Here are our top five predictions for business change in 2013.
From long term > to the Long Now
Extreme volatility and unpredictability have made long term strategic planning redundant. As technologies accelerate our daily exchanges, and instant communication and personal multi-tasking shift our mainstream perceptions of time, our basic consumption models are also changing.
To achieve sustainability, brands will have to get past the mental barrier of an ever-shortening future and build systems that are both agile and resilient. Welcome to the Long Now.
From fast > to instant
The world is mobile and that’s evolving consumer expectations for instant access to the products they desire. Services like same day delivery will be a key way businesses, especially retailers, inject new value into the lives of their consumers.
From big data > to big doing
Big data is giving all areas of business a new means to understand customers, and also vary and vastly improve customer experience. To flourish, brands will become user-led, insight-driven, and action-oriented. Used well, big data will help businesses accelerate towards their brand purpose, not fight with it.
From sideline > to spotlight
The rapid growth of the global middle class means a host of new geographic, socioeconomic and emotional territories for brands to navigate. Instead of focusing on making cheaper, more powerful, faster and more profitable innovations, more businesses will embrace experimentation that creates positive social and commercial impact. The once too-poor, too-far-away, and too-unsolvable problems will be recognized as opportunities for better business.
From followers > to founders
Jack Dorsey says a founder doesn’t need to be someone who was there from the beginning; companies have multiple “founding moments.” As consumers become increasingly skeptical of social media marketing tactics, the most effective social strategies involve followers in more meaningful ways. Businesses will focus social platforms to create real value for consumers (tips and deals), nurture communities (education and conversation), and invite users to directly contribute to their brand (content and sharing).
Wolff Olins is a brand & innovation firm.
