2013 Predictions

Published 03.01.2013

Happy new year.

(I’m at my desk for the first time this year and I’m slightly nervous at the amount of things I said the first day I am back… so, I thought I’d blog?!)

So what does 2013 hold. Well, after a soaring rise in consumer confidence in November, it slumped again for December, which sort of summarises this post. Don’t believe any predictions. Certainly not mine.

But if you are so inclined… here’s some, on which I will certainly expand on next week in my annual predictions paper, which cannot be trusted.

1. The year that nothing happens.
2012 was amazing. An Olympic year. In all senses. But there’s no such excitement for 2013. No major hype. No big landmark events. Nowhere near as much for advertisers to hang there hats on. While shot past, 2013 may not have the same rocket fueled feeling.

2. Stress. Health. Happiness.
This will be the year that stress comes to the front of everyone’s minds. We’ve had enough it. Look for a shift back towards health and happiness climbing the agenda as people look to put themselves higher on their priorities lists.

3. The rise and rise of storytelling.
Brands that have traded themselves into the floor will look at connecting with consumers as they work hard to cut through the commercial clutter. Looks out for an increase in branded storytelling.

4. Simplicity.
The world’s just got too complicated. Look out for brands trying to simplify there customers lives with product and service rationalisation.

5. Transparency Vs. Trust.
Brands that have confused transparency with trust will start to see gaps in loyalty that they had hoped wouldn’t exist. Look for more goodwill driven and trust based actions and policies.

6. Stretching. Smart objects.
As brands realise they need to be in wider business categories than those they had traditionally operated in (read Marketing Myopia for more detail) look for extensions into categories, goods and services that seem non-traditional, and probably a stretch too far – over-leveraging weak brands in many cases. We’ll also see brands get into smart objects as they try and deepen their penetration into the consumers lives – a strategy that will deliver deminishing returns for most, as last mover advantage proves fatal for some.

7. Death of the Zombies.
Too many companies, for too long have walked a tight-rope without building new reserves. We’ll see a few great brands die again this year.

8. We’re back on TV.
With digital maturing, social not delivering for brands as they struggle to either understand its potential or embrace it, we’ll see a rush back to TV as brands finally see the importance of broad awareness and brand building that only TV can do.

9. BRAND is back too.
In line with the above, the power and importance of BRAND will be fashionable again – for too long brands squeezes too hard, and frankly many are nearly out of juice.

10. Not the BIGGEST. The most RECOMMENDED.
Look our for a switch in the boardroom as execs grasp the power of the crowd, advocacy and loyalty – a new wave of board level objective will appear – ‘Becoming the most recommended brand in the category’.

That’s it for now. More soon.