Andy Murray ‘unplugged,’ works to bring emotion and order to Wal-Mart creative

Andy Murray is no stranger to innovation. Long before he began in the last year to manage creative marketing for Wal-Mart, this serial entrepreneur was finding ways to integrate technology and pioneering shopper marketing before smartphones were in vogue.

Having founded, ran and sold two successful startups — Saatchi & Saatchi X and Mercury 11 — as well as several years of work in the local supplier community, Murray is now focused on revamping Wal-Mart’s creative marketing agenda. He was the featured speaker at the WalStreet Breakfast event sponsored by the Bentonville-Bella Vista Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday (Sept. 17) at the John Q. Hammons Convention Center in Rogers.

Kenny Tomlin, founder of Rockfish, introduced Murray as one of only a handful of true pioneers in shopper marketing.

“I can’t think of anyone who has traced the evolution of the shopper more than Andy Murray has,” Tomlin said.”Wal-Mart wisely brought him into their business as a senior executive in the creative market division to continue gaining shopper insights.”

Tomlin said understanding shopper behaviors and the impact digital technologies are having is crucial today because 50 cents out of every dollar spent in retail stores by the end of this year will have been influenced by digital devices, according to a new report by Deloitte.

Murray made light of the fact that his schedule was double-booked as he was supposed to be in Los Angeles today which took some last minute maneuvering, which kept him from getting his presentation vetted by Wal-Mart legal.

“Today you’re getting me unplugged but since there’s just one person here from Wal-Mart and one from the media we’ll see how it goes. You will get your money’s worth, I am just not sure what will happen to me,” Murray joked.

Murray then turned to the serious business of how he and the creative team at Wal-Mart seek to bring more structure and increased expectations under the new leadership of Walmart U.S. CEO Greg Foran.

“In our weekly officer meetings under Greg Foran’s leadership all we focus on is what can be done to meet sales goals this weekend. It’s about being in the work, focusing on the work,” Murray said.

He admitted the expectations are high across the board but the benefits are worth it.

One of the first things Murray tackled when coming to Wal-Mart was trying to rebuild the creative engine inside the retail giant. Murray said he spent a lot time talking with merchants and agencies and the one common suggestion received was the need for one voice. So he set out to install a one-voice feedback model for ad agencies presenting proposals.

“This cut weeks out of the review process and puts that time back into the creative process,” Murray said, adding that agencies were given one shot to pitch a plan to Wal-Mart, and sometimes that was on the phone. “That forces you to be good, it’s a high bar no doubt.”

Being good is just part of the equation. Murray said it remains imperative that Wal-Mart add emotion back to the advertising to form real connections with its customer base. He said the U.S. manufacturing jobs campaign that featured “Dirty Jobs” star Mike Rowe was the launch. But there are other ads coming that tug at the heartstrings and help shoppers connect to Wal-Mart on an emotional level.

Murray said since Wal-Mart began to return emotion to the ads, their ratings are among the highest in the advertising industry.

IN-STORE HELP
While online sales are growing at warp speeds, Deloitte notes that 94% of retail sales are still conducted in brick and mortar stores. Murray said he spends a lot of time in Walmart stores surveying the messaging via signage and displays throughout each location.

He admits that many supercenters look like they were frozen in time in 2006. 

“I counted 27 standees in one store many of these displays cluttering the entrance. I am not sure that’s how we want to greet today’s shopper,” Murray said.

He expects to see more product demonstrations in stores saying they bring excitement and animation to the shopping climate as opposed to standing cardboard displays. Murray cautioned that there are limits to how creative displays should be so that Wal-Mart’s inventory system can properly account for the all product.

Overall, Murray said much work remains to better connect the retailer with the various points of possible customer intersection, but under Foran’s leadership the focus is speed.