We just wanted to remind you that the early bird registration for our Spring Event titled ‘Pursuing a Competitive Advantage’ ends this Monday, February 16th.

We’ve got some great speakers lined up that will provide crucial insights for marketing research during this trying economic time. Sessions include:

• Karen Manne – Online Communities- How Disney uses their online communities to find key insights and develop a competitive advantage.
• Keiko Powers – Data Mining- Learn how JD Power & Associates uses sophisticated data mining tools to analyze data and identify critical issues.”
• Elisa Galloway – How is the economy impacting you? A roundtable discussion moderated by Elisa Galloway.”
• Dan Safreno – Large scale tracking studies- How Intuit uses large scale tracking studies and other research techniques to understand their customer’s needs.”
• Justin Wyatt – Welcome to Hard Times- Marketing in today’s economic environment. Growing your business during hard times.
• Beth Kane & Christie Kawada – Researching Latino Viewers- How Si’ TV and Nielsen teamed up to understand the unique needs of the 18-49 Latino viewer.”
• Merrill Dubrow – Special Economic Panel- How is the economy impacting our industry? An interactive discussion of how industry leaders are dealing with the current economic crisis.” 

These sessions are valid for PRC credit.

The conference takes place the Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas, NV on March 18 – 20, 2009.

Hope to see you all there!

Irene Gustaitis

Hello SoCal MRA Members,

We’ve experienced some amazing events this year that prompted both celebration and reflection.  In this end of the year letter, I’d like to recap the highlights of 2008 and also give you a sneak peek at what you can expect for 2009 from your SoCal Chapter MRA.
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Our final event of the year was the Annual Holiday Party held in December at the Sofitel Hotel in West Hollywood.  It was a wonderful evening filled with good conversation, great food and dancing.  A special thank you goes out to the Board Committee that dedicated a lot of time to put together a wonderful event…including the massive leather-boxed tequila centerpieces that were given away throughout the evening.  Congratulations to Ed Sugar who received the 2008 “Research Pillar” award for his outstanding dedication to the field of market research both as a businessman and MRA volunteer. 

Tobin Bailey, Irene Gustaitis, Lee Nizani & Jerome Bettis

In October, our first Hispanic Research Event was held at Café Sevilla in the beautiful coastal city of San Diego – tapas, flamenco and knowledge – all in one evening!  The event received rave reviews, so much so that we may be similar event in the Los Angeles area this year.  According to the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies, Hispanic purchasing power is expected to hit $992 billion by 2009.  Event attendees heard from Hispanic market research specialists and gained valuable insight on the future trends for this important segment of the population.   We would like to give a special thank you to Dr. Mary Beth McCabe, President of Sun Marketing, who was our keynote speaker and presented her insights into the “US Hispanic Market – Past, Present, and Future.”

In July, our Annual Education Day event was hosted by the prestigious School of Business Management at Loyola Marymount University.  The roster of speakers was impressive and included market research professionals Anthony Patino (LMU), Suzanne Martin (Just Kid Inc.), Christie Kawada (Nielsen Entertainment), Tom Neverill (Storybrand Consulting) and Cynthia Cohen (Verdict Success).SoCal MRA also awarded an “Excellence in Academic Market Research” scholarship to business school student, Lurton A. Gifford.  Congratulations once again Lurton!