Fanfare for the Common Man

When it comes to marketing news, mass-media advertising always has been the favored child, in-store marketing the nerdy cousin -- the one who gets invited to the party out of obligation, not desire.News stories in business publications and the trade press typically will devote full columns to describing the creative of a new TV spot or the concept of a national consumer promotion, then toss in a few token lines noting only that "P-O-P supports" or "the campaign features account-specific overlays with major retailers."Therefore, it's always noteworthy when the media focus turns to marketing at retail, as it did last month when Stuart Elliott of The New York Times -- the dean of advertising reporters -- covered ad agency Grey Global's move into the "formerly arcane field" of in-store execution.By acquiring a division of sales and merchandising giant Crossmark (and combining it with promotion arm J. Brown), Elliott explained, Grey can now handle "the nuts-and-bolts chores that seem plebian compared with the more glamorous elements of advertising like Super Bowl commercials but can determine whether a product is purchased: stocking and restocking shelves, setting up displays, checking whether promotions that marketers are paying retailers to run are actually taking place and analyzing sales data." Of course, the typical consumer product company spends far more on such "plebian" efforts than it does on media advertising. And for every company that dropped $2.3 million for a 30-second Super Bowl spot, there were at least a handful allocating millions to gaining prime retail placement in the days leading up to the game.In its Feb. 8 issue, Advertising Age called in-store marketing a "disarmingly sensible" strategy, but devoted most of its annual coverage of the discipline to discussing available media options, and little to examining how vital it has become (aside from a couple of token -- and conflicting -- remarks about the level of in-store purchase decisions).Those who make their livelihood in marketing at retail already know how important it is. They know that the real question isn't whether Budweiser or Coors aired the more creative ad on Feb. 1, but which beer brand occupied more supermarket endcaps on Jan. 31.In another story last week, Ad Age outlined a "fundamental shift in marketing approach" for Procter & Gamble, through which the company has "shifted dramatically toward … winning consumers in the store, with packaging and displays major factors in the outcome."Hey, if Procter & Gamble is willing to be plebian, who are we to argue?As always, we encourage your feedback and welcome your support.Sincerely,Peter BreenManaging Director, Contentpeter_breen@instoremarketer.org

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