Coming to the end of another academic year we are pushed to go through some mentally challenging yet very relevant and interesting topics. As marketers we need to understand what is happening around us and need to up to date with the trends that will impact our careers on a global scale.
Today the Marketing industry is drastically different to what it was a decade ago. We now live in a rapidly evolving technological age defined not only by constant change but by true paradigm shift where consumers have become producers, the concept of innovation is the “default” and data, which enables us to layer multiple data sets to come up with a more dynamic and comprehensive picture of consumers has become more important than ever.
With this being said what is the future of marketing? What are some of the future trends that will impact the work we do and how we operate? How can we use an ever increasingly complex consumer landscape to understand behaviours and consumption?
To understand these questions it is important to see what has happened on a global scale in relation to both the past and also what will happen in the foreseeable future. Social tensions will impact how we live, how we feel about the future and will further provide us marketers, brand and services with an opportunity to help Australians improve their lifestyle
Ipsos Australia and New Zealand has recently released a list of the top 10 mega trends that they believe will shape the world’s future.
1. Dynamic populations – which represent both opportunities and threats to society. For example, two thirds of the global middle class will live in Asia by 2030 creating significant opportunity for Australian brands and services to tap into this growing, affluent market. Understanding these consumers will be crucial to tap into the vast wealth that is being created.
2. Growing opportunity and growing inequality – while some of us are becoming wealthier others are becoming poorer. A class divide is becoming increasingly apparent in Australia for the first time. We are witnessing growing inequality in Australia especially through housing affordability in our largest cities creating a generation of have-nots who will struggle to enjoy the same lifestyle as their parents.
3. Megacities: urban superpowers or human disasters – people are flocking to our largest cities, creating more pressure on infrastructure, housing and jobs, while also representing social challenges. Travel times are increasing creating potential future productivity concerns for our nation. Sydney is about to embark on an infrastructure boom, but will it be enough?
4. Increasing connectedness and decreasing privacy – we’re spending more time online and buying more while we’re there but many of us worry about who – government or business – can track our ‘digital footprint’ (what we search for, what content we consume, what we say and to whom and what we buy) – and how long that footprint will live online.
5. Healthier and sicker – life expectancy is increasing every year and creating new industries and services across Australia. While people are living longer and trying to live healthier lifestyles, levels of obesity are climbing and our environment is getting sicker – but will it be enough to force us to change our habits?
6. Rise of individual choice and decline of the mass market – we have unrivalled choice and it’s growing faster than ever before. The proliferation of international brands opening in Australia gives us greater choice and lower prices. Some Australian icons are now struggling.
7. Rise of the individual and decline of social cohesion – the rise of ‘me-culture’ vs concern and responsibility for the collective ‘us’ is set to continue. Meanwhile on the personal front, significant social changes are underway reinventing the very concept of the ‘average family’. Many families are headed by single parents, while single households are growing quickly and fewer people are getting married (and later).
8. Cultural convergence and increasing extremism – how well are Australians coming together? Sydney is the most multicultural city in the world and a great example of brands/services/foods where you can buy almost anything. However, like many other countries, we are also witnessing increasing social tension around immigration and the threat of home grown extremism.
9. Always on and off the grid – being ‘always on’ is driving some to ‘go off the grid’ for relief, relaxation and a chance to reconnect with the present moment and seek a greater work/life balance. Social consciousness continues to grow in importance. Companies that have a powerful social conscience are seen as compelling organisations to be part of. Flexible working environments will grow quickly over the next 10 years.
10. Public opinion as a revolutionary force – social media has heralded the role of mass social activism or ‘clicktivism’ where global social movements can appear overnight via the click of the ‘like’ button on Facebook. Protests are on the rise again with the public demanding to be more involved to express a point of view to impact decisions.
Lauren Musat
Current student in the Master of Marketing program at the University of Sydney Business School
Current student in the Master of Marketing program at the University of Sydney Business School
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