The need is for clear-cut industry standards and objectives as to what shopper marketing is and is not, and the training and skill sets to execute against these standards. Unlike category management, which, thanks to Dr. Brian Harris, is based on a very clearly defined and industry-sanctioned eight-step process, shopper marketing is all over the lot.
The clearest evidence of this is that half the industry positions shopper marketing as a cross-functional corporate strategy while the other half views it as an offshoot of category management or the sales department. As a result, companies tend to position shopper marketing to align with what their organization already is rather than what it should be to plan and execute against best-in-class shopper-marketing criteria.
In other words, shopper marketing has become liquid, almost formless: Ask 10 different people how they define shopper marketing and one gets 10 different answers. This lack of industry standards and objectives results in shopper marketers who are often self-taught, as opposed to an organization that is level-set through formal company training programs. In this situation, one fault tends to amplify the other. Lack of standards equals lack of training, while lack of training equals lack of standards.
Do the homework necessary to ascertain what is best practice in 2014 and, regardless of whether this aligns with your priors or current organization, develop the standards and criteria necessary to elevate your shopper-marketing program and organization to lead in your particular segment or category. Then, base your training program on this and restructure your organization and processes to meet these standards.