omnichannel shopper landscape, demand for outcome-based ROI measurement has become more important than ever across the media, retail and FMCG industries.

Backed by rising consumer confidence and optimism, many of the world’s economies are experiencing degrees of positive momentum. In some cases, that momentum is strong; in others, it’s subtle, but still worth noting.

With summer just around the corner Down Under, you’d think Australians would be gravitating toward healthful diets packed with fresh fruits and vegetables. Last year, however, total consumption of fresh produce actually declined.

More consumers are using product information and labels on food packaging, nutrition and fitness to meet personal health goals. Fusing Nielsen data with nutritional information from The George Institute reveals the positive impact the Health Star Rating is having on brands in particular categories.

When identifying how valuable sponsorships and brand activation can be in esports, it’s worth exploring the issue from the perspectives of the many stakeholders involved: leagues, franchisees and teams.

Neuroscience shows us that, when used correctly, music can put viewers and listeners in a more positive mood, leading to a greater reliance on intuition and a reduction in both critical thought and focus on detail.

Saying that driverless cars will have a huge impact on the automotive industry in the next decade is a truism. Saying that driverless cars could also have an equal impact on retail, however, is not.

Thanks to globalization and connectivity, consumers around the world have access to a wider array of products than ever. So how much weight does the “made in” moniker carry when it comes to purchase motivation?

We’ve been talking about health and wellness for years. There are two critical forces at play that are shifting this topic from niche to mainstream: increasingly complex needs and massive digital engagement.

This year’s Emirates Melbourne Cup well and truly lived up to its reputation as one of the biggest events on the Australian sporting calendar. Nielsen’s Social TV Ratings revealed that our nation’s most prestigious horse race was the biggest social episode on TV this year.

How can manufacturers and retailers win on price in a changing FMCG industry? Here are five opportunities to help drive profitability despite today’s challenging marketplace.

This year, a range of ad execs have said digital advertising is broken and in need of repair. While they’re right to insist for better performance, their focus has been on surface issues related to the ad experience, while a larger problem lies beneath.

In today’s cooling real estate market, it is increasingly critical to understand where buyers and sellers are on their real estate journey, and to connect with them at the right time. In the next 12 months, 254,000 New Zealanders intend to buy a property and 115,000 expect to sell a property.

Global FMCG retail is pegged at $4 trillion today, growing at a rate of just 4%, with signs of continuing sluggish performance in developed markets. On the other hand, total retail e-commerce is predicted to grow by 20% (combined annual growth rate) to become a $4 trillion market by 2020.

For many Australians, the winter energy bill is one of the highest household expenses for the year. With three major retailers announcing energy price increases of up to 20% taking effect on 1 July 2017, Australian families are bracing themselves for an extra big hit on their household budget when their winter bill arrives this spring.

New Zealanders love a good drop - 78% of us, to be exact, are drinkers of some variety. Baby Boomers and Millennials collectively account for 58% of the drinking population.

We’ve gotten used to emphasizing the divide between digital and physical, but it’s quickly disappearing: when digital data about the physical world is comprehensive, real-time and freely available, the physical and digital augment each other.

Authentic Italian grocery brands are growing in popularity. In some categories, products made in Italy have enjoyed strong sales gains over the past year driven by a rise in the number of Australian shoppers spending more on these brands. Despite this, category share for these brands is still relatively low - highlighting significant opportunities for expansion.

When testing innovations, it’s risky to ask consumers to compare a new concept against an actual product that they currently purchase. This unbalances the entire evaluation by setting up an unfair comparison.

Creative is the thing that drives what we engage with, share, talk about, debate, remember and buy. Creative has great power, regardless of where, when and how it runs.

Beyond in-store clinics and the traditional health care aisle of the store, a handful of departments should be top of mind for drug store retailers where more multicultural dollars are spent in comparison to non-Hispanic whites.

Africa’s vast potential is the stuff of investors’ dreams, but capitalizing on that opportunity is less about identifying or quantifying prospects and more about execution stemming from knowledge, insights and data to enable on-the-ground success.

The market for dairy products is highly saturated, and driving new growth can prove challenging. However, Nielsen research shows that consumers who purchase cheese on a weekly basis have a very distinct profile and appealing to this group of cheese lovers could uncover new growth opportunities.

Backed by improving global consumer confidence, many regions are seeing improved conditions for businesses and the fast-moving consumer goods industry. Here, we’ll look at trends in a few select countries.

Consumers globally were more confident in the second quarter of 2017 than at the end of 2016, but concerns remain. So where are consumers spending any extra cash and cutting back on expenses?

On-the-go Kiwi consumers want their meals to be quick and convenient. Over the past year we’ve seen big increases in those who eat on the run (+22%) and buy take-away food to eat at home (+25%). For those with limited time, meal kits and prepared meals are proving to be invaluable.

For a long time, no one outside IT showed much interest in APIs, but MIT research shows that the most successful digital companies make above-average investments in APIs; these companies know that APIs are fundamental to their strategic success. Why do they think that?

Australians love sport. And the ways in which they engage with sport is changing before our eyes. There are new ways to watch, new ways to connect and the audience demographic is also changing.

In the lead up to Father’s Day this year, partners and children across the country will no doubt be racking their brains to pick the perfect gift for dad. Nielsen research reveals that millennial dads (aged 18-34) are a particularly different breed of dad compared to their older counterparts, with lifestyle and aspirations of this age group having evolved notably over the past few years.

Nielsen’s latest consumer confidence results for the second quarter of 2017 reveals Australian and New Zealand consumers paint a very different picture of their future outlook. New Zealand continues to ride its wave of positivity with a consumer confidence score of 103, the highest it has been in nine years. Australia, on the other hand, recorded a consumer confidence score of 89 - well below the global average of 104.

With the advancements in big data, advertisers know more about consumers than ever before. And yet, they’re still challenged with how to drive the greatest return for their marketing budgets. And we all know what happens when executives don’t see the ROI they’re expecting—they cut budgets.

Millennials (aged 18 to 34) are less likely to drink than their elders. As such, Millennials pose a challenge to alcohol marketers because of the range of factors that influence their drinking choices.

In contrast to the ongoing market challenges facing global fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) manufacturers and retailers, consumers are in better spirits than they were at the end of 2016. In fact, global consumer confidence has risen three index points since the close of last year.

New Zealanders love to read. Around 1.9 million Kiwis aged over 10 say they read a book every week – the second most popular leisure activity after walking. In 2016 alone, Nielsen BookScan revealed that 4.9 million books were sold in New Zealand for a total value of $114.2 million.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock for the last couple of years, you’re seeing the FMCG industry transform right in front of our eyes. That’s scary, but equally exciting. So here are three things big FMCG marketers need to do to win as the industry evolves.

Has the traditional planning process become obsolete? Many signs within the industry point to “yes.” So in order to succeed today, companies need to move to a new form of adaptive planning that is responsive to continuous market change.

Advertising campaigns that resonate in the minds of consumers are hard to find. Encouragingly, understanding frequency - the number of times consumers see a campaign - has a demonstrated impact on resonance, and can ensure brands maximise their digital spend.