WFA keynote speakers, conference themes for Beijing 2011

The Global Advertiser Conference on 13 April will address issues affecting brands both globally and in China. These include: Marketing in China as it transitions from a manufacturing/export focus to a consumer-driven economy, how brands should and shouldn't behave in the digital environment and how to innovate in ways that engage, rather than alienate, consumers.

Confirmed speakers include:

• Chris Bruzzo, vice-president of Brand, Content & Online, Starbucks
  
• Chris Burggraeve, Global CMO, Anheuser-Busch InBev
  
• Liu Chuanzhi, chairman of the board of directors, Lenovo Group
  
• Julia Goldin, global CMO, Revlon
  
• Wang Jianzhou, chairman of the board of directors, China Mobile
  
• Stephen Kehoe, Head of International Corporate Relations, Visa International
  
• Keith Weed, global CMO, Unilever
  
• Liang XinJun, CEO, Fosun Group

The WFA and its research partners will also be unveiling the results of two landmark research projects at the conference.

In partnership with Forbes Insight, the WFA will release the results of an exclusive survey of global and local marketers and the challenges they face reaching the emerging Chinese consumer over the next five years.

In conjunction with Millward Brown, the WFA will release the results of Project Reconnect, a first attempt to understand and identify consumer expectations of the marketing industry and big global brands, particularly in relation to their interaction with young people online.

Stephan Loerke, managing director of the WFA, said: "Marketers worldwide are faced with vast opportunities. China is moving from a manufacturing to a consumer-led economy. Digital marketing offers previously unimaginable ways of connecting with consumers. Some of the industry's brightest minds and most cutting edge research will offer learnings about the new rules of engagement. And the fast-changing Chinese consumer must be at the heart of the development of rules for what it means to be a marketer in the digital age."

Zheng Silin, president of CANA, said: "China is no longer simply a centre of manufacturing excellence. Driven by innovation, it is growing domestic demand as well as potentially world-beating brands. China is not just importing marketing expertise but now exporting insights and understanding that are best in class and actively promoting international exchanges and cooperation. Holding the Global Advertiser Conference in Beijing for the first time is demonstration of this."