OMD's 5 trends for a different world

It’s no secret we’re buckled in for a bit of a tougher ride than we’ve known in the last two decades and it is driving some interesting new trends.

OMD Strategy has been sorting through them and have reconised 5 trends we believe are changing how we choose to consume as well as what we marketers can do to respond to these changes together.

1. Show us the facts Jack
What is this all about?
We are in the midst of a whole lot of change at the moment and for most people, the story is a little gloomy. Consumers are well aware they can’t afford to bury their heads in the sand and in fact there is clearly a renewed hunger for facts and information. We are expecting to see to see spikes across the education sector too.

Application
1. What facts about your brand can you share with consumers?
2. Are there stats you could use to promote the category you play in?
3. Would an educational platform add new meaning to new and current consumers of your brand?

2. Conscious Consumption
What is this all about?
Blind faith has had its day as more consumers are shopping with their eyes wide open. From clothes to cars to groceries; We are reading the nutritional panels, supporting local brands over foreign ones, getting our heads around the environmental credentials and boycotting brands that we don’t feel deserve our hard earned $$$

Application
1 Are you appropriately transparent with consumers when it comes to your brand’s history, ingredients, manufacturing or environmental credentials?
2. What aspects of your brand could you dial up for the new conscious consumer?
3. Is there something about your brand that you need to consider changing in the future to ensure you don’t lose share in your category?

3. Celebrating sensible
What is this all about?
Given consumers are a bit squeezed in the ole wallet department at the moment, they will be keeping their peepers peeled for new ways and means of living la vida frugal. Forget the disposable one hit wonders, sensible means searching out for ways to get the most value out of our purchases

Application
1. How can you package up your brand or product in ways that says good value?
2. Can you demonstrate the longer term value of buying into your brand?
3. Is there a meaningful way to use testimonials to tell the value story around your brand?

4. Measuring Up
What is this all about?
Whilst we bunker down for a few lean times ahead, you can bet your carefully managed budgets on more conversations around how to measure ...everything. Marketers that can show ROI of their marketing expenditures have strong case to hold on to their budget so we expect to see some big wins for all the metrics maestros out there!

Application
1. Do you know which marketing activities provide you with the best returns?
2. Are you making the most of all the free measurement tools out there?
3. Have you had a conversation with your communication partners lately around ways to pool and share stakeholders measurement findings?

5. Necessity is the mother of invention
What is this all about?
Want to see some positives coming out of the economic current trim down?
Whilst businesses are all being asked to do more with less, there’s nothing like tough times to drive our creative spirits towards new and innovative ways of doing business (or even starting a business)

Application
1. Assess all of the assets you have around you and see whether you could be leveraging these harder.
2.Find other brands that have some common ground with yours.
3. Don’t assume it can’t be done, in fact if you can think it, you can probably do it