4. Beneficial Intelligence
This year, there will be more clamor for brands to utilize
artificial intelligence (AI) to put smart products and services
into their pockets, homes, inboxes and more. The underlying
motivation for this trend is to employ the use of smart
technology in order to make human lives better.
2. Contextual Omnipresence
Say goodbye to omnichannel. Instead, say hello to
omnipresence. Contextual omnipresence means smart brands
will soon understand that it’s not about pursuing the latest
social platform, but on the understanding of the “why” rather
than the “how” in their strategies. According to trendwatching.com, “smart brands will focus on answering a more
meaningful equation: innovative channels + nuanced contexts
= right place + right time.”
WHO’S DOING IT: Google is working on a machinelearning program called Smart Reply, which automatically
crafts email responses. How? It scans email content and
suggests three responses so users can simply select their
preferred option and press send. Over time, the program
learns the user’s response habits to create a more natural
email response option.
5. Perspective Shifts
Crowdfunding and new business models are helping to create
a shift in consumer perspective in terms of how they view
products and services. Consumers are more likely to be open
than ever to innovations that play with and attempt to disrupt
their thinking around value.
WHO’S DOING IT: Domino’s recently launched its Pizza
AnyWare initiative. The pizza chain offers consumers
multiple ways to place their orders, from using voice
commands such as Siri-like app called Dom, to tweeting
or texting their orders using a pizza emoji using their
smartphones. To allow consumers to track pizza’s arrival
time, the company launched the Domino’s smartwatch app.
3. Insider Trading
Creating a good and ethical work culture may not be
something new in the world of business, but consumers will
continue to demand that companies must treat their
employees fairly and right. There may be two good reasons
for this. First, consumers are concerned about purchasing
goods produced in vulnerable workers in developing
countries. Second, they have learned to empathize with
white-collar workers due to the growing job insecurity in
affluent countries.
WHO’S DOING IT: GrabTaxi, a taxi booking app that
operates across South East Asia, launched a worker welfare
fund for its drivers in Thailand. The GrabLife driver welfare
program sets aside 14 percent of the journey fee it receives
into the GrabLife fund. Drivers who meet the quality and
loyalty criteria are then eligible for life insurance, income
protection and crisis support.
WHO’S DOING IT: French budget airline Transavia
offered a fun way for consumers to associate the cost of a
Transavia plane ticket to small grocery store purchases.
The airline created branded packets of chips, candy and
cereal bars sold at participating shops, vending machines
in metro stations and at a cinema in Paris. Customers who
bought the products could use a code printed on the
packet to secure a flight to Barcelona, Lisbon and Dublin.
January/February 2016
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PULSE 15