Suburban Cities Are Coming Back!

Love thy neighbor as thy self. 

Great calling for the Millennials… a generational group hooked on me-isms.

I know.  I know. 

Millennials are the we generation.  Social media and all that stuff.  They thrive in groups and seek self-confirmation through friends online and onsite.

Ahhhh… yes, but they quickly transform the we’s into the me. 

I live in the midst of one of the Millennial neighborhoods located “ITP” (inside the perimeter) in ATL-land (Atlanta).

Atlanta INtown is one of the neighborhood newspapers that both reports and crafts the Millennial neighborhoods here in-town. 

Skimming through it, there are real estate listings found on nearly every page.  Most are priced at $850K+.  Most are built where the older home became a “tear-down” and many fit the “McMansion” stereotype.

Shoot…even ads for apartment “loft” communities are advertising 500 square feet one-bedroom units starting at $1,900 per month.

I am not making this up.  And for those in NYC, LA, Chicago and DC… realize that this is Atlanta and not your city where costs are well-known to be “up there.”

Many of the Atlanta ad agencies are located in the in-town neighborhoods. Many of their day-to-day staff are Millennials.  Many live in the pre-Columbus world of thinking that the globe is actually flat and once one journeys out of the core base of in-town Atlanta, the world simply ends. 

But that perception might be changing as they desire to find their own fountain of youth!

In today’s Wall Street Journal, there’s a very interesting section devoted to city growth and development.  It highlights top cities to watch along with some very interesting articles about neighborhood culture. 

One of the assumptions I will make is that the journalist writing the articles is also a Millennial.  He or she probably has little knowledge of geo-demographics and systems like PRIZM, ACORN or ClusterPlus.

The article that caught my attention is titled, “Suburbs Hope To Be The New Cities” with the subtitle, “Some Places Think It’s The Way To Attract Young Workers.”

The article talks about how not-too-far out second-tier city centers and smaller bedroom-communities that faced years of decline as folks flocked back to live intown, are now seeing upturns in migration growth as intown real estate is breaking credit lines.

A few Millennial couples can afford that $1.4 Million three-bedroom-two-bath bungalow now... but as soon as the baby comes into the family with the $1 million conception-to-college graduation price tag, that home might no longer qualify for the new budget plan!

Authenticity of the intown ‘hoods is quickly getting lost too.  Architectural landmarks or soon-to-be-landmarks (mid-century!) are being torn down and replaced by the “new,” eco-green, Dwell Magazine new builds.

According to a study completed by researchers at University of California Berkley and University of Pennsylvania, the population of college-educated 25-34 year olds in downtown and intown neighborhoods grew more than 44%... three times as fast as in the suburban metro.

Historic mom & pops are replaced with indy, high-end retail.  Starbucks replaces the local cafes.  Whole Foods replaces the Saturday “farmer’s markets” and mom & pop grocery stores.

I share this because the stage set of temporary, high-end culture quickly becomes apparent and is replaced by the desire for a more “real” experience.

Millennials are known to quick “click” from websites where they fail to connect. They will ultimately do the same thing with aspects of where they live and what they identify with as home.

The Nielsen-PRIZM system that we have in-house at EXPERIENCE has a whole host of over 20 neighborhood lifestyle groups that reside in what Nielsen calls “second city” ‘hoods. 

No question about it, here in Atlanta we have Downtown Atlanta, but also the second cities of Midtown, Buckhead, Sandy Springs and Decatur – each with their clusters of high-rises and local transit systems.

New Rochelle, NY is featured in the Wall Street Journal article.

When I watch Bravo’s Million Dollar Listings LA, those boys shift from Beverley Hills to Anaheim to Santa Monica to Long Beach.

And Georgetown is nice, but there’s also Bethesda where Discovery Networks is based and Alexandria where some cool pubs are found.

Love they neighbor as thy self.  Better yet… Root they self in a real neighborhood vs. a lovely, but way too perfect stage-set.

No question that the high costs of intown ‘hoods are going to shift what many think is the unstoppable future.  

As many readers know, in addition to living smack in the heart of the trendy in-town Atlanta scene… in about 750 “affordable” square feet… I also own a “farm house” about an hour’s drive east from Atlanta in a smaller college town. 

I write a lot about shopping at the WalMart located near that “farm house.”  Shopping there is always a “grounding” experience for EXPERIENCE!

Just as the Boomers drove the shift from the “rust-belt” to the “sun belt,” I do not think that shift from the “burbs” to “Intown” is the Millennial signature population change yet. 

“Mom and Pop” is coming back… and reality TV is transitioning to reality ‘hoods as I write this. 

Now… hand me that popcorn and organic salt!

What Client Dollars Net At The Big Ad Agencies

Most evenings when I put the 24/7 work flow on hold, I sit back and click through the cable nets to grab some programming where I really don’t have to think.  

I end up on networks that run the spectrum from SPIKE, TLC, HGTV, USA, History Chanel, Discovery, ESPN and TBS.

Oh, I must admit that I do watch a good share of the news networks too.  I click back and forth between CNN, Bloomberg, HLN, FOX and FOX Business.

What amazes me the most are the broadcast commercials that run between the programming.

I even have a small framed quote up in the television cabinet that reads, “Remember, if they were all sane, the psychs would not have a job.”

I’ve voiced concerns about the Progressive Insurance ads in the past.  Flo was created by Arnold Worldwide.  Since 2010 when Progressive premiered Flo, they have produced 100+ commercials.

100+ commercials in about a five year time period.

Arnold Worldwide is based in Boston.  When you check out their website, you will see quickly that those Progressive ads are not likely produced for $50k.  Probably add at least one more digital point to that price figure.

The Progressive ad I saw last night was all about Flo.  It wasn’t until the logo came up on the screen at the very end of the spot that you realize its Progressive Insurance that the spot is attempting to sell.

Already this morning I went out and spoke to some Millennials as they were ordering their custom made Starbucks coffee.  I asked them if they had ever heard of Progressive Insurance Company and only one out of the 10 said yes.  When I asked if they had ever seen a character named Flo in any commercials, six of the 10 said yes. 

They went on to describe her as this character with “big hair that dresses mostly in white.”

 BTW… there’s some rumors out there that Progressive is replacing Flo with the animated insurance box.

I guess if I worked 24/7 dealing with insurance sales and claims, I would seek out something entertaining to break the doldrums. 

 

There’s another ad series that Chevy is running that showcases participants in a focus group with a facilitator.

In the first ad to premiere, the setting was actually a tad realistic in how it showed the facilitator revealing Chevy models.  Then came the second ad.  And now has come the third one this past week.   At least the third one in the series that I have seen.

The last time I did a conventional focus group was about ten years ago for a hospital.  It was the hospital marketing team that insisted we do a conventional focus group, randomly recruited and one in which they – the client – could sit behind the one way mirror and observe the discussion flow.

Big time corporate clients have long time been strong supporters of doing focus groups.  Not too sure that they fully understand the dynamics of the discussion, but they love the wine, mix drinks, shrimp cocktails and French pastries provided behind the one way mirror.

Back in 2003 when I started EXPERIENCE, I decided that it was way over time to create an alternative to the high cost, “pecking order” conversational flow of conventional focus groups.

They got to be expensive and contrived. 

Today, we do Coffee House and Pub Chats, On-the-Street experiential interviews, hosted neighborhood networking and online chat rooms and commentary boards.

Part of me is okay with the McCann creatives making fun of focus groups and using them as the commercial backdrop.  There’s another part of me that finds the use of focus groups by the corporations to be rather disturbing. 

In the third ad that I saw the other night, the facilitator is actually rattling the sales pitch.  If an EXPERIENCE staff member ever did that in any of the tools we use today, they would not be a part of the EXPERIENCE team long. 

I looked up the Nielsen PRIZM lifestyle groups that Chevy scores high on in ownership and sales. 

Here are the top PRIZM groups and their nicknames… “Kid Country USA,” “Campers & Camo,” Pickup Patriarchs,” “Toolbelt Traditionalists” and “Young and Rustic.” 

My bet is that these folks actually believe that they are watch a real live focus group when they watch those Chevy commercials.

Then last night I saw an ad that I still cannot figure out what was the product and brand behind it.

It opened with an office in a city-setting like New York with techies working at their computer pods.  The people quickly changed into animated human-like animals and as they were doing so, quick snippets of social media dialogue pop up on the screen, but the graphics are so small you really cannot read the text exchange. 

As the spot progresses, the focus shifts to the guys and gals that evolved into lion-like creatures and they appear to invent a quasi-digital umbrella that they send out of their 15^th floor office window and converts into umbrellas carried by the folks walking on the street below.

Ad the end of the spot a website address.  Part of me wants to say that a brand name like Slacker appears.

To be honest… when you read what I just wrote, it sounds like I was on my third round of bourbon plus toking for the night. 

I was not involved in anything like that when I saw the ad, but my hunch is that the ad team probably was when they created it.

No question, the ad was not cheap to produce.

Will be interesting to see if the ads pop up in the next few days.  If they do, I will write down just who the ad is suppose to be promoting and share it with blog readers.

NOTE:  Found out... the ad is for #Slack, which I still have no idea what they do.  Here is a link to their ads and an article about them... http://techcrunch.com/2015/12/30/slacks-new-tv-commercial-is-adorable-and-effective/  ... LOL... some techie brand.

This past week, I had lunch with a couple ad agency owners.  They run medium to smaller size shops.  They told me that they were laying off more creative staff and shifting over to building client teams with free-lancers. 

I quickly asked if cost was the driver… and they quickly admitted that overhead costs did play a partial role.

However, they added that free-lance teams could be kept fresh and that the product produced would not fall into the conventional ruts and commercials that seem to live in their own little worlds. 

I could not agree more.

Tearing Down The Walls And Digging Out Of The Minutia

This year is off and running… fast.  And for that, I am grateful.

Companies, politicians, brand leaders, ad agencies… my iPhone has been buzzing.

And if the Super Bowl ads were a sign of where marketing and advertising is at… my bet is that there will be more folks calling needing help.

Isn’t there a saying that flows something like… “What stupid sees, stupid does.”

If you have been following this blog over the years, I have posted a long stream of observations of how GenXers and Boomers – the older relics of brand management – are inwardly clustering in their self-woven cocoons. 

Many ad agencies and creative shops have turned inward too.

The past couple of weeks, I have worked with two firms struggling to unify their online strategies with their brand marketing strategies.

I had the chance to review four written proposals put together by the “digital agencies.” 

What struck me with all four was that there was no mention of just whom the programs were designed to reach, engage and interact.

No mention of their demographics.  No mention of the psyches.  No mention of their online behaviors.  No mention of how they interact with the product category. 

Nothing.

I remember in my early days in the business asking an outdoor billboard firm how a person could strategically use billboards to reach defined target groups.

The reply… “you don’t have to worry about targeting, everyone drives by the billboard in their daily travels.”

Believe it or not, that's not too different from a digital techie saying… “who cares about who it is that hits your website, we engineer it around their online behaviors to net the most engaged.”

Okay. 

In this weekend’s Wall Street Journal is a news story with the headline, “Kohl’s Eliminates Three Senior Roles.”

First sentence in the article goes on to say, “the department store chain is battling sluggish sales and a depressed share price.”

So the company and brand are in deep doodoo

Who are the three executives that Kohl’s eliminated?

The Chief Digital Officer. The VP of Store Environment.  The Senior VP of Communications and Public Relations.

Not sure about blog readers, but I gave up on going to Kohl’s about five years ago.  Personally, I could not really figure out just what made Kohl’s a differentiated brand other than their claims of discount pricing.

Shoot, if I shop where price is critical, I will journey over to Target and feel hip or Wal-Mart and feel patriotic.

By the way, a lot of corporate leadership should hang at Target and Wal-Mart at least once a week.

I spent a lot of time on the phone with a client yesterday afternoon attempting to elevate the discussion to the higher level of just what in the heck is the brand experience that drives sales revenue.

I could not get the client’s perspective raised beyond the mechanics of the website.

As I said right up front, I am grateful that many teams are calling right now.

Many are desperately in need of help. 

Many have got specialized specialists added to their team. 

Many have built up walls to shelter the specialized specialists as they look downward into the minutia of their specialized specialties.

Many give reinforcement for creative for the sake of original creative.

I remember a cartoon I saw one of that feature a set of Gen X parents debating the details of just how they were going to stage-set-up their child’s birthday among friends and relatives while the child was sitting on the sidelines staring at a wall.

Substitute the consumer for the child.

As I enter 2016 with the phone ringing, I have to keep in mind the mission of why EXPERIENCE exists… put the consumer in the center seat and look at the brand on the consumer’s experiential perspective with the goal to emotionally connect beyond rational thought and competitive options.

My advice is to corporate leadership is to tear down the walls of the corporate cocoons and go dwell with real people in their environments.

The Wall Street Journal article about Kohl’s goes on to say that Kohl’s board of directors is seriously considering selling the chain off to a private-equity firm.

We shall see if Kohl’s is sold to individuals with a passion to deliver a brand experience or individuals who acquire very screwed up corporations and milk the assets for what worth might remain.

Encountering Truth versus Attempting To Resurrect A Declining Mature Brand

I remember the day when Woolworth announced that they were closing down. 

As a young kid, my parents used to take me to the Woolworth located in Willoughby, Ohio to see what toys I wanted for Christmas. 

I also remember going over to the store and picking out whatever candies I wanted with the quarter my parents would give me.

In the late 1990s, Woolworth went out of business. Woolworth was once the only alternative to the department and catalogue stores.

By then Target, Kmart and Walmart had redefined the five and dime marketplace.

This past weekend, the Wall Street Journal wrote about two corporations that are in the process of plotting out how to survive from a similar impending decline.

One of those corporations is Yum Brands. The other corporation is Wal-Mart.

Corporations and marketing today is all geared around capitalizing on trends, diversifying and growing fast. 

It’s what Wall Street fosters and reinforces.  Its what executive management uses to drive their own personal portfolios and early retirement expectations.

But whether their management teams are willing to admit it, there are brands that have matured and operate today in the midst of very, very dated operational environments. 

One of those brands is Yum Brands. 

This corporation is not radically different than many of its aging peers like McDonalds, Burger King and Dairy Queen.

Yum Brands owns KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. 

The article highlights management “refocusing” on its brands with “new product development and digital expansion.”  Yum Brands management talks about the great success the breakfast tacos at Taco Bell.

Over the course of my time in business, I’ve worked with a number of mature brands – brands that have exhausted distribution expansion opportunities and now face declining market share.

Even after the announcement of the corporate priorities and focus, the Yum Brands stock share price continues to decline.

Fast food chick, tacos and pizza are no longer new, novel or different. 

Low cost, tummy fillers are also hard to manage from a cost standpoint let alone government oversight that is out to manage the health welfare of America.

Operational modifications like drive-thrus and 24/7 hours of access are “been there and done that” status.

Not too sure that selling fast food on the Internet is going to remedy the aging decline.

While I do not necessarily quest to visit Arby’s any time soon, I will give its management and marketing team credit because that brand platform has become much more focused and defined around a unique brand experience… Meat… We Have The Meats!

If Yum Brands called EXPERIENCE and asked what to do my advice would be direct.

Simplify your product delivery… model your menu boards after Chipotle in terms of simplicity and focus.

And start exploring the launch of new brands that embrace the next wave of where fast food is today and where it will likely be in 2020.

I already know that advice like that is not received well by the Boomers and GenXers sitting in the corporate towers.

It requires thinking beyond that corporate retirement package.

The other brand is Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart has been in the news a lot over the last 6 months.  They are facing some rather difficult times ahead as they finally elected to pay their workforce more and re-engineer the layout of the stores. 

As I noted above, mature brands heading into decline embrace operational changes as part of the confrontation with reality process.

The news is that Wal-Mart hired Michael Francis as their new Chief Marketing Officer. 

For readers who do not know who Michael Francis, his bio will quickly give you a perceptual grounding. 

Michael is the marketing guy who helped craft the Target brand in the 90s and early 2000s.  He spent nearly 30 years client-side at Target. 

A lot of the cool stuff that Target is famous for was not bred internally at Target.  Wieden + Kennedy, the agency famous for doing cool stuff for brands like Nike and Apple, drove the cool that empowered Target.

When Michael left Target, he made history by being the marketing guy that attempted to convert JCPenney from a dying brand to a Target-look-alike.

From a sideline viewpoint, the fact that Michael Francis really never worked outside of retail helps to explain his passion – or limited scope. 

He did not explore other contexts of the brand experience.  He really has not even worked with an alternative media environment. 

My bet is that the team that hired Michael Francis at Wal-Mart is also very likely to have recently received a Viagra prescription.

The article quotes a Wal-Mart exec as saying, “If I was working at Target, my heart would sink… knowing that Michael is now working for the competition.”

Okay. Bet that Wal-Mart team already seeing similar ad copy, filming and websites.  They are probably already seeing their Wal-Mart graphic icon that mimics a flower in a similar context as the Target graphic icon.

The same management team at Wal-Mart is further quoted as saying… “Globally, we know growth [of Wal-Mart] will disproportionately come from middle- and upper- income households in the years ahead.”

OMG. Something says that they took a multiple dose of that Viagra!

I do not in any way make a mockery of Wal-Mart. 

In fact, I encourage clients and colleagues alike to once a month get in a car and drive out to a Wal-Mart and walk around.  Watch the shoppers.  Wal-Mart captures the best of what remains of the mass unwashed!

I like to say that if copy is not understood by the folks who shop at Wal-Mart, its not being scripted with the correct words.

If the cost of raising the average pay per employee by a couple of dollars an hour caused Wal-Mart to face Wall Street challenges, can you imagine what the cost of converting the Wal-Mart brand experience into something like Target to net more upper income households will do to the corporate stock value?

I am astounded how Wal-Mart management cannot digest the lessons that many learned by watching JCPenney make an attempt to change the fundamentals of its brand experience.

My bet is we will likely see some management changes at Wal-Mart in the next year as its corporate leadership comes into contact with some fundamental realities. 

If EXPERIENCE was hired to assist Wal-Mart in its marketing, I would very quickly recommend to keep a focus on its online sales and ways in which it can make that consumer “touch-point” more current with where its brand equity audience headset is at in the next several years.

I also think that Wal-Mart has an opportunity to tap “working class” and “first entry into the U.S.” Millennials as they begin to create their own home space and raise families. 

As we are closing out 2015, there are a lot of interesting challenges ahead. 

My advice to those who read the EXPERINCE blog is to get out from behind your desk.  Go out into the marketplace at large to watch, observe and converse with the groups out there that are getting even more diverse in who they are and what they define as their goals and desires.

When Woolworth turned its lights out, it was time to move on. 

In the next couple of years, there will be a host of other brands that need to follow the Woolworth example.

Observations of the Presidential Race And What's Likely Ahead

The blog I write after each year’s trend posts is always a dull one.

No question that part of the situation is being driven by the magnitude of the trends predicted. 

Since I posted the last two blogs, I have made more than a dozen presentations and many attending are also still pondering both the opportunities and challenges ahead.

So I write this post about the presidential election and what we are seeing transpiring in front of us.

Topline, here are a few interesting observations…

(1)  The number of candidates on the GOP side that threw their hat in the ring.

Market splintering often happens when new technology or new innovative thought initially hits the marketplace.  I remember the diversity of brands with the advent of personal computers… I remember the initial diversity of cell phone providers. 

Although I will quickly say that I do not think the same dynamic is driving what we are observing. 

Instead I think that the culture of social media and the belief that we are only a “click” away from influencing the change agent are more the drivers. 

Also… the culture of social media transcends beyond the Millennials who grew up within in it.  Old and young alike … even candidate specific… are addicted to the belief system right now.

(2)  The networking of the media. 

The consolidation of media and its conversion to 24/7 programming has culminated into what we now have before us. 

“Debates” that are really more Q&A “60 Minutes” news “shows.”

News nets attempting to “brand” their forums, formats, question sets and exchange dialogue.

The conversion of “grass roots” politicking to “media visibility” and “story bytes.”

Tracking public sediment not too unlike tracking television ratings.

(3)  The Dems riding a wave of assumptions vs. proactive strategy.

Whether you like her or not, you have to admit Hillary carries a lot of baggage.  So far to date, she has not necessarily performed well as a “unifier.” 

The Dems have historically way out performed the GOP in unifying divergent camps.  Single moms, union labor, 20-something Millennials and gay folks… not much shared, common ground. 

The Dems marketplace has changed.  Not too sure that their strategic approach has change much – if at all. 

I still believe that Joe Biden may still enter the race.  He just might be strategically staying behind the scenes… for now.

(4)  What might drive continued attention.

As I write this blog, global security and a flow of standard logic is being challenged.  Today’s headline story in the Wall Street Journal is that the economy is cooling… yet again. 

Many assert that the large media coverage of the election way in advance of the primaries will ultimately “burn out.”  That people will simply get tired of hearing about it and focus their attention on other things.

That assumption might have some supportive rationale to it if we were not in the midst or fluid, radical challenge and change.

From Islamic Terrorist to a struggling China to an erratic Wall Street, the future is not predictable… nor like any past models.

A number of the media channels showcased Jeb Bush and his third campaign theme born again experience.  They commented on the lack of “brand” equity. 

I agree to a large extent.  But I think that the campaign challenge for many will be to secure a brand strategy that can be extended over a course of radical change.

For all his craziness and lack of thought-out implementation strategy, I hate to say it, but Donald Trump might have the most adaptable strategic brand platform given what is likely to evolve in the next 12 months.

The election is always a very good read of marketplace thinking.  It also provides a rich understanding of how individuals align their viewpoints with others. 

Sad to say, but it also provides a rich perspective of the group, “The Unconnected Sub-Generation,” highlighted in the 2016 EXPERIENCE Trendcast report.

The next blog I post will showcase the changes that have evolved and produced a set of new 2016 PRIZM neighborhood lifestyle groups that wear a new set of nicknames that include “Generation Web,” “Metro Grads,” “Networked Neighborhoods,” “Second City Start-ups” and “Pick-up Patriarchs.”

2016 Trendcast – Part #2 – The Next Five

In response to my posting of the first five trends, a handful of my peers contacted me and wanted to chat.

Most of the conversation was focused around Millennials.  Many corporate brand teams are beginning to finally embrace them. 

I laugh most of time.  Unless you are a brand that caters to the elderly you have no choice. 

No question as I share the next five, the Millennials are driving a lot of what’s hitting us with each of the trends.  But like in the very next one, the Boomers are also on stage playing an important co-lead role!

Trendcast #6 – The Downsizing of House & Home

The less-is-more philosophy has come home to roost with square footage taking a back seat to quality, functionality, charm and character. 

This is not just a reflection of the empty-nest Boomers and just-coupled Millennials seeking less space for two.

The cost of housing is soaring.

Bloomberg Business published an article this past spring titled, “Housing’s 30 Percent-of-Income Rule Is Near Useless.” 

The article goes on to post that 41 million of U.S. households are now paying more than 50% of the their monthly income on housing.

Rents are climbing too.

About three-quarters of Millennials no longer living with their parents (just over 26%) are renting and nearly half of those not coupled are having to net a roommate to afford the space.

One of the major changes that will hit housing a lot more in 2016 and beyond will be the downsizing of the average dwelling space square footage. 

HGTV’s Tiny House programming is so much a hit among the growing Millennial audience groups that HGTV is now expanding small home space programming.

“Loft” condos are popular today more because the space visually appears larger than because retro loft décor is hip and cool.

And the likes of Pier 1 and IKEA in the home furnishings retail arena might be perceived as lower price, but when you talk to the buyers making the purchases, they very quickly talk about the furniture pieces “fitting better” in their “smaller home space.”

Where the impact will be hitting in 2016 the most will be on homebuilders and architects. 

Many of the homebuilders believe that custom homes always should be big.  And the smaller share that are still into developments and spec homes still think that the larger the square footage the better even if it means jamming more houses on the limited land space. 

Not too sure that those homebuilders will see their inventory moving as quickly in 2016.

The impact on furniture will continue in 2016 as more personality emerges, but watch for more small space décor enhancements in texture and patterns as well as novel ways to multi-use space. 

Trendcast #7 -- DIY to DIO – (Do It Ourselves)

Their Baby Boomer parents sometimes were labeled as “groupies,” but the label was used more to describe the following of rock stars than how Boomers took on tasks.

The Millennials umbilical cord to social media today has translated to group bonds that are now part of most anything they do.

(LOL… as you read further, you will see that a percentage even continue to chat with online friends as they are having sex!)

If you watch any of the competitive count-downs on HGTV, Food Network, History Channel or even Animal Planet, you will see quickly how teams compete against teams vs. individuals competing against individuals.

Out is personal pursuit.  Grrrrhhhh… self-centered, entrepreneurs out for their own innovative self-pursuit.

In is collective goal setting and team achievement. Its all about we, not me!

Employees today – white collar and professional – work better in environments that resemble or duplicate the communal spirit of a coffee house than the isolation environment of a private office.

According to Infographic.com, the number of co-working spaces worldwide is now doubling every year. 

Some of the ad agency management I work with has replaced their desks with IKEA kitchen tables which are much more welcoming of others even if someone elects to join them and work on another client project at the same table.

A psychologist friend of mine and I have observed that just as much as individuals seek out co-working space, the bottomline is that many work in the communal space focused in their own bubble-land of the laptops, iPads and iPhones.

This trend will hit hard and fast in 2016. 

Early Target Holiday spots are scripted around communal fashion vs. individual identity.

Hamburger Helper ads feature family together times around the kitchen co-working to get food on the table.

Buick ads showcase their new 24 hour test drive offers as a way for “all involved in the purchase decision” to have their chance to drive the Buick and determine if it meets the wholistic needs of all.

Trendcast #8 – The Unconnected Sub-Generation

You will hear a lot about the unconnected in 2016.  It's a presidential election year.

Here’s some interesting factoids…

• About half of Americans don’t know what “GOP” stands for…and about 75% of those are either Democrats or Independents
• Just over 40% cannot name who is the Vice President
• About 30% think that “Google” is a cartoon character on television
• When asked where Apple branded products are sold, more than a third of adults less than 40 years of age say in grocery stores
• 40% have no idea the century in which the American Revolution took place
• 30% do not know in what year 9-11 took place
• 65% cannot name even one of the Supreme Court Justices

I don’t share these stats to showcase the ignorant or the uneducated.

The “Unconnected Sub-Generation” literally lives their lives with limited, if any, interest or investment in the reality of the world around them. 

The Sub-Generation is comprised of a combination of Millennials, Tweeners and GenXers. 

Few have college degrees, but if they do, it is often a liberal arts degree.

Most work to pay their monthly bills and fund access to fun people and fun stuff.  Most of the fun is accessed via the web.  Nearly all perceive money as a plastic card.

They connect with programming on networks like FX, Sy-Fy, TruTV, E! Entertainment, Cartoon Network, TLC and Animal Planet. They play online games and venture into virtual reality lands. They text their “friends” about little outside the here and now of their own unconnected worlds.

But as much as they are perceived as literally stupid by folks living a connected life, the Unconnected Sub-Generation is sought out by national politicians and drive the sales of the mass brands.

You find yourself watching ads and wondering… what did that ad just communicate of value... What did that ad even have to do with the brand?

Next time that happens, you now know that the ads are designed to reach the Unconnected Sub-Generation… and not you!

Some sources cite economic stagnation and the daily threat of crime and terrorism as forces creating the Unconnected Sub-Generation… and yet, others cite information overload.

As we move into 2016, I already have had a client ask me if there are avenues to research and define this group more. 

Trendcast #9 – The Celebration of Purity

Not to say that where I live is the trendiest part of the ATL, but it’s close!

Most of the new housing is either tear-down-re-builds or home renovations. 

With my recent move into some new digs in Atlanta, I have spent a lot of time visiting the nearby Home Depot and Lowe’s.

In a number of my recent visits, I have been amazed at how many folks – from Millennials to Boomers – are purchasing paint for their homes and the most popular color is…

White or Beige. 

When I ask them why they are selecting white or a variation of white, the response is almost always the same… “it’s so nice and clean…so pure.”

If you think I am making this up… go visit Elle Décor’s website and see the stories about the “18 whites to make your space feel cozy” and “the 25+ white kitchens to inspire your next remodel.”

However, interior paint colors is only one area of where purity is securing top priority.

Think about it… the top three GOP candidates do not come from past political roles.   

Check out…

• Water-only energy drinks are hot and hip because of their clarity and non-contaminated compositions
• "Organic" and “free range” are perceived as healthier because they are non-violated by chemicals, hormones … not even pruning nor containment!
• "Gospel" and “Soul” are re-emerging because of their “purified” originality and “purified” roots
• While virginity might be part of the past, self-directed abstinence is emerging as the new form of self-purity and self-cleansing, especially in Hollywood and 5^th Avenue
• More clothing retailers are showcasing white as the new fashion statement
• An iPhone video is perceived as more honest than one filmed by a professional crew

As more and more of reality coupled with dishonesty and lack of justice intrudes into our daily intake of news and information, there appears to be more and more emphasis on seeking out the pure and un-contaminated.

Watch how much more this trend will surface in 2016 as the election takes front and center. 

Trendcast #10 – The Sustainable Reality of Work-Life Balance

More and more and more and more and… more… articles, apps, resources and classes are popping up to help individuals balance work and life-away-from work. 

Although a healthy work-life balance is the spoken goal of many individuals today, so few attain that goal. 

In fact, in a 2015 study completed by PSFK Labs, 80% of the adults age 25-54 feel critical stress on the job. 

The Millennials believe that they can craft career-development pathways in which work and life can operate in unison. 

The reality is that it can’t and the Millennials are quickly coming to realize that if they truly want to own a home someday, they have to have job security and maybe even receive a few sizeable raises in pay.

The GenXers might be the most reality-driven generational group in the perception of work-life balance.  They have already faced the reality that with kids at home, jobs at stake and mortgages to pay, they have cannot live in the ideal balance.

And Boomers, now faced with the challenges of retirement post the Great Recession, realize that a balance of work-life may be more of an ongoing challenge upon turning age 60 than they originally thought.

Here’s some true-reality stats among the adults age 25-54 surveyed:

• 79% feel it will be harder to reach their financial goals now than in the midst of the Great Recession
• 70% check their smart phones every 6 minutes
• 40% of employees working for a company of 50+ employees are required to be in contact with the business outside of work
• 20% have actually checked their Emails on their smart phones in the middle of havng sex!

As much as past Trendcasts have highlighted the ideal and what was perceived as business and brand outcomes in the marketplace, watch as we move into 2016 as more websites, speakers, workshops and business management courses will focus on “there’s no such thing as the perfect work-life balance.”

Part of this trend is being driven by the aging Millennial – and even further, the home-owning, parental Millennial – and even further, the Millennial whose own parents moved away and raised the “your on your own now honey” banner.

Part of the trend is being driven by GenXers and Boomers who have long aspired to be the boss and are now facing the reality of a Millennial being their boss.

We will see this same live-work reality factor take a role in marketing and advertising.

Look for more brands to feature experiential payouts in the midst of stress and conflict.

A Parting For Now…

I look forward to presenting this 2016 Trendcast to some cool groups over the next few months.  No question that there will be challenges and doubts raised, but my bet is there will be more heads shaking confirmation.

Generational changes, the advancement of technology and the inescapable connection points with reality are critical “movers and shakers” at work right now.

Sometimes in the midst of owning EXPERIENCE, I wish for a day in which I can let go and just be one of a team… and then again, when I get home and cuddle with my dog and watch COPS or Housewives of Orange County, I think maybe I can gain membership in the Unconnected Sub-Generation.

But about the time I think about it, I get a phone call from a CEO, entrepreneur or politician about the challenge they face and ask when can we meet to discuss ways to move their brands forward. 

I enjoy what I do and have fun!

And lastly… my personal celebration of purity is single barrel bourbon over the rocks. 

Cheers!