The year of the Curator. [VIDEO]

Marketers – we’ve news for you. The bad news is that, with the internet as the enabler and social media as the driver, today’s consumers are the new brand custodians. Yes, your power base is being eroded.

The good news is that you can grab it back … if you can see into the future and identify what’s important for consumers then, and then take steps to ensure your brand retains its relevance going forward. Sound like more bad news?

It shouldn’t because, even when change is everywhere, trends – mega and micro – provide a powerful glimpse into the future.

And for the marketer, a deep understanding of trends provides a consumer context for the shifts happening in the category, and allows the brand to ride and shape these changes, rather than react to them.

Trends, specifically macrotrends (or megatrends), are slow moving shifts in cultural values, and can take place over the course of decades. An example of a company riding the crest of a trend we call ‘Holistic Health’ is Discovery with its Vitality reward programme.

As a megatrend, ‘Holistic Health’ is evident in the fact that people are increasingly embracing health as an element of everyday life; it is no longer something to consider occasionally, but is imbued in every aspect of every day.

Microtrends are often triggered by shifts in technology or the advent of a new science, better materials or enhanced capabilities. For the brand, they are more inspiring to activate against and easier to own than a megatrend.

Microtrends at work within the megatrend we call ‘New Life’ include ‘Reverse Innovation’, ‘Cool Eco’, and ‘Built to Last’. Brands associating themselves with these are the Tata Nano (Reverse Innovation), Method Biodegradable Cleaning products (Cool Eco) and a ceramic razor designed by Ross Lovegrove that lasts over 25 times longer than standard stainless steel blades (Built to Last).

To view the Time Curator video CLICK on link below;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Rpwfj2BEVaQ>