Manufacturers, retailers and agencies will gather at the Promotion Marketing Association's (PMA) first-ever Shopper Marketing Conference, "Making Shopper Marketing Work for You -- a 360° View," to gain insight into the latest research and trends on marketing to the consumer through the retailer. This highly effective and widely talked about discipline is a conversation being held around every marketer's table.

The two-day conference, being held at the Sofitel Minneapolis Hotel May 20-21, will feature five distinct pieces of research that reveal: how shoppers' attitudes and behaviors are affected by the economy and green marketing; the measurement of in-store merchandising on how and where consumers shop in the store, with resulting scanner data on what they purchase; who the 10 best marketers and shopper marketing agencies are, as ranked by each other; and best practices in shopper marketing according to retailers, agencies and manufacturers.

PMA's own proprietary quantitative and qualitative research, done with Nielsen Business Media, "The PMA Survey on Managing and Measuring Shopper Marketing," reveals a comprehensive look at best practices in shopper marketing.

Findings include:
The most widely-reported benefits of practicing shopper marketing How to best measure shopper marketing programs Levels of retailer and manufacturer support/collaboration necessary to implement shopper marketing programs Who should bring shopper insights to the planning table
"As an organization comprised of Fortune 500 companies, top marketing agencies, law firms, retailers, service suppliers and academia, representing thousands of brands worldwide, the Promotion Marketing Association (PMA) takes pride in being at the forefront when it comes to shopper marketing," said Bonnie Carlson, president of the PMA. "Our Shopper Marketing Center of Excellence has put together an impactful two-day conference agenda featuring professionals from the top of the field to discuss the latest research and trends."

Other proprietary research to be presented at the conference includes:
The latest data and forecasts about how the economy and the "R" word are affecting shopping behavior -- Kim Rayburn, SVP, Big Research How green marketing affects shoppers' attitudes and actions -- Fred Bidwell, president & CEO, Malone Advertising Top-10 rankings of shopper marketing agencies as identified by marketers and agencies -- Tim Manners, publisher, The HUB New metrics for measuring shopper behavior derived from a qualitative study conducted by P.R.I.S.M., Nielsen In-Store, and In-Store Marketing Institute -- Peter Hoyt, executive director, In-Store Marketing Institute, and George Wishart, global managing director, Nielsen In-Store
Other speakers include Maureen Bausch, executive VP, The Mall of America; Bill Sinnott, chairman, executive committee, D.L. Ryan Companies; Rick Abens, director of consumer insights, ConAgra Foods, Inc.; Don Ladhoff, VP, Seismicom; Robin Blunt, VP retail marketing, Simon Malls; Wendy Kula, senior director brand marketing, Aerie by American Eagle Outfitters; Barbara Olson, VP personalized loyalty marketing, Best Buy; Ted Lueders, director customer marketing, Kimberly Clark Corporation; Kelly Downey, director, Unilever; and more.

Registration and a full conference agenda for the PMA Shopper Marketing Conference can be found at www.pmalink.org.