Whitespace: The future has arrived - 10 trends for 2010
Issue 56: December 2009
After experiencing an eventful 2009 many would agree with the quote widely attributed to Greek philosopher Heraclitus that 'nothing endures but change'. With this in mind the first Whitespace of 2010 looks at impending developments you need to know about today.
From tourism experiences to workplace behaviours, consumer behaviour to corporate social responsibility, 10 game-changing trends are offered to keep you ahead of the curve and connected to innovation opportunities.
1. The rise of GPS everything
The year 2010 will be all about location, location, location. Companies of all sizes will start using GPS (global positioning system) tools to help customers find their bricks and mortar location and track product or service reviews via omnipresent smartphones. Foursquare and Loopt are two applications in this space that are predicted to go mainstream in the near future.
2. Personalisation presence
A growing number of enterprises will start offering 'design your own product' services. In the US, niche websites like Zazzle and TasteBook are connecting consumers to personalised products like clothes, homewares and cookbooks. And this trend isn't confined to start-up or micro businesses with Mars in the US pushing ahead with customised M&M chocolates.
3. Older gamers, younger readers
A recent US study found adults over the age of 75 are spending considerably more time playing video games while teens are reading more books. More older gamers means greater profits for Australia's $2 billion games industry. And with a greater number of younger readers emerging, 2010 could be the year of Amazon's Kindle and Apple's new e-reader (which may or may not be named the iSlate) changes publishing in a big way.
4. Social media breaks
Organisations will start actively enforcing policies on social media usage as Facebook and Twitter become seemingly vital aspects of our lives. This crackdown could result in a new phenomenon: the 'social media break'. Like a tea break or smoko, social media breaks could see workers catching up with their online networks in short bursts to ensure they remain both connected and focused while at work.
5. Death of the business card
Maybe it's about saving paper, or perhaps it's a reflection of our thirst for new technologies. Whatever the reason, paper business cards will start to make way for smartphone apps like Beezcard and SnapDat that provide an instant and convenient exchange of a professional's details.
6. Employee owned IT
When you consider how much time the average knowledge worker spends with a computer it makes sense that they should have some kind of say about their preferred equipment. This idea could be taken one step further in 2010 with many employees purchasing their own IT assets, a development that could potentially reduce organisational IT costs and boost productivity.
7. Homepreneurs
According to the Australian Government nearly one million Australians currently operate a business from home, evidence of a long-term 'homepreneur' trend that's powered by low costs and the desire for greater work/life balance. But when marketing to this sector don't fall into the trap of thinking home based entrepreneurs are all young up and comers, apparently the work from home option is most popular with Baby Boomers.
8. Microvolunteerism
Corporate social responsibility has proved to be more than a passing pad. But instead of relying on a top down approach, expect more professionals to be more involved in self-directed grassroots activity. The term microvolunteerism has emerged to describe the sharing of rich-nation skills with the developing world via an online presence. More on the development can be found at Mashable.
9. A cloudy forecast
Cloud computing has the potential will go from a fledging trend to ubiquity and result in improved platforms for real-time and off site collaboration in the process. According to this Sydney Morning Herald story, cloud computing comes in three 'flavours': "On-demand applications (software-as-a-service), clouds as a source of computing infrastructure (Amazon web services and its ilk), and as a paradigm for delivering services within an organisation (internal clouds)".
10. Ecoluxe holidays
Tourism experiences that balance luxury with sustainability will make an impact in 2010. An enticing example is the Vigilius Mountain Resort in South Tyrol, Italy. Styled to resemble a giant tree that's fallen in the forest, the luxurious eco resort can only be reached by foot or cable car and harnesses natural energy to take care of its well-heeled visitors. The popularity of green cruises is also on the rise with solar powered ships catering to the needs of environmentally conscious passengers.
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