John Berenyi

Biography

Fight! Fight! Fight! The schoolyard chant always attracted interest. What particularly interested John was why boys fought over trifles such as which was better; Holden or Ford, when they were essentially the same cars with the same performance? But fight they did. What did they believe to make them so willing to fight?

Today, John’s interest is in what people believe and do, as opposed to what they say. This has become the key to unlocking quantum leaps in business performance for our clients. Getting to the Human Truth™ of what really motivates shoppers and consumers has answered:

• Why do sales stagnate when marketing metrics soar?
• Why do sales teams consistently undermine corporate sales approaches?
• Why do award-winning, well researched designs don’t sell?
• Why do stores fail to deliver sales despite meeting all mystery shopper metrics?
• Why do inferior products consistently outsell best in class?
• Why do ads that people hate sell the most products, and ads they like don’t sell at all?
• Why do expert wine buffs and computer geeks find it much harder to shop for wine/IT than regular shoppers?
• Why do over 90% of new product developments fail despite huge research and marketing budgets?

The real answers to these types of questions allow clients to significantly improve their sales volume and value, often leading to reduced sales costs.

John started his career as a psychologist specialising in sex therapy. The first thing to know about therapy is that it is counter-productive to ask people what they want or what they like. Either people haven’t thought enough about it, or they are too embarrassed to tell you or do not have the language to tell you properly. Not surprising in therapy. Very surprising, but true in business.

For almost forty years John has been helping the world’s leading businesses and organisations such as; Microsoft, CSIRO, Coca-Cola, 7-Eleven and IKEA to improve their performance by getting below the surface of what their stakeholders are on about.

Currently, John is the Managing Director of Bergent Behavioural Research and Consulting.  He was previously Vice President of Marketing for Warner Bros Asia and Group Account Director & Board Director for Network Development at Clemenger Harvie, Australia’s biggest and more profitable agency network.  As well as his corporate titles, John used to be a regular lecturer at Monash University, the Australian Market & Social Research Society and the Institute of Social Welfare.

Topics

• Unlocking opportunities for game-changing growth by moving beyond points of parity
• The difference between what stakeholders say and what they really believe and do
  • Key to reducing activist friction, reducing sale time and building sales value
• In-store marketing to get quantum leaps in performance
  • What really drives decision making at point of sale?
  • Building multiple levels of shopper connection
• The business of creativity
  • How to really sell movies and screen entertainment
• Efficiently targeting Boomers
  • The latest and most lucrative demographic
  • How to motivate your team of Millennial marketers to target the segment with all the money
• What women really want
  • Key to significant sales growth and brand equity in all categories, not just 'women's stuff'
• Effective industry branding to increase overall market size
  • Retirement, entertainment, hotels, psychological services, legal, housing and other industries

Testimonials

John was easy to deal with and certainly knew his subject.  Marketing is always a well-received subject and John peppered his presentation with humour making it not only enjoyable, but gave the attendees the skills to implement into their businesses immediately.
BizHub

Wonderful session and he related the marketing to our industry very well. He particularly resonated with our more senior delegates – licensees and principals.
Easy and professional to deal with, would be keen to use him for other events if something suitable arose.
REIQ

John is a frank and fearless presenter who has the innate ability to trigger robust and controversial discussions. He gets his audience thinking and challenging what they have heard and how they will apply their learnings. John's academic qualifications, real world experience and charismatic manner ensure audiences will always remember a John Berenyi presentation. John knows his topics and engages with his audiences and his knowledge on trends in the marketplace is unparalleled. John is always my first choice as a speaker when the stakes are high!
Suzanne Jones
Journalist, Broadcaster, Emcee and Media Strategist
Suzanne Jones PR Agency

John is a very entertaining presenter and will get the audience laughing.
Byron Merzon
Tourism, Hospitality & Leisure
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu

Your work with us truly inspired what I believe will be game changing work for our entire category and the Microsoft business!
Danny Lattouf
Head of Channel Marketing Consumer Channels Group
Microsoft

His presentation was not only informative, but pleasantly entertaining. He could be considered an "edutainer"!
Andrew Voysey
Principal
Koru Pacific

John Berenyi is an exceptionally engaging public speaker who breaks down complicated concepts and tailors the messages to suit the audience. John fluidly builds rapport with the audience and delivers insight in an entertaining, palatable way.
Charlotte Kok
Head of Business Development
Hannover Fairs Australia