Trends Archives - Page 9 of 19 - McLellan Marketing Group

Extinction is right around the corner…

January 27, 2010

For getting lost, desktop computers and glaciers. At least according to The Future Trends book called Future Files by Richard Watson. (buy it by clicking here)

As part of the promotion of the book, the author released the chart below. It's an extinction timeline…predicting that newspaper delivery will be gone by 2012 and FM radio by 2027.

I promise you…you'll find this fascinating and its content will be your conversation starter for at least a week.

If you're having trouble reading the timeline, you can click on the chart to open a full-sized pop up window or download a full-sized PDF by clicking here.

After you've had a chance to really look it over…come back and let's talk about how this changes your view of what your business needs to be focusing on.

Trends that will influence 2010 and beyond

December 15, 2009

Ad giant JWT has done a year-end forecast for the past several years and has just released their thoughts on what 2010 will bring.

Here's a glance at the 10 trends they believe will shape this next year.

Searching for Stability
While many indicators point to the beginnings of an economic recovery, consumers will continue to exercise restraint until they see more clear, dependable and closer-to-home signs of stability. Unemployment lifting will be a key barometer for consumers. (Example: People are still delaying big-ticket purchases.)

Reading the Fine Print
Consumers will be working harder than ever, putting more time and energy into finding good values, reading the fine print and learning the ins and outs of nutrition, environmental impact and ethical business practices. (Example: As banks, airlines and other ailing service industries impose a complex raft of fees and conditions on customers, failure to pay close attention will be costly.)

Maximum Disclosure
While manufacturers and retailers have become increasingly transparent in recent years, legal requirements and competitive pressures will force fuller disclosure about everything from ingredients and calorie counts to carbon footprints and sourcing. (Example: Walmart is working with its suppliers to develop a sustainability index for all its products.)

The Devil Wears Packaging
As the eco spotlight focuses on the environmental costs of packaging, brands will increasingly switch to bottles, boxes and other solutions that reduce, reuse, recycle, remove and renew. (Example: Kenco Coffee in the U.K. recently launched Eco Refills, which it says use 97 percent less packaging than its glass jars.)

It's BIC, and It’s Bigger Than Ever
The vaunted BRIC emerging markets are now down to BIC—and while developed nations remain hobbled by the financial crisis, Brazil, India and China are emerging stronger than ever, both economically and politically. (Example: As the appetite for luxury in the developed world wanes, it’s on the rise in China; in October, dozens of French luxury labels, including Christian Dior and Chanel, launched a Web site <http://www.ccolbert.fr/> to promote their brands in the region.)

Trickle-Up Innovation
Products designed for emerging markets are increasingly filtering into the developed world, where consumers are welcoming them as cheaper and simpler alternatives to existing choices. (Example: India’s Mahindra & Mahindra is gaining market share against John Deere, offering suburban lawn-owners in the U.S. a lower-horsepower tractor at lower prices.)

Retooling for an Aging World
As the world’s population grows older than it’s ever been, watch for a proliferation of products and services that cater to this demographic as they strive to live independently for as long as they can. (Example: Thermador has designed a glass cooktop that automatically shuts off when cooking is completed.)

Life in Real Time
The Web is evolving into a constantly updating stream of real-time information, conversation, memes and images. This is creating an increasingly mass culture and shifting perceptions of “current,” moving modern life into the “now.” (Example: During the World Series, the Huffington Post created a real-time hub that collected the Twitter feeds of baseball writers, Yankees mavens and Phillies commenters.)

Location-Based Everything
With more location-based services and advanced mobile and mapping technologies hitting the market, the conversation will become as much about “where I am” as it is about “what I’m doing” and “what’s on my mind.” (Example: Foursquare, a gaming app, uses geo-tagging technology to help users find and share bars, restaurants and other venues with friends.)

Visual Fluency
The ongoing shift from words to images will accelerate, and we’ll see increasingly innovative ways to explain and illuminate complex topics. (Example: The animated online short “The Crisis of Credit Visualized <http://www.crisisofcredit.com/> ” blends storytelling, journalism and analysis to make a complex topic easier to grasp.)

If you'd like to read about each trend in detail, you can purchase the full report by clicking here.

Here's what I am wondering…which of these trends do you think will have the most impact on your business in 2010? And…what are you doing to maximize the opportunity?

Protect your privacy on Facebook -10 privacy settings you should consider

June 28, 2009

Image via CrunchBase

As Facebook and other social networking sites continue to grow by leaps and bounds… many privacy issues are also cropping up. Most of us end up blending our personal and professional lives on Facebook and sometimes that can get a bit uncomfortable.

We've talked about the issue of whether or not you get to have a private life anymore, if you're active in social networking. But, there are some things you can do to protect your own privacy and also, the privacy of the people you are linked to/friended.

This has been a growing concern of mine, so those of you who are my Facebook friends (link to the right if you are not) might notice a few changes in my own settings after researching and writing this post.

Ten Privacy Setting You Should Consider:

Use your friends lists — everyone doesn't have to see everything.

Remove yourself from the Facebook Search results — if you only want to be found by people you reach out to — this is an easy fix for eliminating most of the unwanted friend invites.

Remove yourself from the Google search — Facebook listing seem to grab great Google juice. So if you want to be found, leave it be. But if you'd prefer more privacy, you can remove yourself from the listings.

The dreaded photo/video tag — this one has cost people jobs, relationships and their own dignity. With a simple change in privacy settings, you can make it so that no one (or just those you choose — think friend lists) can see those tell all photos and videos.

Not everyone needs to see every picture — this holds true of your photo albums as well. You can set privacy settings for each one separately.

Prevent "stories" from showing up on your friends news feed — is there anything more awkward than when your friend goes from in a relationship to it's complicated or single? Avoid that embarrassment with a few simple settings.

Keep your application updates from being published — do you really want people to know you're looking for a tommy gun in Mafia Wars or that you've wasted yet another hour hitting a new high on Bejeweled?

Make you contact information private — for some people, their cell phone number is public information. But for others who might have arms lengths relationships at best with many of their Facebook friends…a bit less shared would be good.

Censor your friends…keep their thoughts off your wall! — I think this is one of the most critical on the list. You can control who sees your wall and who can write on your wall. Do you really need your frat buddies sharing stories with your boss? I'm guessing not.

Keep your friends private — this isn't just about your privacy, it's about your friends' privacy as well. Remember, anyone who is a friend of yours can pop onto your friends list and cherry pick them for whatever reason they'd want.

The beauty of most of these privacy moves is that no one will ever know you've even implemented them. But you will…because you'll feel a whole lot safer and less exposed.

I found an excellent post on the topic over at www.allfacebook.com that covers all ten of these suggestions in great depth — including showing you how to alter your settings.

Check it out and protect yourself a little.

Social media isn’t all that (is that how the kids say it?)

June 26, 2009

I've often said social media isn't for everyone. Not every company should have a blog. No one on Twitter really cares what you had for dinner (unless you ate chocolate grasshoppers) and you don't have to possess a single friend on Facebook.

Social media is a collection of great tools that hopefully bring out the best in us as people and companies. It gives us the ability to connect, collaborate and create communities.

But that doesn't mean it's all that. (pretty sure that's the hip phrase these days!)

Eric Karjaluoto from smashLAB wrote a very smart post about how you can get the most out of social media, even if you don't want to want to be a social media expert.

It's well worth the read and maybe even print it off, so that on those days when you worried that you might not be Linked to enough Facebook Tweeters who blog…you can re-read it.

Time to start talking to dads in a different way

April 27, 2009

Right up front, I will admit my bias here. I've always found the advertisements and shows that portray dads as the bumbling idiots to be pretty insulting. I think it demeans how dedicated many men are to their kids and being a good dad.

It's not that we can't laugh at ourselves, but from a marketing point of view — I may find it funny but I sure don't see myself in the portrayal. So if you want to amuse me…have at it. If you want me to buy something, you'd better find a different avenue.

That's why I found this recent study from the nonprofit Families and Work Institute (FWI) so fascinating. What the study suggests is that men are now feeling the same pressures to balance their lives and that pressure is causing a lot of stress.

It suggests that perhaps it's time for marketers to re-think how they target and talk to men. I'm curious what you think…do you think this sort of study gives us new insights? Or do you think marketing is ahead of the research and we already knew this?

Here's some of the study's data and analysis.

The study traces the trends in men’s and women’s attitudes and actions over the past three decades, reveals that changing gender roles have significantly and specifically increased the overall level of work-life conflict experienced by men, from 34% in 1977 to 45% in 2008. On the other hand, the rise in women’s work-life conflict, which increased from 34% in 1977 to 39% in 2008, has been less dramatic and is not statistically significant.

Fathers in dual-earner couples are spending more time with their children but are experiencing more work life conflict than mothers. In 1977, 35% reported experiencing some or a lot of conflict. In 2008, that figure has risen to 59%. The level of conflict experienced by mothers in dual-earner families has not changed much during that time period (41% in 1977 and 45% in 2008).

Working Women Can Be Good Mothers

Greater proportions of both men and women agree that employed women can be good mothers, the study found. In 1977, 49% of men agreed (strongly or somewhat) that a mother who works outside the home can have just as good a relationship with her children as a mother who does not work. Today, 67% agree. From 1977 to 2008, the percentage of women agreeing moved from 71% in to 80%. Both men and women who grew up with employed mothers have greater acceptance of working mothers than those whose mothers did not work outside the home.

Fathers Spend More Time with Kids

Employed fathers, especially Millennials, are spending more time with children today than their age counterparts did three decades ago, while employed mothers’ time has not changed significantly. On average, employed fathers of all ages spend 3.0 hours per workday with children under 13 today compared with 2.0 hours in 1977. For employed mothers of all ages, time spent with children has remained at 3.8 hours. Today’s Millennial fathers spend 4.3 hours per workday compared with the 2.4 hours spent by their age counterparts in 1977. Mothers under 29 today average 5.0 hours compared with 4.5 hours in 1977.

Men also say they are taking more overall responsibility for the care of their children. In 1992, 21% of women said that their spouses or partners were taking as much or more responsibility for the care of their children as they were. By 2008, that percentage has risen to 31%.

Interestingly, FWI noted, 49% of men report taking as much or more responsibility for the children as their wives, indicating a perception gap.

The report states that the gradual increase of women in the labor force over the past half century, combined with various work life trends and economic pressures, has resulted in a shrinking gap between how men and women view their careers, family roles, and the fit between their lives on and off the job.

“Our findings are striking and surprising,” said Ellen Galinsky, president and co-founder of FWI and lead author of the study. “There are many firsts in this study – the first time that younger men and women feel the same about job advancement and the first time that there is no statistically significant difference between men and women in their views of appropriate gender roles.”

You can read the whole report: “Times Are Changing: Gender and Generation at Work and At Home,” (pdf) examines the evolution of work-related gender roles over the past three decades.

What would your pep talk be about?

April 26, 2009

There's an interesting project brewing. Phillipe De Ridder has invited bloggers to think about 2009 so far and share their views. In his words…

Let’s all share our views on 2009 up until now. What is your advice to the world? Which projects have surprised/disappointed you so far (in your industry or in general)? Are people motivated enough to start new projects? Which solutions can innovation bring?

I'll be joining in on the fun. I'd love your thoughts on the state of branding, marketing etc. in the year 2009. What's your half-time report?

If you'd like to join the project, you can get more info on Phillipe's site.

Who really owns your social media persona?

March 17, 2009

One of the uncomfortable truths that social media is hoisting upon us is that the clear separation between our personal and professional lives that most of our parents enjoyed during their careers is now nothing more than an illusion, if we even try to keep up the facade.

When I look at my Facebook updates, my Tweets and even my LinkedIn account (not to mention all the other social media hot spots) I see a blend of my old high school friends, my family, my marketing peers and MMG clients.

So when I tweet about my never-ending cough or my daughter's latest role in the school play…my clients see it. And when I have my most recent blog post or a link to a marketing article appear on my Facebook newsfeed…my high school friend the chef sees it. There's no way to keep the two apart.

For me, because I own my agency, that reality is pretty comfortable. I'm mindful of it, but it doesn't change all that much for me. After all, people are going to associate me, Drew, with McLellan Marketing Group no matter what.

But here's what I am wondering. If you are employed by someone else — do they in essence own a part of your social media persona? Aren't you (despite any disclaimer language) representing your employer just as much as you the person when you tweet, blog or update a status?

Does your boss want you posting weekend party pictures to your Flickr account?
Should you be playing "Pimp Fight" on Facebook when you know that some of your friends are also "friends" of your company?
Do your blog posts (again, regardless of the disclaimer) reflect on your boss or company as much as on you?
When you drop an F bomb in a Tweet, do you think your boss has the right to wince?

What do you think?

Do you think employee manuals of the future will have "social media guidelines?" Do you think your boss has a right to censor your social media activity? Do you think you have an obligation to do so?

Interesting stuff, eh?

Update: Check out this post from Phil Gerbyshak about employers watching what employees are saying.

HP launches MarketSplash to serve small businesses

January 27, 2009

One of the biggest challenges of a fledging small business is producing professional grade stationery, business cards and marketing materials.

HP believes they've created a viable solution at MarketSplash — a web-based shop that allows you to design and customize DIY templates for your business basics like stationery, business cards, static website, postcards and even promotional items like polos and mugs.

The templates give you several options — uploading your logo and beginning your design from there, or choosing one of their templated logos, or choosing industry-based templates that don't require a logo at all.

You can also opt to have them custom design a logo or stationery package for you, if you'd prefer.

The offerings and designs are vastly superior to the all too often heard "I designed it myself on Publisher" option that many start ups and small businesses rely upon. Make no mistake, this isn't like hiring an agency to truly help you discover your brand promise and design your identity pieces to fit that promise. But for many organizations, that's just not a viable choice.

So, MarketSplash is a happy middle ground for those companies who want to project a very professional, consistent image but can't afford an agency.

I spent about an hour getting a guided tour of MarketSplash last week and found it incredibly easy to navigate and use. I was able to select a business card template, change the font, color and enter my own contact information in about 10 minutes.

I have to admit, I was impressed by quite a few of the templates and the flexibility of the design modules. But what I found most interesting were the delivery options. After designing my cards (or whatever I needed), I could:

Complete the order online (choosing paper, finishes etc) and have the printed materials delivered to me via the post office
Have the order sent to my local Staples and pick up the printed materials in 45 minutes
Download the PDF files and print them off on my office or home printer

That gives me hope that HP truly does understand some of the challenges and unique needs of the small business owner.

For a limited time, HP is offering 100 free business cards (including shipping) to new customers.

Go check out the site and let me know what you think. And what else would you like to be able to buy right from the site?

Note: I'm going to order some items from the site and will let you know about the quality/experience once the items arrive.

Hey non-profits, is Facebook your next fundraiser?

January 21, 2009

If you've been on Facebook for any length of time, you know that causes run rampant there. You can join non-profit pages, you can play games that benefit non-profits, you can declare your allegiance to a cause. You name it, you can probably do it.

Most non-profits, if they're there at all, are stumbling around, trying to figure out how to best use the space. But some have really got it figured out.

Over 6 million Facebook users send each other virtual plants/flowers for their (lil) green patch. And they're told that every time they do, they're saving bits of the Rain Forest. But what does that really mean?

How about over $109,000?

That's how much The Nature Conservancy has earned from people passing pansies. (Say that 5 times fast!). And they didn't even develop the actual application.

Toby Bloomberg has an eye-opening interview with the Digital Membership Manager of The Nature Conservancy that should be must reading for non-profits looking for a fresh fund-raising idea.

If you're a non-profit or involved with helping one — how are you using Facebook to date? How COULD you be using it?

Is your online userID yours….everywhere?

January 13, 2009

Remember when everyone was scrambling to Go Daddy to grab their own name so if they wanted the domain, they had it? And the smart ones grabbed their kids’ names too.

Then there was the mad dash to get your name at Google for gmail and all the Google tools. (Again…don’t forget to get the kids covered!)

Last week, Mike Sansone encouraged us to be sure and get our Twitter name secured.

All well and good. But what if there was one site that would allow you to check the availability of your preferred userID (for most of us….our name) all over the social media spectrum? Guess what….there is!

Check out www.UserNameCheck.com. You can type in your name or preferred userID and with one click, check what seems like 100 or so sites.

How cool is that? Hat tip to Chris Brown, where I first learned of this site.)

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