Half a dozen consumer trends for 2009

Despite a global downturn, there are still plenty of trends out there that are begging to be applied profitably. In 2009, ensure you make the most of NICHETRIBUTES, LUXYOURY, FEEDBACK 3.0, ECONCIERGE, MAPMANIA and HAPPY ENDING...


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Helping drivers think twice before putting the pedal to the metal, Fiat has developed a new system that gives customers the insight they need to drive in more a sustainable way. ecoDrive processes driving data collected via Blue&Me, an in-car communications device developed by Microsoft. Users plug a standard USB drive into their car's Blue&Me port to gather information on acceleration, deceleration, gear changes and speed throughout the drive.

They then upload the data to their computer, where it's analysed by ecoDrive software to produce relevant tips for driving efficiency, like braking more gently into corners or maintaining a constant speed on straights. Drivers can also share their own tips and ecoDrive experiences using the ecoVille online community. Launched by Fiat in October 2008, ecoDrive is currently only available for the Fiat 500 and Grande Punto, but will work with any model featuring Blue&Me from 2009. Fiat claims the software can cut emissions and fuel consumption by up to 15%, meaning a lower carbon footprint and gas bill for drivers. An obvious improvement would be immediate feedback while a driver is behind the wheel, but we're sure that's in the works ;-)
Fiat and Microsoft's ecoDrive collaboration mirrors the successful
partnership between Apple and Nike that runners can use to track and soundtrack their runs, enabling them to review their performance when they're back at their computers. As eco-awareness continues to build (and once energy prices start climbing again), consumers will become increasingly interested in tracking their personal energy use. We're hopeful that many other embedded eco-metric devices will follow ...
Website: www.fiat.co.uk/ecodriveContact: www.fiat.co.uk/content/?id=3046

BMW seeks opinionated porsche drivers.

With the luxury car market facing declining sales, it has become more important than ever to attract new buyers rather than just up-selling existing drivers. Unfortunately, BMW's competitors in this price bracket like Porsche tend to have fiercely loyal customers. Previous attempts to contact these conquest prospects had achieved dismal response rates. Subvert the traditional car launch process and ask prospects to review the car ahead of journalists. They sent Porsche drivers a mysterious package containing an mp3 player. There was no branding on the pack - the only clue was the German postmark. The mp3 message (in authentic German accent) spoke to people individually by name and invited them on a top-secret sneak preview test drive. Respondents were chauffeured one by one to a private airport, where they unveiled the new BMW X6 and recorded their comments on camera. They filmed each person with a dashboard camera as they put the X6 through its paces on the runway, and then edited the footage so that each driver had their own personal review on DVD. The most satisfying result was capturing Porsche drivers on camera raving about BMW. But the results also stacked up from a numbers point of view. A staggering 72% of these completely cold prospects said YES to a test drive. This was the most overwhelming response BMW has ever had in New Zealand. So overwhelming, in fact, that they had to stop mailing when they were only halfway through the list.

Agency: DraftFCB Auckland, New Zealand.

FIAT 500 - eCollaboration with Diesel

This Christmas, for those who wanted to offer something special to their relatives or friends and didn't feel like going shopping in the crowded shops, Fiat gave the opportunity to customize and configure a limited edition of the Fiat 500 (Fiat meets Diesel). Only 10,000 units of this car designed by Fiat and the fashion label Diesel, were made available worldwide.You could configure and order it exclusively on the English website here.

This cool e-marketing association would have certainly deserved more content and online materials.

Top 15 Trend Questions

Find the answers to 15 pressing trend questions you’re facing, from how to spot and apply trends, to where to find the best trend resources, to how to make the most of the current turbulence in markets around the world.

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Car Stickers

Allowing consumers to design their own decals would mesh even better with the customer-made trend.

Well ... San Francisco-based Infectious, which launched earlier this year, offers a range of car stickers designed by artists from around the world, but it also lets consumers submit their own designs. Those interested can first get an informal critique from the community on the site. Once they're happy with their design, they can submit it either through Infectious's open submission process, or through one of its themed contests. (The first contest, which just ended, sought submissions on the theme of Barack Obama.) Designs are then posted for voting on the site. Creators of those voted into production get USD 100 and 5 percent of net sales; the Infectious team's favourite of the month also gets an additional USD 400 and up to USD 400 in Infectious product. Infectious Car Art is designed to last 12 to 24 months. Prices range from roughly USD 35 for an icon to USD 389 for a full kit.

There's no stopping Generation C(ontent) and its content-producing proclivities, and increasingly these creative consumers are demanding rewards for their efforts. Generation C(ash) is here to stay--now that's a trend that will stick! ;-)
Website: http://www.infectious.com/ Contact: info@infectious.com

Ambient Feedback for Greener Driving

Source: Springwise

After we featured Fiat's ecoDrive, one of our spotters alerted us to Honda's Ecological Drive Assist System. Called Eco Assist for short, the system gives feedback on driving techniques, aiming to help consumers save fuel. Eco Assist also helps improve fuel optimization and battery charging. Recognizing drivers' love of a good challenge, Honda moves the goalposts by rating them on the eco-friendliness of their driving style. At the end of each journey, the instrument panel displays how well they did.

One of the system's smarter features is that it gives feedback by changing colour in real time, avoiding distracting statistics and numbers. Fuel-saving, smooth acceleration and braking are rewarded with a green glow, and aggressive starts and stops are reprimanded in blue. A positive alternative to the dearth of dry save-the-planet communications, the system's ambient communication makes its message easier to absorb: helpful for those multi-taskers who spend their journeys making phone calls, revising their routes and flipping through MP3s. Honda hopes the constant form of feedback will turn drivers' good intentions into subconscious habits.

The system will be included in Honda's American Insight hybrid as of spring 2009. Given that the easiest way to save the planet is to change our behaviour, how could your business put customers in touch with their actions? (Related: Visualizing energy use.)

Website: www.hondanews.com/categories/1097/releases/4878