Wishful Thinking

The In-Store Marketing Institute last week began promoting a "major industry announcement" that will take place at the In-Store Marketing Expo in Chicago.

At 2 p.m. on Sept. 27 at the McCormick Place Lakeside Center, a consortium of manufacturers and retailers will be on hand to unveil findings from a research project that "has cracked the code, confirming that in-store marketing can be measured with great reliability," according to Peter Hoyt, the Institute's executive director. "Our findings will change the way manufacturers, retailers and agencies view the in-store environment."

To learn more, you'll have to attend the event. But with Wal-Mart's Stephen Quinn and Procter & Gamble's Jim Stengel among the planned speakers, you already were planning to go, weren't you?

While we can't share additional details now (instoremarketer.org will have more information as soon as the event concludes), we can speculate about some of the significant changes that may take place after Sept. 27. Among the possibilities:

• The concept of the store as a medium for strategic, brand-building marketing communications will finally take root (which will only enhance retail's traditional strength as a tactical sales-driving tool).
   
• Marketing directors and brand managers will take a greater interest in retail than they have had historically. (In-store activity will become an integrated part of their plan, not just "somebody else's job.")
   
• Retailers will get access to an unprecedented amount of information about what shoppers are doing in their stores (which should help their efforts to improve the shopping experience immensely).
   
• Retailers and product manufacturers will have a better understanding of what marketing opportunities are available in the store (which could lead to greater levels of effective collaboration).
   
• Advertising agencies will be able to accurately evaluate the potential value of marketing within the store (adding another weapon to the media plan).
   
• The issue of compliance -- long the plague of the P-O-P industry -- will be addressed constructively and effectively (and, eventually, won't be an issue anymore).
   
• Global warming will end immediately.

OK, I've obviously gone a little too far here -- and maybe even before the "global warming" comment. That will be an issue for the industry to decide.

See you on the 27th.

Peter Breen
Managing Director, Content
In-Store Marketing Institute

Members: More information here.

Shopper Mindset: "Understanding the Electronics Purchase at Specialty vs. Discount Retail" by Planet Insights

Consumers buying electronics are significantly more likely to interact with special displays than are shoppers in general, according to a report from Planet Insights, a new company spawned from the disciplines of consumer research and retail marketing. The report uses surveys of more than 5,000 consumers to analyze and compare electronics purchase behavior in the specialty and discount channels.

Members: View the research here.

Best Practices: "Closing the Sale: A Primer on In-Store Creative" by Steve Smith

Brevity is essential when developing creative strategies for point-of-purchase materials. And the need to close the sale while positioning the brand means that a whole lot has to be said through just a few words or images. In this exclusive article, marketing consultant and author Steve Smith examines the numerous points to consider when planning in-store creative, and offers a host of tips on how to get it right.

Members: View the article here.

Store Checks: Retailing in Germany

What did the Institute do on its summer vacation in Frankfurt? Visit stores, of course. Browse more than 50 images of the retail environment at Aldi and five other chains in Germany, where "preis, preis, preis" is the marketing mantra.

Members: View the store checks here.

Desktop Marketing Conference: Five Key Packaging Tactics by James Peters

The proliferation of specialty channels, such as warehouse clubs and dollar stores, has created a need for special package designs tailored to specific environments. In a presentation from last April's In-Store Marketing Summit, Institute of Packaging Professionals education director James Peters discusses the five key tactics necessary for survival in a diverse marketplace. He also explores how the issue of environmental sustainability is beginning to impact design.

Members: View the lecture here.

Welcome New Institute Members

The In-Store Marketing Institute is delighted to welcome new and renewing members to the Institute family. Below is a list of the companies that signed up recently. Welcome aboard.

• AMD Industries Inc.
• BBDO Detroit
• Black & Decker
• Campbell Soup
• Cascade Designs
• Doner Advertising
• Draft
• EPSON
• Fitch
• Kimberly-Clark
• LA Brea Bakery
• Malone Advertising
• McCormick & Co.
• McDonald's Corporation
• Michigan State University
• Midland Display Group/A Division of Midland Container
• Minnesota State Lottery
• Oki Data Americas Inc.
• Orange County Container Group
• Pfizer Consumer Healthcare
• Pierce Promotions & Event Management
• Procter & Gamble
• RMS Retail Merchandising Solutions
• Smurfit-Stone Display Group
• Summit MFG
• Sun-Rype Products Ltd.
• Target Corporation
• The Dannon Company
• The Dial Corporation
• The Seattle Times Company
• The Topps Company Inc.
• Trans World Marketing
• Traver & Asociados
• UM Imports
• Walker In-Store
• Wild Impact Marketing
• Zoom Advertising