Filed under: Futures, Futurists, Innovative retail, Innovative stimulus | Tags: digital platforms, future of retail, innovative retail, mobile phone use, retail game, retail trends, target consumers
A good pointer from Linked In I looked at this morning was this article on the 14 Transformations that will define the future of retail shopping in 2020. If you’re in the retail game or just focusing on conversion more than just consideration, have a sticky beak, it’s an interesting read >
14 Transformations Define Future of Shopping In 2020 By Brian Regienczuk
The lines between online and offline shopping will continue to disappear as we move closer to 2020. There will be many transformations: tagging things you like on the street, on shows you watch and items in ads you see. This will streamline much of how we shop; getting shoppers to physical stores that carry things they like, telling stores more about what their target consumers want, and allowing each shopper to emerge in virtual shopping experiences.
Join the transformation in how we shop by 2020, and bring your own thoughts and links to the table at the end. (more…)
Filed under: Advertising, Futures, innovative education, Innovative stimulus | Tags: positive posters
On the 10th November Positive Posters announced that Christopher Sousa Ebels from Australia was awarded first place in their 2011 Positive Posters competition. Christopher’s entry, “The Real Carbon Tax”, was chosen by the panel of judges as the winning poster out of over 2,500 entries. Second place was given to Dee Choi from Australia with “McVegetables” and third place went to Anita Wasik from Poland with her entry “Corporate Abuse”.
For those of you who haven’t heard of Positive Posters it’s a not for profit group started by two Aussies wanting to make a difference with design. Check ‘em out.
Filed under: creativity, Digital culture, Emergent media, Future of Media, Futures, Futurists, geek, People you should know | Tags: Caterina fake, David rowan, Eric Wahlforss, Networked society, on the brink, Soundcloud, wired
A transformer from Nike sent me this link to “On The Brink” which discusses the past, present and future of connectivity with a mix of people including David Rowan, chief editor of Wired UK; Caterina Fake, founder of Flickr; and Eric Wahlforss, the co-founder of Soundcloud. Each of the interviewees discusses the emerging opportunities being enabled by technology as we enter the Networked Society. What does it really mean to imagine borderless opportunities and creativity, new open business models, and why do people talk about today’s ‘dumb society’? Check it out…
Filed under: Futures, Futurists, Gen M, Gen Research | Tags: Generaton M, James Lee, Millenials, World Future Society
I was researching the ideas or dare I say ‘hype’ surrounding the Millenial generation for a project and thought I would post some of the research resources here in case anyone was desperately excited about doing the same. Enjoy people.
The ‘Trophy Kids’ go to work
Ron Alsop writes for WSJ and this is his story
When Gretchen Neels, a Boston-based consultant, was coaching a group of college students for job interviews, she asked them how they believe employers view them. She gave them a clue, telling them that the word she was looking for begins with the letter “e.” One young man shouted out, “excellent.” Other students chimed in with “enthusiastic” and “energetic.” Not even close. The correct answer, she said, is “entitled.” “Huh?” the students responded, surprised and even hurt to think that managers are offended by their highfalutin opinions of themselves.
If there is one overriding perception of the millennial generation, it’s that these young people have great — and sometimes outlandish — expectations. Employers realize the millennials are their future work force, but they are concerned about this generation’s desire to shape their jobs to fit their lives rather than adapt their lives to the workplace. (more…)
Filed under: Futures, Futurists, Geek stuff, Innovative stimulus | Tags: Accelerated Studies Foundation, augmented reality, future of the metaverse, futurist, Gerontology Research Group, jazz diet pepsi, lifelogging, midwest airlines, mirror worlds, scent marketing, sensory marketing, supercentenarians, The Singularity, thomson holidays, virtual worlds
I’m just flicking through the latest issue of The Futurist Magazine which arrived this morning and I thought I’d share with you the highlights of this latest treasure:
* Scent of Success
Apparently Jazz Diet Pepsi was promoted via black cherry scent strips in magazines, Thomson Holidays put smell strips of suntan lotion on their windows to remind people they could escape the cold weather and Midwest Airlines put cookies in the oven after take off to calm nervous passengers so that the smell of cookies wafts through the cabin as the plan reaches altitude. Did you know that unlike other senses, scent travels directly to the brain’s emotional centres and produces automatic feelings in the receiver? Whereas perceptions registered by other senses travel first through interpretive brains centres before they reach the emotional centres. So the quickest way to reach emotions is through smell . . . So what would a successful agency smell like? Or a good doctor? Will the next widget on the market be customisable Glade plug ins? I wonder…
* Supercentenarians – The secret to a long life
There’s just been a study done on predicting which of us will make it to triple figures and why . . The good news is that women make it to the top of the list, women are much more likely to outlive men when it comes to supercentenarians and can I just include this quote from robert Young of the Gerontology Research Group who says “Women are statistically more likely to survive . . women are designed for endurance whereas men are designed for peak strength . . “. Anyway the big news is that you’re more likely to live longer if you…
1. Social Support - . . have social interaction, chat on the phone and keep in touch
2. Anthropometrics - . . have a lower body to fat ratio and higher waist to hip ratio
3. Cognition – . . keep your mind active & keep working on your cognitive abilities
4. Eating Habits – . . eat breakfast regularly & consume substantial amounts of vitamin A & carotenoids
So there you go, you can throw out your overpriced Goiji berries, get back on the treadmill and make the crossword part of your daily routine. Having said that, Jeanne Calment (122 in the Guiness Book of Records) smoked until her 120th birthday so go figure…
Credit for this image to Vermin Inc@ Flickr
* The Singularity
Many scientists , researchers, culture watchers and futurists believe that in the next 4 decades we will enter a phase of rapid & unprecedented technological progress, caused in part by the use of machines to improve themselves using artificial intelligence. The Acceleration Studies Foundation refers to this future period as The Singularity. It will be exciting and absolutely unlike anything humanity has experienced before.
Ok admittedly this sounds a little Matrix-like but it’s a fascinating overview of the future scenarios which may play out in the metaverse space. It basically explores 4 possible scenarios [not dissimilar to the traditional 4 box method of scenario planning - forcing yourself to think through four distinct scenarios based around key themes of impact].
The article explores:
1. Virtual worlds -where humanity spends more time in virtual settings because digital worlds are supremely compelling & seductive or because the real world has suffered widespread collapse.
2. Mirror Worlds – readily accessible data about places and objects creates an ever more sophisticated digital world that mirrors our own.
3. Augmented reality – The tools & technologies of the Mirror World become more personal. Up-to-minute data about people, places and objects enhances our perceptions and deepens our understanding about what’s going on around us.
4. Lifelogging – Digital surveillance, info technology and sensing technology combine to record almost every moment of our lives in a variety of ways. This info is either helpful or hurtful depending on who controls it.
Check out the Accelerated Studies Foundation for more geek treats
Filed under: Futures | Tags: Future, Future of Healthcare, Microsoft, trends, Vision, youtube
Microsoft produces a series of future clips which explore how technologies will change the way we live our lives. Although they can be a little far out, they’re definitely worth a look and would provide some great stimulus for innovation workshops to really push the boundaries of your category & consumer understanding. Worth a look.
Here’s one I found on the future of healthcare. Many more are to be found & enjoyed on YouTube. The People’s Channel.
Filed under: Borrow this, creativity, Digital culture, Emergent media, Future of Media, Future of Work, Futures, Google, Innovation, Innovative stimulus, Looking for insights, Macro trends, open source, Social media, Thinking, Trends stuff | Tags: Advertising, Clay shirky, Google, Here comes everybody, insights manager, Lynette web, Russell Davies, the future of media, THe power of organising without organisations, typepad, UK
Another good piece of innovation stimulus from the lovely Lynette Webb, Insights Manager at Google who created a Flickr site called “Interesting Snippets”. I’ve profiled her before and this is the latest image to her collection. It comes to us with a great quote from Russell Davies’ blog entry about Clay Shirky’s book Here Comes Everybody.
For those of you who haven’t heard about it, Clay’s book is about what happens when people are given the tools to do things together, without needing traditional organizational structures. When the traditional obstacles are broken down and we can all connect, engage and speak freely. What does this mean for the way we interact? For the way media publishers direct content? What happens when our unrestricted right to access, to connect and to speak is not only realised, but assumed?
It’s worth checking out Russell’s post on the book here
And if you haven’t read Clay’s blog you should definitely wet your whistle with a little of this
Filed under: Future of Work, Futures, Gen Research, Gen Y, Macro trends, Oz research, Oz stats, Uncategorized | Tags: bernard salt, demographic trends, generation y, Global Skills Convergence report, global skills shortage, kpmg, skilled and unskilled labour, social trends, trends
For those of you data nerds who love a good bit of research, Bernard Salt and the smarties at KPMG have just released another ripping report titled ‘The Global Skills Convergence’.
‘In the report KPMG presents the thought-provoking notion that growth in the supply of skilled and unskilled labor in the developed world may slow in the next decade as Baby Boomers exit the workforce. More people exiting then entering the workforce leads to what author Bernard Salt describes as a ‘demographic faultline’.
Interestingly, one of the common themes emerging from the interviews in this study was the challenge of recruiting and retaining 20-somethings otherwise known as Generation Y.. here is a generation that requires – perhaps even demands– transparency of leadership and the development of individually tailored career plans.’
You can download the report from KPMG here
Filed under: Borrow this, content communities, creativity, Digital culture, Emergent media, Future of Media, Futures, Geek stuff, Gen M, Gen Y, Innovative stimulus, Lifestyle trends, Macro trends, Social, Social media, Trends stuff, Work Futures | Tags: business week, experience the message, online consumer trends, online stats, online trends, US online internet usage
I tend to take in information best with my peepers, I’m not great at listening [although I try very hard] and I really like to see things mapped out rather than a huge truckload of words. Which is why I love a good model, a good graph, schematic display – anything which represents information in a stimulating visual way. So here’s another one. This one comes courtesy of Business Week, spotted by one of Max’s colleagues & posted on his blog Experience The Message in the middle of last year. It’s a stormer for presentations & workshop stimulus so eat up friend.
You can check out Max’s original post here
The original Business Week article can be found here
