Today’s Hot New Consumer Trends
Recently, I went to a fabulous trends conference. I had always meant to join the Association of Consumer Trends and attend the annual Consumer Trends Forum. But I belong to so many organizations and attend so many conferences that it was just one too many.
This year, the conference was held in San Francisco so there was no excuse. No hotel, no airfare, just a quick trip to the Kabuki Hotel. I was glad I made the commitment. From the upbeat, high-energy keynote speech, Unlocking Cool and Exploiting Chaos, by Jeremy Gutche of TrendHunter.com; to the thoughtful talk from Slow Food USA’s president Josh Viertel; to the data-rich presentation by Lee Boyland of DYG Inc.; and the insightful look at Gen Y by Kara Nielsen, trendologist for the Center of Culinary Development; there was a lot to mull over and process following the two-day event.
Here are some takeaways:
- Values are shifting away from materialism to personal fulfillment and this attitude may remain with us, even after the economy recovers.
- Americans are turning to self-reliance and personal responsibility. Despite tough economic times, they are soldering on and they believe they can handle whatever comes their way. This attitude differs from the Great Depression when most people felt powerless.
- More consumers are shopping with ethics in mind, holding companies, brands and retailers to a much higher threshold of scrutiny.
- Less is more. Consumers are downsizing. Status comes from self, not stuff.
- Americans are suspicious and cynical. They trust word-of-mouth, user reviews and each other, rather than glitzy slogans and campaigns.
These are important trends to consider in the food space. It speaks to simple, unadulterated food. Unpretentious presentations. More home cooking.
Ostentation and overindulgence are out and authenticity and ethics are in. As food marketers, we need to find ways to break through typical commercial communications and find ways to reach consumers with helpful information from sources they can trust.
NEXT WEEK: More from the conference, including some great resources for trend trackers.
