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Trends for 2012

Get ready for a surge of interest in DIY health, marketing partnerships, being seen on screen, gamification, interactive apps and local marketing.

Health on the go

New apps and devices are already actively targeting consumers keen to monitor and manage their wellbeing and you are going to b see a surge of interest in DIY health fixes from time-pressed consumers. Apple’s App Store offers 9,000 mobile health apps, including nearly 1,500 cardio fitness apps, more than 1,300 diet apps, 1,000 stress and relaxation apps, and over 650 women’s health apps. By mid 2012, this number is expected reach 13,000. DIY health innovations include Jawbone’s “Up”, a wristband that tracks a user’s moving, eating and sleeping patterns. “The Play It Down” app enables users to test their hearing, while Withings’ blood pressure monitor plugs into an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch and takes the user’s blood pressure after which data can be sent directly to a doctor or published confidentially on the Web. US automotive giant Ford is tapping into this trend by providing mobile apps to keep track of chronic conditions such as diabetes, asthma and hay fever. (Source: Trendwatching.com)

Digital wallets
Contactless payment devices such as near-field communication (NFC) and QR codes will enter the mainstream in 2012. When used in smartphones, they encourage customers to merge their wallet with their mobile phones. Surveys suggest consumers are ready to embrace this trend. Two-thirds of UK shoppers say cash is inconvenient and more than half of Canadians said they would be happy to never see a dollar bill again, according to 2011 surveys by Barclays and PayPal. According to Juniper Research, 300 million devices will be on offer to allow consumers to “tap and pay” through NFC by 2014. It is estimated the value of contactless payments and ticketing using NFC will reach $113bn (£72.4bn) per year by 2016 around the world. (Source: Stylus.com)

Bargain frenzy
Bargain hunting is no longer a hidden pursuit. The ability to snag the best possible deal has become a mark of status among savvy recessionary consumers. New technologies allow customers to reuse and share offers and deals, while instant access to online reviews of deals increases customers’ zeal to find the ultimate bargain. Going cashless will become increasingly popular as the option of mobile payments creates a new data-driven system of rewards, purchase history and deals. (Source: Trendwatching.com)

Welcome to the cloud
Businesses will invest large amounts of money in cloud computing and mobile technology next year. According to the report: IDC Predictions 2012: Competing for 2020, 2012 will see more money spent on mobiles and tablets than PCs and 80 per cent of commercial applications are set to be on cloud platforms. “The UK is underinvested in IT – spending never really recovered from the Millennium Bug that never was – and with advertising and consumer spending rapidly moving online and kit becoming out of date, some rise there is likely,” points out chief executive of the Centre for Economic and Social Research, Douglas McWilliams. (Source: IDC.com, Insight.com)

Local marketing and partnerships
As the clean-up efforts following the London riots show, community love is on the rise. This year will see a resurgence of local marketing to tap into people’s collective devotion to their local community. While the internet by nature is international, there is a growing market for local websites and scope for businesses to tailor websites to specific localities. "There has been a breakdown of trust in the government, big corporations and institutions and people really place their trust in their friends and local community. “There are a lot of drivers to create more community-based marketing activity,” explains 23red’s managing partner Jane Asscher. Brands are also set to tap into this trend for collective working as partnership marketing becomes more common. This will not just be about tactical value-based promotions but about strategic alliance with other brands. (Source:23red)

Increased focus on baby boomers
As people live and work longer more marketing will be targeted at the over-55s interested in maintaining a healthy, active lifestyle. This will lead to the creation of more products that are tailored to their specific needs and the market for functional ingredients – think Omega 3 and probiotics – will continue to expand. This year could also see more websites targeted at baby boomers. More and people within this demographic are now using the internet to find information, products and services. There is an opportunity for website designs that cater for different attitudes and aptitude, taking into account reduced levels of vision, hearing and cognition. (Source: Leatherheadfoodresearch.com, www.ehow.com)

Screening
In 2012, if it is not on screen, it’s not worth seeing. Touchscreens and tablets have made it much more convenient for consumers to view online while they are on the move. UK supermarket chain Sainsbury’s has tapped into this trend by partnering with television provider Sky, allowing shoppers to watch sports events while they shop using in-cart iPad docks and speakers. In 2012, video consumption will soar as brands increasingly use this channel to engage with customers. Video brochures, video newsletters, and regular video communications will become standard features on websites. According to Cisco, 80 per cent of all internet traffic will be driven by video by 2015. (Source: Trendwatching.com, Milwardbrown)

Playfulness
In a bid to escape from the grim news about the economy, consumers will become more responsive to entertainment and escapism. Big brands will become more playful, using gamification and other “funware” that use points, puzzles and level progression to attract and engage customers. Social tools and technologies that enable people to interact with TV programmes will explode in 2012. Viewers will be able to interact with TV and producers will draw on this data for creative inspiration. Services such as Bluefin Labs and GetGlue indicate traditional TV ratings may be bolstered by “social ratings” as advertisers start to take into account how a show is travelling beyond the TV audience. (Source: Milward Brown)

Sustainability
This will continue to be a buzzword for many companies in 2012 as they strive to create ethical businesses. Increased focus will be placed on initiatives such as packaging reduction, ethical sourcing policies and the reduction of food miles. M&C Saatchi’s chief strategy officer Richard Storey explains that brands will have to be wary of green washing claims: “There is a lot of cynicism and apathy creeping in among consumers about this topic so where strides are being made is where brands are highly specific. You will see fewer brands making general bland claims about their environmental efforts and offering more detail about specific initiatives” he says. The latest green trend has seen brands helping consumers recycle by taking back old items from customers, and doing something constructive with them. Expect to see more brands adopt a grown up approach in their marketing by advocating sustainable initiatives and ditching old choices of cute and comforting creative. For example, SCA has relaunched its brand Velvet Tissue in a £10.5m campaign that has dropped its “baby MD” character to focus on its “three trees” sustainability initiative, which pledges to plant three new trees for every one it uses in the production of its products. (Source: Trendwatching.com, www.sca.com)

What do you think will be the trends affecting your marketing strategy in 2012? Email marketing@marketingprojects.co.uk

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