098 | Paul Thomas | Good vs. Bad Market Research: From Bars to Boardrooms | Suntory Global Spirits

Chris Maffeo

Dear Bottom-up Drinks Builder,

In this return appearance on the Maffeo Drinks podcast, Paul Thomas, whom I dub "the king of insights," shares wisdom on getting out of the marketing "ivory tower" and understanding real consumer behavior. Paul advocates for marketers to personally observe products in various venues rather than relying solely on data.

The conversation explores how brands should embrace occasion-based marketing rather than demographic targeting, balancing aspirational positioning with pragmatic distribution strategies. Paul critiques the research industry's shift toward "faster and cheaper" methodologies at the expense of quality, encouraging brands to conduct fewer but better studies.

The episode concludes with advice on creating an "insight ecosystem" that balances qualitative observations with quantitative data, emphasizing the value of curiosity in understanding how consumers interact with drinks brands in different contexts.

00:00 Introduction and welcome

01:10 Discussion topics overview

02:35 Getting out of the marketing "ivory tower"

08:15 Distribution strategy and outlet segmentation

13:40 Balancing premium positioning with broader distribution

18:50 Occasion-based marketing vs. demographic targeting

24:30 Research methodology discussion

30:15 The danger of "false positives" in research

35:40 Balancing qualitative and quantitative insights

38:45 Closing thoughts on curiosity