About Bahlsen
Bahlsen is a globally recognized name in the FMCG (Fast-Moving Consumer Goods) industry, with a rich history spanning over 130 years. The company specializes in creating high-quality biscuits and sweet treats that have delighted consumers around the world. Sara Green, who has worked in FMCG for 24 years and held various roles in sales, category, and insight, is currently the Global Head of Insight & Category Centre of Excellence for Bahlsen biscuits. Her extensive experience underscores the importance of consumer quality insights in product development and stakeholder engagement.
Sara’s journey at Bahlsen began after serving as the Head of Insight & Innovation for a leading UK bakery brand, where she first discovered the potential of the Zinklar Insights Platform to address Bahlsen’s market research challenges.
Challenge
Bahlsen, like many companies in the FMCG sector, faced several market research challenges, including:
- Budget: Striving to make the most of available resources.
- Confidence in Findings: Ensuring that insights were robust and reliable.
- Opportunity/Ability to Commercialize Findings: Transforming insights into actionable strategies.
- Managing Competing Internal Perspectives: Unifying diverse viewpoints within the organization.
- Information Overload: Dealing with an abundance of data, sometimes lacking focus.
Bahlsen recognized the need to find quality insights efficiently while managing time, cost, and scope effectively. Specificity and precision in insight programs were crucial, as well as striking a balance between the frequency and depth of insights to meet fast-changing industry demands.
You have to be comfortable that the decisions you are taking for your business are the right ones
Sara Green, Global Head of Insight & Category Centre of Excellence for Bahlsen biscuits
Solution
Sara Green emphasizes the significance of having a clear objective for insight programs. She advocates for a strategic approach, distinguishing between explorative and consolidation studies to avoid scope creep and streamline the research process. Being resourceful, whether in product development or engaging with consumers, was a key principle. The insights team worked closely with various departments, including sales, marketing, manufacturing, and finance, to align research efforts with business strategies.
Bahlsen turned to the Zinklar Insights Platform as a solution to their market research challenges. The platform allowed them to create questionnaires efficiently and obtain answers within hours, facilitating rapid responses to market demands. This speed was particularly crucial when responding to retailer requests, as they could run studies quickly and provide debriefs within a week to ten days.
Zinklar’s platform proved invaluable in enhancing Bahlsen’s insight capability, enabling them to build robust selling stories and align stakeholders effectively. It complemented traditional studies, filling knowledge gaps and saving time and resources.
With Zinklar I discovered a way to enhance our insight capability and improve it
Sara Green, Global Head of Insight & Category Centre of Excellence for Bahlsen biscuits
Results
The benefits of using the Zinklar Insights Platform were evident for Bahlsen:
- Rapid Response: The ability to respond quickly to retailer inquiries and market demands.
- Efficiency: Efficient project launch across multiple markets.
- Flexible Sampling: The ability to get results from any sample and market.
- Resource Optimization: Reducing time and resource wastage with screen-out questions.
- Ease of Use: An intuitive and user-friendly platform that slotted seamlessly into existing working practices.
- Enhanced Outputs: Overall, Zinklar enhanced the quality and efficiency of their market research efforts.
Sara Green recommends Zinklar to others in the industry, highlighting the platform’s design, ease of use, and expert support. She believes that Zinklar doesn’t replace existing insight capabilities but complements them, adding significant value to businesses looking to improve their research processes and enhance their decision-making.
In conclusion, Bahlsen’s successful utilization of the Zinklar Insights Platform exemplifies how a strategic approach to market research can address the challenges of budget constraints, data overload, and the need for rapid, high-quality insights in the FMCG industry. The Zinklar platform has become an invaluable tool for Bahlsen, facilitating agility and efficiency in their market research efforts, ultimately contributing to their continued success in the competitive FMCG market.
