NEWS10 October 2024
UK – Belinda Beeftink, research director at the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA), will retire at the end of this year.
Beeftink, who will officially leave her role on 31st December 2024, joined the IPA in January 2007, when she assumed responsibility for the TouchPoints survey of media usage in the UK.
Under Beeftink’s direction, TouchPoints evolved into the only cross-media planning system that integrates multiple industry currencies, including Barb, Rajar and PAMCo, and supports the communications planning process, allowing subscribers to evaluate and plan across all media platforms.
The survey, originally released every two years, shifted to an annual cycle under Beeftink’s leadership, with biannual releases during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Beeftink became IPA research director in 2018, replacing the retired Lynne Robinson, and in the role she represented IPA agencies in major industry media research contracts.
Beyond her work with TouchPoints, Beeftink served as chair of the Media Research Group, and as head judge for the Adwanted Media Research Awards for the past three years.
She has also been awarded with an honorary fellowship from the Market Research Society, celebrating her efforts to evolve audience measurement methodologies.
Paul Bainsfair, IPA director general, said: “Belinda is one of the big players in media research and has been an amazing asset to us over her long IPA career.
“While we obviously wish Belinda the very best for a long and enjoyable retirement, we will miss her terribly and she will be a hard act to follow. Thankfully, she leaves behind an excellent team with a deep understanding of this most, technical area of advertising.”
Ian Dowds, chief executive at UKOM, said: “Belinda’s contribution to TouchPoints and the industry has been nothing short of extraordinary.
“It will feel like one of the last ravens leaving the Tower of London when you go through the Belgrave Square IPA door for the last time.”
John Carroll, director of research and audiences at Rajar, added: “Belinda always seemed omnipresent in all the key forums—driving forward all things good in our industry. You will be a very hard act to follow.”