Some people love making lists. I don't. Maybe it's the leftover dread from the list of chores that my mom used to post on the refrigerator. Still, every once in a while, I recognize their value. Like right now. In addition to my holiday gift list, I've worked with other analysts to compile the list of top consumer products technology trends for 2006. Next year, watch for manufacturers -- many with higher IT budgets -- to undertake:

• B2B collaboration technologies for better retail execution. Overall, manufacturers are committed to better collaboration with retailers. That's why nearly half of manufacturers will spend more on collaboration technologies in 2006. Specifically, manufacturers will focus their collaboration efforts on new demand planning tools, trade promotion management, sales-force automation, and those perennial data efforts: RFID pilots and global data synchronization. With manufacturers now paying more attention to better store execution, we'll be keeping our eyes open for case studies in effective collaboration, such as Whirlpool and Lowe's. Stay tuned!

• New ad technologies to reach tuned-out consumers. We're all pulled in a million directions these days, so intuitively, we know that fewer things stick in our memories (hence our love of lists). Our lack of recall spells trouble for CP advertising. Did you know that only 12% of US consumers buy products because of their ads? CP brands are taking notable action. Companies like Pepsi and Procter & Gamble are shifting money from traditional TV ads to in-store campaigns, which are increasingly delivered using "smarter store" technologies. Also on the rise: online advertising budgets and bleeding-edge channels like RSS and podcasting. We expect the shifts to grow more pronounced next year. As the admittedly over-indulgent owner of two fat kitties, I love the new Purina podcasts.

• New market research and PLM tools for product innovation. CP spending on product life-cycle management (PLM) tools has been on the rise for the past 18 months. Now we're seeing complementary investments in new market research tools, like online focus groups and blog monitoring tools. These tools help brands listen to consumers more frequently -- and inexpensively. Not surprisingly, small vendors dominate this new landscape, so we'll be publishing research in the new year identifying these new vendors and the best ways to work with them.

• eSourcing and price optimization to control materials costs. With the recent increases in commodity prices, manufacturers are stuck between higher upstream costs and downstream price pressure from retailers and consumers. Forrester believes that eSourcing tools can help CP firms negotiate savings with suppliers, while price optimization tools help identify what price increases the market can bear -- and tolerate. We have a new Forrester Wave™ on eSourcing and a Quick Take on SAP's acquisition of Khimetrics -- both of which should help those of you making decisions about these technologies.

• Global supply chain providers to support emerging markets. The move to global supply chains shows no signs of slowing, especially for CP sectors like apparel and consumer electronics. But cheaper production also means more complex distribution and logistics. How can manufacturers cope? By adapting to a new global trading market structure called the Adaptive Trading Network. My colleague Noha Tohamy has written a slew of relevant research, including drill-downs on global trade orchestrators like Unisys and IBM.

Research Referenced In This Issue Adaptive Trading Networks (36780) CP Manufacturers' IT Priorities For 2006 (38255) IBM Kicks Off The Global Trade Orchestrator Race (37388) Keeping Stores Innovative (37962) SAP Acquisition Of Khimetrics Heralds The End Of The Retail Best-Of-Breed Solutions Era (38258) Sourcing An RFID Project (36189) The Forrester Wave™: eSourcing Suites, Q4 2005 (37940) The State Of Manufacturer And Retailer Collaboration (37630) Trends 2006: Consumer Products (38336) Unisys' Global Visible Commerce: Steady Progress (37844) What's The Buzz On Word-Of-Mouth Marketing? (36916)

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