2011 Non-Obvious:
The report that started it all

Trend 01 · 2011

Brands increasingly will use the addictive power of random content to engage consumers. This will lead to more campaigns where consumers can add content to a central archive to browse.

While this idea might still be used selectively in campaigns, it is a good example of the sort of trend that we predicted early on that really should have been nothing more than an ingredient in a broader trend.

Trend 02 · 2011

As more innovative apps let consumers bypass the web for transactions and leisure, many activities from online banking to online shopping will shift to apps instead of the Internet.

Apps have grown dramatically, but the idea of doing everything through apps never happened. Instead, responsive design has made it more important to allow anyone to use any size screen on any device.

Trend 03 · 2011

As social media allow direct access to previously unreachable celebrities, politicians, and athletes, we see more of their personalities, for better or worse, and can engage with them as real people.

Using social media to directly engage famous people has become easy, but that ease has forced celebrities to find new ways to manage the volume, filter cyberstalkers, and make themselves less approachable.

Trend 04 · 2011

Aggressive honesty will lead to edgier and more effective marketing as brands reveal this unexpected tactic that consumers welcome.

The growth of social platforms and content marketing allows brands to share more truths about their business. While some may not be quite as "brutal," this honesty continues to build trust.

Trend 05 · 2011

Brands turn to crowdsourced platforms to collect ideas from consumers in exchange for the reward of recognition, financial earning, and simply being heard by the brands they purchase from every day.

The growth of platforms for idea generation to problem solving continue, but the original narrow brand-oriented focus of this trend failed to account for other types of marketplaces.

Trend 06 · 2011

The best retailers create passionate users who not only buy products, but also rave about their experiences. They inspire their social networks to try for themselves.

The rise of social media enables a continued cult-like belief in brands and a willingness from fans to not only spend money on products and services, but also act as an ambassador for the brand.

Trend 07 · 2011

Information overload drives consumers to desperately seek simplicity, aiming for balance through activities such as defriending and finding basic products and sites to help simplify everything.

While "infobesity" persists, consumers' need for simplicity gives way to tools that focus on optimizing or curating instead of culling friendships or content. This trend continues but with less desperation.

Trend 08 · 2011

Brands of all sizes aim to prove their humanity by emphasizing employees as the solvers of problems and creators of innovation. Such stories anchor the company's mission in the world.

This trend has expanded far beyond the tech firms initially featured as employees are increasingly valued in ads, showcased by brands with high loyalty, and seen as visible and important ambassadors for a brand.

Trend 09 · 2011

Marketers' biggest problem continues to be integrating efforts, which can be hard with few good examples. Yet the biggest successes feature a new level of integration that is still rare in the marketing world.

During the past four years, integration becomes an even greater issue and daily struggle for marketers. With more tools and platforms to assist, this has become less of a trend and more of a standard practice.

Trend 10 · 2011

Real-time contact becomes essential as communications teams focus on instant PR to manage social crises and augment customer service with methods to deal with problems in the here and now.

Customer service through social channels has grown dramatically, but today it is not solely driven by negative situations (as originally predicted) but rather used as a tool for positive engagement as well.

Trend 11 · 2011

Brands, products, and services succeed by being more human, mission driven, and personally likeable through their policies and people, gaining an advantage over less empathetic competitors.

The fundamental truth of human relationships underlying this trend keeps growing as more brands focus on building personal connections with customers and being consistently likeable.

Trend 12 · 2011

More consumers choose to broadcast their locations, enabling brands to tailor messages to a specific site and create more opportunities to engage their customers in real life.

Mobile marketing increasingly offers geotargeting options. However consumers continue to be wary of privacy concerns and worry about the potential for "geospamming" as they walk down the street.

Trend 13 · 2011

Brands and entrepreneurs create innovative new models for social good, reinventing how people can do everything from donating money to sharing time and specific skills.

This trend reflected a dramatic growth in how nonprofits and charities used digital tools. While this has continued, the efforts are more commonplace and less of a "redefinition."

Trend 14 · 2011

Brands increasingly use curation as a much-needed filter to help find and bring together useful or entertaining content to win more trust and attention from consumers.

This trend successfully anticipated the explosion of content marketing and the importance for brands to focus on sharing expertise generously online with their consumers as a way to grow trust.

Trend 15 · 2011

To make sense of a real-time stream of information, more event managers, news organizations, and brands turn to visualization to leverage data, better understand it, and tell a clearer story.

The widespread overuse of infographics has created more skepticism of visualization, but better user interfaces, gamified design, and narrative storytelling continue to stand out and attract attention.