Member Spotlight (March-April 2024)
Valerie L. Williams-Sanchez
Vice President, Multicultural Relevance and Intelligence
Blue Chip
Main job responsibilities: I work as the agency’s multicultural strategist and subject matter expert across verticals. I am a member of the strategic planning and research team. Through research and data mining, I work to uncover multicultural insights that matter.
How you win with shoppers during uncertain economic times: We help clients get more from their existing marketing budgets by uncovering new consumer opportunities. To do it, we show them how cultural values they haven’t noticed or understood are informing consumer purchasing decisions. These values are gateways to brand connections that clients need to grow their businesses.
New marketing tactic that you use: Triangulation is powerful. By combining quantitative data, anecdotal narrative and observation, we create a congruence that takes the guesswork out of multicultural marketing. When the stories that people tell us about what they buy and why match our observations and data, we have clear direction and proof.
Best career advice you’ve received: Do what you love, and the rest will follow.
Memorable aha moment in your career: There have been many. Someone I’m interviewing tells me something about their life, and the wider opportunity crystallizes. Most recently, I was working on a campaign for military families. As retired Air Force lieutenant Marcenia Cofield told me about her deployment experiences, all the data we had on military families came to life. We needed to focus on their widely shared, lived experience.
What you are reading or watching right now: I’m always reading peer journal articles. And I’m deeply passionate about immersive, cultural storytelling. No surprise there, right? The “Shogun” TV series has recently captured my imagination.
Summer travel plans: Honestly, that feels light years away. I’m not exactly sure just yet. I have a couple of fun destinations in mind, though. Please wish me luck that I get to one of them.
Michelle Brandon
Vice President, Client Services
Select
Main job responsibilities: I work with our clients to make a brand impact. From concept to retail execution, my team is leading the charge to solve stubborn brand challenges with compelling creative, strategic point of sale (POS) and delivering to market utilizing our trade marketing operating system known as Brandhub.
How you win with shoppers during uncertain economic times: With our operating system, every user has the information they need to feel empowered and make good decisions. It helps marketers see how much they are spending on retail marketing, on what tactics, in what location and — most importantly — what results they are getting.
New marketing tactic that you use: We are really focused on solving for sustainability and waste that comes with the POS territory. Impactful displays are only impactful if they actually make it to the floor. We obtain the data our clients need to spend the right dollar amount on the right pieces that truly drive sales.
Best career advice you’ve received: Do what you say you are going to do and don’t be afraid to take a risk.
What you are reading or watching right now: My free time is mostly dedicated to my two daughters’ busy schedules — from hockey to soccer, and dance to track. I’m soaking in every minute and will catch up on binging some good Netflix shows in a few years.