The CPG Guys

In this episode, the hosts are joined by Ru Vallury from Amazon Ads. They discuss the journey of his career at Amazon, the rise of retail media, how Amazon ads help brands develop brand equity, drive successful SKU launches, and the features and capabilities of Amazon ads.

The CPG Guys, PVSB and Sri are joined in this episode by Nich Weinheimer, GM of Strategy and Commerce at Skai (fka Kenshoo). Skai is an AI-powered suite of technologies for brands and retailers including consumer and market insights, strategic planning, omnichannel media activation, testing and measurement. Skai’s solutions all share a uniquely comprehensive data foundation that informs intelligence and true incremental lift.This episode is sponsored by Skai.Follow Nich Weinheimer on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nich-weinheimer-601a596/ Follow Skai on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/skaicommerce/Follow Skai online at: https://skai.io/Nich answers these questions:1) Lets begin and dive right into retail media. A few years ago, non existent. The advent of Retail Media as spurred on by Amazon's entrance and evolution into ads - from feeds sponsored ads to the full Ad Stack today revolutionized it. Where are we today on this?2) How was Skai's history perfectly aligned to capture and help scale Retail Media - from Kenshoo to your full Connected Commerce platform?3) Client profiling... holding companies, independent agencies, direct brands... is there a pattern in adoption as nascent channels/strategies emerge (outsourcing>insourcing)? Why are some clients so inclined to work with an enterprise platform vs. other options?4) So you just completed a 150+ marketer agency and brand and aggregators survey/report with BWG about the State of Retail Media. Would you share some key highlights/insights.5) What is Connected Commerce and how does skai help brands and retailers adopt and address it?6) Lets decompose brands' data 'hierarchy of needs' and the opportunity to connect data to take 'meaningful retail action' - what’s SKAI’s role and how do you make this easy?7) Beyond Amazon, what are Retailers looking for - strategy, technology, demand - to capture more share of this 1 in 8 dollars spent in digital on Retail Media? Why should CPGs care and lean in?8) Take our audience through all the various services you offer, and a highlight of successful partnerships you have had with brandsCPG Guys Website: http://CPGGuys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://fmcgguys.comDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys, PVSB and Sri are joined in this episode by Tyler Dooley, the founder & CEO of Wakeup Water, a purpose-driven health and wellness company that believes your happiness starts with what you put into your body. Follow Tyler Dooley on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tyler-dooley-a62317125/Follow Wakeup Water on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wakeupwater/ Follow Wakeup Water online at: https://drinkwakeupwater.com/  Tyler answers these questions:1) Your story starts at College of Holy Cross, then you touched finance, logistics and even real estate, eventually founding wakupwater. Decompose this for our audience and tell us how all this came to be.2) What is the primary mission of wakeupwater and how has fundraising been in these times? What are most investors interested in understanding about your business model?3) What about supply chain? In these times getting raw material seems to get harder and harder, then there’s manufacturing. How do you manage that for success?4) You launched DTC - how hard is that for a beverage brand at these price points? What’s the store model & plan?5) Why is digital commerce a priority for you in these times? How are you working to ensure wakeupwater is ecommerce & omnichannel ready = what are specific initiatives or actions you have taken?6) How are you focused on building a team and what does your team specifically focus on - is it revenue or capabilities or both? Are their specific functions that are challenging to fill in this employment market?7) How important is user experience in this journey and how do you help shoppers get that top tier UX? 8) What’s next for wakeupwater and you? How do you scale this?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGGuys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://fmcgguys.comRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.com DISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys, PVSB and Sri are joined in this episode by Patrick Roman Gut, SVP of Head of Advertisers & Agency Sales at NCSolutions and Rosemary Hua, Global Head of Retail & CPG Go To Market at Snowflake, a global Data Cloud that delivers users a single seamless experience. NCSolutions is an official insights provider partner of Snowflake.This episode is sponsored by NCSolutionsFollow Patrick Roman Gut on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickromangut/ Follow Rosemary Hua on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rosemaryhua/ Follow NCSolutions on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/nc-solutions1/Follow NCSolutions online at: http://ncsolutions.com Follow Snowflake on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/snowflake-computing/ Follow Snowflake online at: http://snowflake.com  They answer these questions:1) If advertising isn’t effective, it won’t move the needle in terms of sales. From NCS’s perspective, what are the keys to advertising effectiveness and how does NCS go about measuring effectiveness?2) Why is purchase data, both brick & click, a key element of accurate & meaningful measurement of advertising effectiveness?3) Rosemary, your profile and career is so interesting. You graduated Berkeley, been at Amazon including risk management, then Walmart as a global tech lead, then non profit leadership in between, and now snowflake. 4) Snowflake has partnered with NCS to deliver a powerful data partnership. What was it about the size and source of NCS’s data set that led you to establish this partnership and what are some of the key benefits that your clients are leveraging?5)  Do you have an example of how a brand using your cloud data platform has leveraged your partnership with NCS to deliver meaningful results for their organization?6) How is the rise of clean rooms & data in-housing transforming the needs for data enablement by your clients and how are you responding to these challenges with meaningful solutions.7) why is audience targeting powered by third-party data appropriate & necessary, and why do small and medium sized brands need to master these skills to compete against the big players?8) Why is data so intimidating for most CPG? How to scale this for day to day decision making? Does AI play a role CPG Guys Website: http://CPGGuys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://fmcgguys.comDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys, PVSB and Sri are joined in this episode by Sarah Alter, The President & CEO of NextUp, formerly known as Network of Executive Women, whose mission is to advance all women in businessFollow Sarah Alter on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-alter-7492465/ Follow NextUp on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/nextupisnow/Follow NextUp online at: http://www.nextupisnow.org Sarah answers these questions:1) I mentioned that NextUp was a creation of thought leaders within the CPG Retail industry. Would you please walk us through the origins of NextUp and dimensionalize the current size of NextUp in terms of membership, geographic scope, industry verticals, etc.?2) What are some of the core issues women face in the workplace that NextUp is seeking to address through your resources & activities? How do you measure the impact that you have on these issues?3) How do companies partner with NextUp and what can they offer to their employees through the partnership? Can individuals join NextUp absent a corporate partnership?4) You publicly state that men are important partners in realizing the mission of NEW. Please expand on this if you would. How can women enlist men to advance the cause?5) Let’s explore the networking component of NextUp. Would you dimensionalize why networking is such an important enabling culture to achieve your stated mission and what are some of the core ways that NextUp fosters networking at the community level?6) What are your members asking NextUp to start tackling from an issues or resources perspective that have you focused on the growth of NextUp?7) As we mentioned earlier, NextUp has recently announced a major rebranding. What was the motivation behind this effort and what does it mean for your community?8) Tell us about your radio show & podcast “Advancing All Women.” What types of issues do you explore and where are you sourcing your guests? How is the NextUp community responding to it?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGGuys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://fmcgguys.comRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.com DISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys, PVSB and Sri are joined in this episode by Mark Detelich Chief Product Officer and Pat Niersbach SVP of Marketing at Syndigo, the first “active content engine” that enables its customers to rapidly assess and modify content to optimize performance using Syndigo’s unique integration of analytics throughout the entire product lifecycle.This episode is sponsored by Syndigo.Follow Mark Detelich on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-detelich-5537714Follow Pat Niersbach on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patniersbachFollow Syndigo on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/syndigo/Follow Syndigo online at: https://www.syndigo.com/ Mark & Pat answer these questions:1) Why is content an important part of omnichannel commerce and why are brands and retailers finding it challenging to manage content at the speed of today’s commerce?2) How do brands build trust with their retail customers through accurate & complete product data?3) PIMs, DAMs & MDMs: what are they and how can they create friction in data governance? What is the solution?4) The product content that appears on retail sites is not natively developed by each retailer, it is sourced from brands through syndication. But every channel has different data requirements, and content changes continually. How does Syndigo help solve for this reality?5) Engaging experiences are essential to building customer loyalty and winning the sale both online and in-store. Mark, how should brands be focused on enabling this through product data?6) How do product data analytics and understanding of shopper behavior help improve content that drives conversion?7) Syndigo has recently revealed a new visual brand identity centered around being the first Active Content Engine that powers the continual flow of data and content throughout the entire commerce ecosystem. Help our audience understand this in the context of everything we have been discussing so far.8) Why should brands, retailers and distributors of all sizes be invested in active content and how should they get started?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGGuys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://fmcgguys.comRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.com DISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys, PVSB and Sri are joined in this episode by Mike Harp, Head of Brand & Agency Partnerships at Gopuff, the go-to solution for immediate everyday needs, fulfilling customer orders in just minutes. Follow Mike Harp on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeharp/Follow Gopuff on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gopuff/Learn about the Gopuff ad platform at: http://gopuff.com/go/ads Mike answers these questions:1) Before we dive into the more detailed questions, can you give us a quick refresher on Gopuff? What sets you apart, and give us a sense of scale, where’s the company at today?2) In June of last year, you formally introduced the Gopuff Ad platform. Would you walk us through each of the assets that brands can choose to invest against in reaching Gopuff shoppers, including sponsor product ads & sponsored search ads?3) How much of your platform is self-serve to the brand and what types of consulting support does your team afford to brands looking to invest in Gopuff Ads?4) What did the launch of Gopuff Ad Solutions and a self-serve platform enable that working only directly with brands wouldn’t? Are there specific use cases that you can point to that illustrate the value-add? 5) Would you please walk us through the major campaign reporting metrics you offer to brands? (ROAS, Maximum Spend Value, Max CPC, Aki, etc.) and what do you offer brands seeking to measure true incrementality? How do you advise brands to sequentially invest against your ad platform, you know: first dollar, second dollar, third dollar, and how do you help them do this is an efficient and effective manner?6) Where has Gopuff been focusing on expanding the advertising solutions for brands and agencies looking to engage Gopuff shoppers?7) What’s next? Where is Gopuff going?8) Share how brands are getting ROI and what’s the success of your platform?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGGuys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://fmcgguys.comRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.com DISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys, PVSB are joined in this episode by Disha Gulati, Founder & CEO of Here Here Market, a hyper-local hospitality marketplace helping create memorable food and beverage experiences and curated e-commerce solutions. Its mission is to democratize industry access and opportunity by connecting local talent directly with consumers.Follow Disha Gulati on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/disha-gulatiFollow Here Here Market on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hereheremkt/Follow Here Here Market online at: http://hereheremarket.comDisha answers these questions:1) Deloitte, University of Chicago, Mondelez analytics, 1871 to founder - how does this happen? What’s the story?2) How was here here founded? Who is your team and what are you focused on developing and delivering?3) Who can sell on the marketplace and how do they join? What support can they expect from you?4) Talk to us about building and retaining audiences - and what ‘localvore’ means?5) How do you and the team go about finding products for the marketplace? Are you constantly out and about scouting for the right set of products? How do you then select what belongs vs not?6) Moving from Fortune 500 to startup is not easy. Give us the trials and tribulations of the journey? What do we not know about how hard this is? What’s your advice for others who want to take this path?7) For a market to succeed, advertising, branding and creativity is a must. Tell us about your role in a creator community and collaboration that delivers for your shoppers?8) As we ask all founders on this show - what’s next and how does the market scale from local to national?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGGuys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Guys on Instagram: https://instagram.com/cpgguysPlease follow the Network of Executive Women at http://newonline.org/cpgguysDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys, PVSB are joined in this episode by Grant Steadman, North America President & Eric Karlson, Director of Strategy & Insights at dunnhumby, the global leader in Customer Data Science, empowering businesses everywhere to compete and thrive in the modern data-driven economy. Follow Grant Steadman on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grantsteadman/Follow Eric Karlson on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erickarlson/Follow dunnhumby on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/dunnhumby/Follow dunnhumby online at: http://dunnhumby.com Grant & Eric speak about the recently-released 5th annual U.S. Retailer Preference Index Report. Find it here: https://www.dunnhumby.com/resources/reports/customer-first/en/5th-annual-us-retailer-preference-index/They answer these questions:1) What is the purpose of the RPI and what are the core data components & methodology that lead to the results? Why is dunnhumby well-positioned to publish this research?2) This is the 3rd year for RPI in the U.S. What’s different about this year’s report from a design perspective and what drove the changes?3) What were the top finds from this year’s RPI? What mattered the most to shoppers and how is that different than last year?4) We see some familiar names on the list of highly regarded retailers, Amazon, HEB, Wegmans. One surprise to us was actually Market Basket, a regional New England retailer not known for being an omnichannel powerhouse. What made them stand out?5) Some of the retailers that didn’t fare as well in this year’s RPI still had record years for revenue growth. How should we reconcile this? Why did EDLP retailers not score as highly in the RPI?6) Retailers with strong omnichannel digital capabilities scored highly. Amazon Fresh jumped up a few notches. Is digital a key momentum driver in this RPI analysis? Why?7) Regional/super-regional retailers seemed to outperform the big national players. What would the RPI tell us about this?8) How did omnichannel retailers operating their own eCommerce platform perform compared to those who operate through 3rd party marketplaces? What are some lessons from your findings?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGGuys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comCPG Guys on Instagram: https://instagram.com/cpgguysPlease follow the Network of Executive Women at http://newonline.org/cpgguysDISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast. 

The CPG Guys, PVSB and Sri are joined in this episode by Jason Villano, Global Head of CPG strategy, and Kash Kasinarasimhan, Principal for CPG Strategy at Tredence, a provider of AI consulting & advanced prescriptive analytics that harmonizes data and humanizes experience to help companies efficiently accelerate their smart investments in AI.This is the first in a 2-episode partnership with Tredence.Follow Jason Villano on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonvillano/ Follow Kash Kasinarasimhan on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kashyap-kasinarasimhan-65487716/ Follow Tredence on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tredence/ Follow Tredence online at: https://www.tredence.com/  Jason & Kash answer these questions:1) Tell us about Tredence, how the journey started & where you are as a company today? 2) How is Tredence helping the CPG industry with AI/How is Tredence differentiating itself in a crowded marketplace? 3) You're talking to CPGs daily, what are you seeing as the biggest opportunities in the industry? 4)Let's talk a bit more about the two opportunities that may be on our audiences' mind, OSA & RGM.  What is Tredence doing differently within OSA?5) OSA is front & center within the day to day, so pivoting to RGM how is Tredence making an impact on the back end of the business? 6) You say Prescriptive, what does that really mean?7) You spoke earlier about the 3 As, how is Tredence breaking those barriers?8) What can we expect next from Tredence?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGGuys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://fmcgguys.comRetailWit Website: http://retailwit.com DISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual’s use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast.