Rich Bradley began his career at Kellogg in January 2005 as a National Account Manager. In January 2022, he took up his current position as Senior European IT Director – Data, Analytics, and Commercial Business Solutions at the recently rebranded Kellanova.
At this year’s DTX Manchester, which will take place on 22nd and 23rd May at Manchester Central, he will appear on a panel discussing changing consumer expectations.
Here, Rich shares some insights he will be discussing at the event. The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Q: Your company has just rebranded – why, and how challenging has that been for you?
Shifting from Kellogg to Kellanova means we are moving from a branded house to a house of brands. We want people to be synonymous with all our brilliant brands, whether Pringles, Nutri-Grain, Special K, Frosties, Cornflakes, or Coco Pops.
It’s allowed us to propel our trajectory differently. So when people hear Kellogg, they associate it with cereal. In fact, over half of our sales come from snacks. So we’re not losing the Kellogg brand; Kellogg is still one of the brands we will promote and sell, but it allows us to transition more into a snacking world and become a snacking powerhouse.
From an IT perspective, it’s been business as usual in the region. Globally, it’s been very different because we have spun out the North American cereal division and created the WK Kellogg Company. We had to decouple a big part of our organisation, which took considerable effort from our central IT colleagues.
Q: What will you be speaking about at DTX Manchester?
I’m on a panel that asks, “Is the customer always right?” I think it’s about meeting customers where they are. Customers say and do two different things, so it’s about looking at their behaviours – or, in our case, consumers’ behaviours, because our customers are retail partners.
What consumers say and do often don’t marry up, so you can hear something, react to it and build a proposition around what they are saying, but their behaviour is different. If you lose sight of their behaviours, you lose sight of where they’re at, and then you start marketing to an audience that has moved. You must stay in lockstep with your customer audience and almost predict their next logical step, so you are ready for that transition.
We have just launched a connected experience called Poptopia. You will find QR codes on Pringles, and we are inviting consumers into a Pringles world. There are games to play, quizzes, and it’s an always-on, interactive proposition – because we know that people eat Pringles at all times. We know it’s part of their social life, gaming world, family picnics, and so on.
Consumers have their phones with them constantly, and there’s no barrier to entry. Some other organisations have put a QR code onto packaging, but it asks you to download an app. Who wants to download an app when you've got 4,000 photos on your phone, and you don't want to give up a picture of your dog for an app for an FMCG company? We’ve removed that blocker, and you’re straight into the Pringles world.. It’s driving consumer engagement.
Q: Why should people listen to your session at DTX Manchester?
What we’ve done is genuinely game-changing. It’s pushed the boundaries not just internally but externally. Most companies that have tried this have landed on an app. It’s a great idea, but poorly executed. Listen to this section, and we’ll explain why we’ve done it differently.
And in a world of sustainability, imagine that you don’t have to change the packaging outlay every three months because there’s an update on the pack. The QR code sends you to the Pringles world, which is updated, so when we do Pringles as an event, the Pringles tube can stay the same, but the interactivity changes. That’s massive from a sustainability point of view.
Q: If you could offer three takeaways from your speaking session, what would they be?
Simply put, the consumer is always right, but it’s not because of what they say. It’s because of what they do. If you don’t meet them where they are, you won’t have a business very long because you’ll be advertising and selling to a consumer that’s moved.
Second, if you use a QR code and don’t have an app then it’s genuinely a frictionless experience for the customer. Would you click and download an app just to play a mini-game? Why would you waste your data for just a moment when you are sat on a train, for example, with a Pringles tube? Why deny a consumer that moment because you’ve not thought through the consumer experience?
Sustainability has enterprise-level implications and getting this right is in everyones interest
Q: Have you attended DTX Manchester before, and if so, why should others attend?
Yes, I attended two years ago. The variety of speakers and knowledge shared is just fantastic. You get out of it exactly what you put into it.
Q: What are your hopes for DTX Manchester this year? What are you hoping to learn?
Digital transformation has been a buzzword for over five years now. I want to hear some war stories – not because I’m masochistic, but because through other people’s learnings and experiences, you can learn and avoid pitfalls and have a chance of being more successful yourself.
Rich is speaking at DTX Manchester in a session titled: “Is the customer always right? How to digitally transform in line with changing consumer expectations and demands.” DTX Manchester takes place at Manchester Central, M2 3GX, on 22nd & 23rd May. Register – for free – here: https://bit.ly/3IgbmeH