Consumer habits evolve at lightning speed and trends that seem destined to take root in the consumer's life are often dissolved like a sugar cube to give way to completely new trends that are not necessarily less ephemeral.
In the global study “Consumer Vision 2035” Dentsu dissects the trends that will guide consumer designs in the next decade. AI makes its way, as expected, into the Dentsu report, which also leverages the focus on new social paradigms arising from climate change and the surprise factor as a marketing weapon for mass appeal.
- The “digital self”
There is no doubt that ubiquitous AI is the most dynamic technology of the moment. However, AI is still far from reaching its peak. And over the course wordpress web design agency of the next decade, more and more consumers will incorporate the use of assistants and AI into their daily lives to be able to complete tasks more quickly and easily.
70% of the 30,000 consumers surveyed by Dentsu in its report predict that AI will become a major part of their daily lives within the next ten years. And 49% go even further and say that by 2035 they would like to have an AI clone at their side to handle activities on their behalf, with a focus on shopping, administration and communication.
In the next decade, and conveniently amalgamated with augmented reality, AI will completely revolutionize the way people shop and communicate.
- New social paradigms
Consumption will not be transformed solely by technological progress. Climate change and the transformation of politics and the entertainment industry will also potentially turn society and the economy upside down.
4 out of 5 consumers expect significant changes in their daily activities as a result of climate change. They expect to develop new habits as a result, such as doing gardening in the afternoon or taking breaks from work at midday due to the high temperatures caused by global warming.
Due to the increasingly conspicuous consequences of climate change, some sporting events will have to be postponed, for example, to the evening/night to avoid the central hours of the day, and in retail, the hours of greatest activity could also be moved to the late afternoon.
Similarly, the tourism industry will need to implement changes to adjust to increasingly extreme temperatures in some regions . Some tourist destinations will inevitably lose consumer appeal due to climate change, while other destinations with milder temperatures will soar in popularity.
The Dentsu report also points out that digitalisation could partially remedy the declining consumer confidence in traditional institutions. By creating digital platforms that promote decentralisation and citizen participation, institutions could regain (at least in part) the trust of citizens.
Changes will also be seen in the entertainment industry, where AI will increasingly make its way into mainstream productions, which will therefore be more cost-efficient. However, in an AI-driven environment, there will be a significant increase in demand for authenticity and user-generated content , which will be key in the media ecosystem for players operating there to differentiate themselves from their rivals.
- Mood-driven consumption
Consumers are increasingly guided by their mood when making decisions directly related to consumption. 70% of consumers admit, not surprisingly, that today a significant proportion of their purchasing decisions are influenced by their mood at the time of making the transaction.
And a large proportion of consumers actually believe that brands should be able to decipher their mood and confront them with offers tailored to their current mood. 77% expect that by 2035 brands will be sending them offers and promotions that are aligned with real-time events and their own mood and personal context.
In this sense, brands will have to anticipate consumer desires and not simply react to them . And to do so, consumer data will play an increasingly important role in brands' marketing actions. However, this data will also be worth its weight in gold and consumers will manage it as if it were their own property and could even monetize it.
- The surprise factor as a marketing weapon for mass attention
As more and more consumers make their purchasing decisions spontaneously and based on their mood, brands must adapt to this new reality. And in this new reality, the element of surprise potentially has a lot of weight. 80% of consumers say that the best way for brands to stand out from the crowd and gain their loyalty is to surprise and dazzle their customers in a totally unexpected way.
When it comes to surprising customers, AI can eventually become a faithful squire for brands , as it can help them recognize emotional patterns in consumers and anticipate their desires and needs.