Trend Watching 101

Matt — Thu, 24 Mar 2016 14:32:19 +0000

We can observe trends all around us – from fashion and art to social structure and even politics – trends seem to shape the very fabric of our society. An academic description of a trend would be “the general direction in which something is evolving”. Given this definition, trends must, therefore, have different stages that can be shaped by different forces, just like evolution. In reality, we all follow trends in one way or another, but we’re just not necessarily equally influential in their creation, shaping, and consolidation.
It is difficult to predict what is going to happen, however if you break things down you can always identify a method to the madness. Life comes in waves and so do trends, and just like waves, they start off small and keep on gaining momentum until they potentially turn into tidal waves. Some make it… But most don’t.
In this first blog on trends and trend watching we’re going to take a look at the three main personalities and stages to better understand the journey, a trend goes through from when it is created until it becomes an accepted norm. For this first instalment, I’ll just stick to an overview of this journey and will dig deeper in future posts. So stay tuned or fall behind 😉

In the beginning… There’s the Creation Stage

It all starts off from the Trend Setters. These are the guys who ask what’s going to happen tomorrow. They have a forward-looking mentality and always seem to come up with unthinkable new ideas. Some catch on while others are just dismissed as crazy notions brought about by people who are simply too crazy to comprehend. This is the stage during which the trend wave starts to form.

Trend Followers you’re up… The Shaping Stage is next!

Once an unorthodox idea is out there, there will obviously be some who like it as much as the individuals who came up with it. Enter, the Trend Followers – the people who ask what’s happening today! Those who always try remain up-to-date with what’s going on. These individuals are seen as trendy, daring and are, most of the time, leaders in their social groups in some way or another. This is the bridge between the creation of a concept, and its mass following. Hint hint… This is the audience you should be targeting if your campaign is somewhat crazy and innovative.

Well if the experts say so… Let’s take it to the Consolidation Stage

Simple truth is most people love their comfort zones, and will only start following trends once they know the cool guys are doing so. Just like the Late Adopters, who ask “ What happened yesterday?” These individuals have a reluctance to take risks from the very start in most situations and would rather wait until an idea has gained a bit of momentum until they adopt it, so no one thinks they’re weird. Although this mentality has the least influence over a trend’s creation, it is these people who have the power to consolidate and make it popular. So these guys will determine whether a ripple remains a ripple or becomes a wave.
Well, that’s a trend’s life cycle, in a nutshell, brought to you by a humble observer. So now that we have put things in perspective, let’s ask ourselves, where do we fit in? Do we strive to be a leader in any of our interests and activities? To which audience should we communicate our next great idea?
Catch you on the next wave 😀

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Structure VS Chaos: Why Not Both?

Matt — Fri, 23 Oct 2015 12:36:21 +0000

There are always two kinds of people: the smart and the dumb; the appropriate and the inappropriate; the cool and the uncool; those who love epic music and those who don’t. The list goes on and on, but for simplicity’s sake we always go for the either or, the set of twos. Most of the time we seem to forget one very significant breed of individuals: the hybrids, the “in-betweeners”, those who find themselves in between two often conflicting categories.
When people ask me what does it takes to be a good marketer, I get confused on how to answer as the role is way too vast, and it’s an industry full of specialists. However, most just say that the one necessary ingredient to be successful in this field is creativity – I, personally, strongly disagree.
So, back to the cliché statement that there are mainly two types of marketers: the structured and the chaotic. Let’s have a look at what distinguishes the two.

Structured

If you’re organised, logical, analytical, ruthlessly efficient, or numbers oriented, then maybe this is the category that works best for you. Structured individuals usually make great executives, researchers, account managers and business developers.
These are the guys who turn data into information and studio briefs that will then be interpreted by their creative counterparts in order to come up with something magical.
As you can see, creativity isn’t this category’s forte; however the structured individuals are the ones who find ways to make the great ideas happen.

Chaotic

Then there’s the other side: the chaotic, the artistic and the somewhat crazy. If you are artistic, have some technical skills, can constantly think outside the box and push the boundaries a little bit, then maybe this category might have a role for you.
The creative department is made up of artists from all different types of disciplines. It’s here where the exciting magic happens, where the big ideas emerge from – usually a lot crazier than what you end up seeing in that final artwork.

Hybrids

Modern marketing operations have pushed towards a more integrated approach in almost every aspect. Be it the media mix, product mix or a project team working on an exciting campaign, the need for differentiated talents and benefits are always sought out in order to have a successful formula that achieves whatever the goal is.
This need for a differentiated talent mix has led some resourceful marketers to evolve into a more hybrid kind of role within the industry. Not necessarily a Jack-of-all-trades, but definitely less specialised in any one particular area. Their true strength is adaptability and the ability to communicate effectively with different kind of people.
Sometimes these individuals are dismissed, as their wow factor isn’t based on a skill level that is hard to reach by most, but rather, multiple skills at a slightly lower level.
These are the individuals who have operational procedures, different ones for each project as they creatively optimise the list every time. These same individuals are the ones who contribute realistic creative ideas that push the boundaries slightly. These are the people who adopt a structured way of thinking, but never stick to the same structure.
So tell us, which one do you fall under? 🙂

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Matt, Author at Switch - Digital & Brand