From wearables to the maker movement

Under the title «Trend or Buzzword,» the Y&R Group Switzerland presented the latest facts and forecasts on the topic of digitalization on Tuesday evening in the lecture hall of the Kunsthaus Zürich.

Editorial - February 4, 2015

Ultimately, it is the consumers who decide which trends will prevail. The Y&R Group asked over 1200 of them worldwide what the world will look like in ten years' time. The results of this and other surveys were given plenty of space at this year's customer event at the Kunsthaus Zurich.

For example, it was revealed that a whopping 77% of those surveyed think that we will use wearables to monitor our own health in the future. This will have a strong influence on consumer behavior in the future, according to the forecast. Wearables wearers will use the knowledge gained to optimize their consumption accordingly. Accordingly, Nestlé is already working on the development of vitamin cocktails in capsule form, which will be adapted to individual nutritional deficiencies.

However, 33% of buyers currently no longer use their wearable one year after purchasing it, according to another unsurprising result of a PWC survey. This does not mean that wearables will not become established. However, a more intelligent interaction between information and recommendation is needed so that the consumer can benefit sufficiently from the gadget.

Two other important trends for 2015 that you should be aware of, according to the Y&R speakers, are omni-channel retailing and the maker movement. You can find a summary of the trends survey in the flyer, which you can download here can order online.

Simone Isliker