TAKE CONTROL

OF YOUR CONTENT

CHOOSE
YOUR
OWN

DIGITAL TRENDS REPort 2015

1
 About Hotwire
Hotwire is a global PR and communications agency dedicated to helping
ambitious companies change their game, build their reputation, and stand
out from the crowd. Our communications experts work in sector practice
teams to provide our clients with in-depth knowledge and experience of a
number of market categories.
From Sydney to San Francisco, we’re a team, with a ‘one office’
mentality. Our international team works across our 22 locations,
including the UK, US, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Australia and New
Zealand, together with affiliate partners.
We bring the best of our knowledge, skills and experience to all of our
clients wherever they are in the world.
www.hotwirepr.com
#hwtrends
@hotwirepr
To find out more, please email trends@hotwirepr.com
© 2015 Hotwire
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Contents
Introduction: Choose your own content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1. Unified digital experiences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2. Multiple screens, multiple methods, one story . . . . . . . . 10
3. The content car . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4. Making advertising routine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
5. esome chapter title goes .here
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
6. Dr Data is around the corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
7. There’s no such thing as a (digital) free lunch . . . . . . . 26
8. Tech is so not in, darling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
9. Moving fashion forward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
10. Going digital: the road to the General Election . . . . . . . 35
Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Introduction
Welcome to our 6th annual
report on the trends in
digital communication that
will shape the marketing
and communications
landscape in the year
ahead.
We’re delighted to say
that this year’s report
is a truly global effort
— with contributions from
our offices around the
world. We’d also like to
say a special thank you
to Nicholas Lansman and
the team at Political
Intelligence for their
insightful contribution on
how digital is changing the
4 5
UK political landscape.
As we discussed and debated
the trends we expected to
shape the coming year,
we kept returning to one
concept. In previous years
it’s been all about how
marketers can make the
most of new trends and
opportunities.
But in 2015, we think it’s
going to be all about
choice for the consumer.
Whether that’s choosing
the device they use or
how they want to interact
with a particular piece of
content, it’s all about
placing power in the hands
of our audience.
The brands and companies
that get ahead in 2015
will be the ones who
recognize this choice and
do everything they can
to create multi-faceted
experiences.
As ever, we look forward
to discussing and debating
these trends with the wider
world. Whether you agree,
disagree or think we’ve
missed the point entirely,
we’d love to hear from you
— just drop us a line on
Twitter: @hotwirepr.
Choose your own content
Businesses are spending
more time and money than
ever before on generating
content. We are drowning
in a sea of pithy blogs,
in-depth whitepapers and
tongue-in-cheek videos.
But are we all a bit too
obsessed with getting
as much out there on as
many topics as possible?
Wouldn’t it be better to
take a step back and give
people the choice as to how
they want to consume that
awe inspiring opinion piece
you’ve just written?
As marketers and
communication pros, we’re
(mostly) pretty good
at understanding our
audiences’ interests and
preferences and are able to
apply that knowledge to our
content creation, but what
about its delivery?
Whether written, visual
or audio, we think choice
in content delivery is
going to be one of the
most important trends
of the coming year —
it distinguishes us as
individuals in terms of
content consumption and
unites us in our desire to
control who interacts with
us and how.
I’m an individual, and I decision made. But that’s
want a podcast. a half-baked approach.
The method of delivery is
Where would we be in
utterly crucial, and what’s
marketing if we didn’t have
more there is certainly no
a buzzword to describe
one size fits all.
a practice or process?
Business to Individual Marketers are now beginning
(B2i) marketing is by to thoroughly investigate
no means a new concept; the different ways in which
it’s been scribbled on content will be consumed
whiteboards and etched on by the individual. If
tablets (the digital kind) you’ve got the time, you
in fashionable marketing could spend thirty minutes
meeting rooms across the reading a whitepaper on
globe for some time. “The Merits of Underwater
Basket Weaving” online, but
The big focus area of B2i
you might want to download
marketing is of course
it as an audio file to
understanding what an
be enjoyed on a crowded
individual rather than a
commute home or have the
mass market will respond
finer points of aquatic
to in terms of marketing
crafts presented to you as
collateral and initiatives.
an engaging video from your
On a content level, it’s
desk. The crucial thing to
almost entirely focused on
understand here is that the
understanding what subject
theme remains the same;
areas and topics are going
the time is spent on giving
to get the individual to
people the option as to
pay attention to you and
how they engage with that
your brand. But then the
theme.
individual targeting stops
there. A perfect example of this
in practice came from The
Sweeping generalisations
Economist. Of course,
are made as to how the
the publication already
content will be delivered.
provides choice to its
“Oh well this individual is
subscribers, with not only
an 18-something male, so he
a digital and print version
must love Tumblr, a blog it
of its newspaper but a
is then” — content delivery
downloadable audio book as
well.
In a recent essay on
the future of the book,
The Economist presented
the perfect example of
“Choose Your Own Content”
in action, which was a
delicious bit of content
presented in a way that
allowed the reader/listener
to make the choice for
themselves as to how to
consume it.
This approach is a shining
example of what’s to come.
Undoubtedly big media
organizations will lead the
charge, but other brands
from other industries
will follow. We’ll see
a marketing world where
providing choice of content
consumption is given as
much thought and time as
the topic of the content
itself.
Informing the individual
Big media will lead the
way in “Choose Your
Own Content” and an
extraordinary example of
the power of providing
choice has already come
from the BBC. In the
1980s and 1990s, the BBC
undertook a significant
campaign to educate as many
people as possible on the
effects, causes and symptoms
of HIV/AIDS.
6 7
What’s changed over the
30 or so years since the
reporting on HIV/AIDS is
the number of channels
available to reach the eyes
and ears of people across
the globe.
Of course, TV and radio are
playing an important role
in delivering information
across West Africa right
now. But with more than 250
million mobile subscribers
in sub-Saharan Africa,
mobile is a channel that
must be utilised.
What’s interesting is that
when it came to raising
awareness of Ebola, the
BBC chose WhatsApp as
the delivery method for
information and content.
They did this, not just
because of its usage (the
most popular chat app
in Western Africa) but
because of its versatility
in delivering the same
information in as many
forms as possible.
Compared to the Western
world, smartphone
penetration is still
relatively low in sub-
Saharan Africa, so video
and rich media is not
necessarily the best
method of delivery. What’s
more, literacy is not a
guarantee either. As such,
a mix of content needed
to be delivered to ensure
information got through Advertising to the individual
to different individuals
Individual empowerment in content
with different consumption
consumption doesn’t stop there.
habits.
The world is privacy obsessed and
Image, text and audio all
secure alternatives to data-hungry
had to be utilised. There
ad-based platforms are becoming
is no one size fits all, but
increasingly common. People are
it must be applauded that
switching off but worst of all, as
the BBC is not resting on
a brand looking to advertise your
its laurels in terms of
content, you will probably never even
delivering content across
channels it knows best.
Rather, it’s analysing the
CHOOSE know about it.
In response, behavioral targeting is
statistics then marrying
different content types with
YOUR being replaced in some corners by
incentivised systems that actively
a single, widely used,
platform across a vastly
OWN encourage users to opt in and choose
their ads. Rather than giving viewers
adopted technology. the opportunity to get back to their
favourite vlogger or latest TV series
A masterclass in content
faster by skipping ads, platforms like
delivery as part of a very
Ad Points actively invite users to
noble quest. A lot can be
watch ads of their choosing in return
learned from this. Mobile
for set rewards.
in particular offers a
variety of opportunities It’s far from a silver bullet, and
for vital government it’s difficult to measure how effective
communications to be these techniques have been so far.
delivered across a single But what is clear is that it’s
technology via multiple increasingly hard to land the right
platforms. Reaching out content in your audience’s lap.
to citizens in a way that
Empowering the individual
allows them to choose
how to be communicated With that in mind, and all things
with should stimulate considered, it’s time to go the extra
a more informed and mile.
engaged public. So expect
Rather than stopping at the point
governments to follow
of identifying and reflecting your
in the footsteps of big
audiences’ passions and interests in
media in the way they use
content and across channels you deem
different forms of content
relevant, why not hand over the reins?
to get their message
Want more for your audience this year?
across.
They’ll appreciate you for it.
1. Unified digital
experiences
The website font is Arial, the app’s in
Helvetica and the mobile website varies
between the two, seemingly at random.
If that doesn’t sound like a big deal,
you’re failing to give your audience a
unified experience of your brand.
The last few years have seen massive
strides in our understanding of what
really constitutes a unified experience,
most notably a consistent look and feel.
However, this alone is not enough. Offering
a unified customer experience means having
far more than the colours and typeface
on each platform or recycling the same
8 9
uniform content with a funky way of
presenting it on small screens.
It means more than just talking in the
right tone on social platforms and
providing the same functionality on every
platform. It goes deeper than that.
Even now, we regularly come across a
checkout process that is off brand, a
mobile app that has a different login
process to the web equivalent, or a web
portal with content presented in a format
we’re not used to.
All of these mistakes sound small, after
all the user can still complete the
task. But they all create a poor user
experience. The lesson? Don’t be those
guys.
Brand personality
With the birth of new technologies
and practices, companies have more
opportunities than ever to introduce
audiences to their brand.
In the past we would often find default
fonts, images and tones of voice that
were driven by development teams — not
marketers or branding specialists.
This often led to clunky interfaces and
experiences that were not only confusing
but often actively off putting. Why should
we be expected to put our bank details
into a third-party web page? Https or no
https?
The balance of power has changed, and
marketers are able to demand that the
design is not only recognisable, but
absolutely on brand. Whether that’s your
website or a native app, we’re now able
to manipulate the look and feel to ensure
consistency throughout.
Features and functions — channel
specificity
In last year’s report, we examined the way
customer service through social channels
has become the norm, as a key part of
any brands strategy for that channel. By
employing the right strategy, and taking a
joined up approach, these platforms become
an invaluable tool in the battle to stay
ahead.
Using a unified digital experience, we
can use specific channels to communicate
and present the company to a subset of
consumers in a very targeted way, while
staying true to the core brand message.
We’ll see marketers learn how to maximize
the feature sets of individual channels.
Whether they are experienced alone or in
conjunction with others channels, we’ll
feel like the experience is seamless, and
beautiful.
To achieve this, we need to spend time
examining the challenges and opportunities
offered by each platform. A joined up
business will examine each of these
platforms on their respective merits and
decide which ones to use and which ones
to steer clear of. This will allow them
to devise a strategy which retains the
identity of the brand however we choose to
engage with it.
Meeting the challenges of 2015
To meet these challenges, we’ll rely on
context. Allowing someone to update an
order delivery time via their phone when
they’re delayed, for example, is providing
a useful function that will benefit not
just the customer but the company too.
Allowing customers to checkout an order
they started building on another device
will improve conversion.
We’re seeing a lot more time and budget
given to creating a set of strategies for
the unified experience, where each strategy
works together to create a digital eco-
system with the brand at the heart of all
decisions.
2015 will be the year that sees the
companies that successfully deliver a
unified experience flourish. Those that
don’t will sink to the bottom, as users
reject tired old experiences which demand
more of them than they seem to offer.
2. Multiple screens,
multiple methods,
one story

The long awaited launch of and this will only rise as all the evidence, we still The smartwatch conundrum notification will be gone, out how we take advantage
the Apple watch confirmed tablets become cheaper and cling to the idea that most as they’ll be right there of the possibilities of
Additionally, as
it — wearable devices are wearable devices become people are going to view on our wrists. So our these new platforms and
smartwatches become
here to stay. You may be more widely adopted. With our stories on a computer — content needs to be better how we avoid getting left
increasingly common, it
skeptical, but people were the next generation, it’s or at a push — a tablet. than ever before, to hook behind. At heart, this
means people will spend less
dubious of the iPod and already happened — the our audience’s attention challenge is about how
Therefore, as comms time pulling their phone out
iPad and we all know how average teenager now owns and make them engage with we create content for an
professionals, we need of their pocket in search of
they turned out. six digital devices. it, whatever device they audience which could be
to get comfortable with a distraction.
have to hand. engaging with it from
Research by Facebook So we need to find a way of telling the same story
We’ll have multiple screens any number of differently
suggests that more than telling the story we want in multiple ways, using Adaptive or specific?
on us at all times, but the shaped and sized screens.
60 percent of us already to tell whatever device different formats and
recurring itch to check The challenge now for the
use more than one device, someone is using. Despite platforms. There are two main
whether we have an unread comms industry is to figure
10 11
approaches here.
The first is to take the
adaptive work that is now
considered the norm in the
web industry and look at ways
to take responsive design one
step further. The alternative
is for brands to create
content specifically for
different devices using their
knowledge of their audience
to determine the correct form
their story should take.
Businesses that opt to
experiment with creating
content specifically for a
screen size or device need
to start asking themselves
how they can adapt existing
storytelling techniques
to smaller screens. Could
mimicking comic panels or
flip books be the answer, for
example?
Counting on cards
If we’re going adaptive,
then we need to take a long
hard look at how Twitter and
Google are innovating with
cards.
Max Tatton-Brown of
Econsultancy described cards
as the mobile language of the
web — and this is spot on. If
we view them as our building
blocks, figuring out how to
break our content down into
the smallest accessible form
possible, we can build from
there up.
That might mean starting with
12
the preview you’d see on a
smartwatch, then figuring
out how your message comes
across as a tweet with an
embedded image, then a blog
post or a video, right up to
white papers and microsites.
Whichever device you then
view a link from, you’ll be
served the relevant card,
with the right content for
the device you’re using.
Dreaming a little bit —
wouldn’t it be cool if you
could just swipe to transfer
content from one screen to
another? You’d be able to
view a card as a preview on
your smartwatch then swipe it
to the screen you’re working
on.
The power of the glance
However we approach these new
A valuable source of inspiration is how the media is
challenges — 2015 will see
approaching this challenge. Newspapers have long been
the comms industry having to
experts in conveying information in a tiny number of
take a long hard look at the
words or through imagery — just look at big splash
way it tells stories. In a
front pages and the power of headlines.
world where a tweet could be
too long, video and imagery So how are they approaching the challenge of designing
will take their rightful for smartwatches? Writing for Nieman Lab, Dan Shanoff
place alongside the written argued we need to start treating the ‘glance’ as
word — forming the building the basic subatomic unit of news. Dan argues that
blocks of great content which responsive design can’t solve the challenges we face
savvy marketers will blend when creating content for so many screens and instead
appropriately depending we have to go specific.
on the audience they’re
The last major shift in length the news industry faced
targeting.
was the tweet — how can we tell a story but also tease
more information in 140 characters?
The challenge is now doing the same in an inch of real
estate where even a tweet is too long. Can we tell
stories in six seconds? The BBC has tried with Vine,
but can every news organization make that jump?
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five to seven years and decisions for service providers fighting tooth and nail
large scale changes often seen in concept to help you eat it up. We’re beginning
vehicles are likely to get heavily watered to see the race for “quad-play” (i.e. a
down in production models. single service provider selling fixed voice
and broadband as well as mobile and pay-
Put into perspective, much of the
TV in a single package) really hot up
14 15
with BT/EE and Virgin Media having joined
TalkTalk in the UK, and this could lead to
some interesting deals or consolidation
during 2015.
The impact of this bandwidth battle and
reshuffle is really interesting for the
connected car market, mainly because this
is exactly where we’ll also begin to find
a newly captive audience for all of the
content that the service providers want
to push out. Firms such as CloudMade are
beginning to get more vocal about the
streams of content which can be delivered
to cars and just like you have in your
living room today, and in 2015, we will
begin to see content created specifically
to be delivered into cars. At first this is
likely to be for mobile devices already
sharing a car’s 4G connection, but
before long, we’ll see high-end models
integrating modern touchscreen technology
as well.
dream now, cars launching in 2015 will
feature technologies such as Super Cruise,
allowing for semi-autonomous driving on
motorways or in traffic. This truly is a
roadmap toward jumping into a car which
just takes orders on where to travel next.
In 2011, 64 percent of the UK population
traveled by car (as a driver or passenger)
to work every day at an average of just
under 10 miles each, which could possibly
be between 30 and 60 minutes of driving
time depending on which part of the
country you live in.
Even a rough calculation shows that about
40 million people fit in the 16-74 year
old age bracket surveyed by the RAC and,
of those, 25 million travel 30-60 minutes
in a car each day. It doesn’t take a
genius to work out that this represents an
enormous opportunity for brands looking to
engage.
As a marketer, think seriously about
April

The auto-advert
1 2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 11 12 13

how your content will play out in the

14 15 16 17 18 19 20
21 22 23 24 25 26 27
28 29 30 31

But what is really driving this all? Where
there’s content, there is advertising and
where there’s advertising there are brands
willing to part with large sums of cash in
order to reach an affluent, geo-specified
connected future and what you would do
with it if you suddenly found yourself
with a direct line into every car on
the road. What’s more, brands are more
interested than ever before on where you
April
1 2 3 4 5 6
7 8 9 10 11 12 13
14 15 16 17 18 19 20

audience that is only going to get more are and what you’re doing in order to
21 22 23 24 25 26 27
28 29 30 31

captive over the next few years. Although
driverless cars may seem like a futuristic
16
serve you with the right content.
Super Cruise: The next leap forward
One of the technologies we’re due to
see on our roads is Super Cruise. GM is
pioneering the technology that will allow
for semi-autonomous driving where hands-
free lane following, automated breaking
and speed control become part and parcel
of the motorway driving experience.
All of this is powered by a technology
pick-and-mix of GPS, radar, sensors and
cameras.
While this is not the fully automated
experience people are anticipating, this
is a leap towards driving becoming less
of a participative activity. What on
earth are we going to do with all that
free time in a car? Watch some adverts of
course!
17
4. Making advertising
routine
Foursquare was supposed
to be the next big thing
in social media and
advertising.
By tracking where users
were, brands could supply
them with the right offers
at the right time. The
problem? It required too
much conscious effort on
the part of the end user.
Rather than being seamless,
they had to remember to
check in every time they
visited somewhere. As
marketers, we can’t and
shouldn’t rely on data that
has the potential to be so
inaccurate.
Right now, brands advertise
online, but they don’t
always expect you to move
away from Facebook to go to
their online store and buy
a new pair of jeans — they
understand consumers better
than that. The trick is in
influencing your purchase
decision — so that you
end up purchasing their
product, either online or
in-store.
So why do we still
advertise online? In
18
large part it’s awareness
— helping shuffle people
down the sales funnel.
But we can and should be
taking advantage of the
opportunities offered here.
Breaking down the barriers
The best advertising should
be frictionless, appearing
at the right time to the
right person. In 2015,
we’ll start to see that
become a reality, thanks
to services like Google
Now becoming increasingly
popular.
Of course, this only works
if we make it personal.
Knowing how individuals
reach the final decision to
purchase is invaluable for
marketers. Companies like
Google and Amazon are best
positioned to offer this —
by building up a picture
of our search habits, they
can quickly determine if
you’re someone who goes
on instinct or someone
who does their research
— looking at reviews,
alternatives and best
prices.
What we’ll see is a two-
step process — identifying
user habits based on their
routine, likes and dislikes
and then secondly the
distribution process. Mess
up the first and it doesn’t
matter how good you are at
the second — it just won’t
work.
Putting the process into
action
The first part of this
process is for brands and
marketers to learn how to
effectively analyse the data
captured by geolocation
tools. Our phones already
capture a tremendous amount
of data about us — the
question is, how do we use
this?
Again, it only takes a
quick look at Google Now
to see how useful this
information can be and how
it can be conveyed to the
end user.
Once we’re able to track
where potential consumers
are and how they tend to
behave, we can deliver
them the right information
19
 5. Something something
at the right time. Or advertisers to utilise direction, providing you
if they’ve searched for geolocation. with more opportunities to
information on a particular get special offers and the

darkeside
It doesn’t need to be a
shop and we know it’s on like, rather than simply
huge amount — even 10
their route home — it makes functioning as an NFC
percent off will serve as
perfect sense to serve payment mechanism.
a reminder that you were
some kind of reminder when
thinking about buying It won’t just be
they’re passing by. A long time ago, in a Imperial Starfleet, a group Turmoil has engulfed the
something and could right advertisers taking
Smartwatches are built for now if you just walked a advantage of this. galaxy far, far away.... of freedom fighters led by Galactic Republic. The
this. few feet to your left. Industries such as Luke Skywalker taxation of trade routes to
It is a period of civil
health are investing and outlying star systems is in
Platforms like Foursquare Most importantly, it war. Rebel spaceships, has established a new
innovating heavily in dispute.
might not be the next big doesn’t feel like unwelcome striking from a hidden secret base on the remote
digital, with knowledge base, have won their first ice world of Hoth. Hoping to resolve the
advertising tool. But if advertising. It’s an
of your daily routine and victory against the evil matter with a blockade of
you could get a notification offer that’s relevant to The evil lord Darth
habits and the data that Galactic Empire. deadly battleships, the
with a voucher pop up on you, right now, through Vader,obsessed with finding
can be gleaned from these greedy Trade Federation has
your wrist when you’re a service you’re already During the battle, rebel youngSkywalker, has
underpinning a large chunk stopped all shipping to the
walking past a store signed up to. We expect spies managed to steal dispatchedthousands of
of their future plans. small planet of Naboo.
which sells those jeans services like Apple Pay secret plans to the remote probes into
you’ve been eyeing up, and Google Wallet to Empire’s ultimate weapon, While the congress of
that’s a powerful way for increasingly evolve in this the far reaches ofspace....
the DEATH STAR, an armored the Republic endlessly
Luke Skywalker has returned
space station with enough debates this alarming
tohis home planet of
power to destroy an entire chain of events, the
Using geofencing to drive footfall planet.
Tatooine inan attempt to
Supreme Chancellor has
rescue hisfriend Han Solo
One way brands are putting routine-based advertising into secretly dispatched two
Pursued by the Empire’s from the
practice is through geofencing. By setting a virtual fence Jedi Knights, the guardians
sinister agents, Princess
around your store — ads are only served when someone steps clutches of the vile of peace and justice in
Leia races home aboard her
within the predefined-perimeters of the fence. It could be gangsterJabba the Hutt. the galaxy, to settle the
set to a few hundred feet or several miles, depending on starship, custodian of the conflict....
Little does Luke know that
how widely you want to advertise. stolen plans that can save
theGALACTIC EMPIRE has There is unrest in the
her people and restore
What matters is that the advert is only shown when people secretlybegun construction GalacticSenate. Several
freedom to the galaxy
are close enough to care and that they are served with on a new thousand solarsystems have
content that is personalised to them. The geofence provides It is a dark time for declared their
armored space station
the distribution tool, leaving the marketer responsible for the Rebellion. Although
evenmore powerful than the intentions to leave the
the content. the Death Star has been
firstdreaded Death Star. Republic.This separatist
destroyed, Imperial troops
Microsoft is one company already making impressive use movement,
have driven the When completed, this
of this technique, combining audience specific targeted ultimateweapon will spell under the leadership of
creative campaigns with location based distribution to Rebel forces from their
certain doomfor the small themysterious Count Dooku,
raise awareness of their bricks and mortar stores. By using hidden base and pursued
band of rebelsstruggling hasmade it difficult for
a 10 mile geofence around their physical stores, Microsoft them acrossthe galaxy.
to restore freedomto the the limitednumber of Jedi
saw an 89 percent lift in footfall amongst groups of Evading the dreaded galaxy... Knights to maintain
consumers served the ads.
20 21
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23
 6. Dr Data is around
the corner
They say you can’t walk
three blocks without seeing
a Starbucks. Soon you won’t
be able to walk three blocks
without your health tech
device congratulating you on
reaching your steps for the
day and Starbucks telling you
it’s now OK to come in and
enjoy a Pumpkin Spice Latte —
you’ve earned it.
Health is the new black
Health is currently in vogue,
with an army of passionate
24
quantified selfers wearing
FitBits, Jawbones and Galaxy
Gears to keep track of their
steps and elevation. But it’s
not just the geek elite; if
you own a modern smartphone
then you (or Google on your
behalf) are already tracking
the same sort of data.
Tracking body data is in
the mainstream, whether you
realised it or not.
Is this really about health,
or is it more about our quest
for contextual information
about ourselves? Yes, we’re
all becoming a little vain,
and it’s no mistake that
some health tech updates
have been more aesthetics
than functionality
focused. But it doesn’t
matter. Forget the fashion
statement a fancy Jawbone
UP or an Apple Watch makes,
and instead look at the
data it is generating. This
data is what will have the
biggest impact on health
— and not at a personal
level, but at a wider,
systematic level where even
minute changes can have the
biggest of impacts.
Health tech is getting
smarter
Apple’s HealthKit and
Google’s Fit platforms
give the user the ability
to share their digital
health information (aka
body data) with healthcare
professionals. What’s more,
the latest iterations of
the likes of the Jawbone
UP are going beyond steps
and elevation and into the
realms of heart rate, body
temperature and stress.
The more data healthcare
professionals have, the
better.
In the US, it’s no
secret that tech is
revolutionising medical
devices — notably in the
orthopaedics industry, but
data will increasingly have
a role. As the Affordable
Care Act continues to gain
but on behalf of the UK,
who owns that data? And
can data from Germany be
momentum and establish
presence, there’s an
important point to
shared to doctors in Spain?
More often than not, when
it comes to sharing data
consider: is there a big between borders, it might
barrier to making data- not be a possibility.
driven health service a
So as we look to 2015,
reality?
where Google Fit, Apple’s
Data demon HealthKit and smartwatches
take digital health to the
With millions of people
mainstream, we anticipate
inputting their body data,
healthcare institutions
generated from the devices
to stand up, take notice
they carry and wear on
and make real change that
a daily basis, medical
allows for the sharing of
professionals could build
data, and putting it to
a very clear picture of
good use for the health
the health of the nation —
of the nation. Private
their routines, habits and
companies have kick-started
activity. From there, they
the change, but it will be
can begin to understand
privacy legislation and the
what effect small changes —
public’s attitude towards
such as an extra 100 steps
sharing data that will well
a day — could have. The
and truly decide whether
impact could be huge.
digital healthcare has a
To take this further, an shelf-life or not.
ability to assess the
health of the continent
or indeed the planet
would bring about another
technological revolution
similar to the scale of
the invention of the steam
engine. But there’s one
big, whopping, behemoth of
a barrier — data privacy
laws. On an international
level, the sharing of data
becomes a tricky road to
cross. For example, if
data is stored in the US,
25
7. There’s no such thing
as a (digital) free lunch
No ecosystem is guaranteed
to be 100 percent safe,
which means your data isn’t
100 percent safe either.
Apple iCloud users were
brutally reminded of this
in September 2014, when a
collection of almost 500
private pictures of various
celebrities were leaked to
the public. Did everyone
who read about it or stole
a glance at the photos use
the opportunity to reflect on
their own behavior and check
their own security settings?
Probably not.
This was not the firt time
personal details have been
leaked online, nor will it
be the last: eBay lost 145
million records in June
2014, Adobe lost 152 million
in September 2013 and Scribd
lost 500,000 in April 2013.
What can we trust?
In an online environment,
using services and storing
data in the cloud requires
constant risk assessment:
Is this data I should store
online? Is this information
I want to share? Can I trust
this service’s security?
This requires in turn some
26
1 0 0
1 0
1 0
0 1
1 0
0 1
1 0
0 1 0
basic education on how data
is stored on servers and how
security systems work. These 1 0 0
are the questions we should 1 0 1
all be asking in 2015. 0 1 0
Not all of the above hacks
were conducted in the same 1 0 0
way, but in many cases, 1 0 1
users didn’t make it very 0 1 0
hard to break into their
accounts. Shortly after the
iCloud celebrity hacks,
Google reported that five
million Gmail logins had
been leaked. LastPass
analysed the data and found
that “123456” was the most
widely used password, among
others like “password,”
“qwerty,” “dragon” and
“iloveyou.”
But this shouldn’t come as a
surprise as signing up for
new services is incredibly
easy — creating and
remembering new passwords
for each service is not.
The currency of the internet
If we’re using a free
service, then the currency
we’re paying with is our
personal data.
Building a large user
base we know lots about
27
and then putting the data
to work is how most online
businesses make their
money, even The Guardian.
This helps to explain why
they fear visitors with
no referral data, or “dark
traffic” so much and why
they’re addressing the issue
so publicly. If a company
doesn’t know who their
audience is, they can’t
sell targeting. The result?
Advertisers go elsewhere.
Many of the Guardian’s
readers, however, wouldn’t
know about the tracks they’re
leaving behind and it’s safe
to assume that very few
internet users ever read the
cookie policy of a website
when the note pops up.
The separation of tech and
state
Who is responsible for
creating a cyber-savvy
populace will be a question
asked throughout 2015 —
should businesses be more
transparent or should
governments focus greater
efforts on educating their
citizens?
In the UK, for example, the
government is investing
heavily in a “Cyber
Streetwise” campaign to make
people aware of these issues.
Whereas in Germany, Google
seems to be public enemy no.
1 due to its handling of data
and opposition to a range of
28
rules coming out of the EU. sensitive to the privacy of
1 0 0 1 0 0 their customers.
1 0 1 1 0 1
This was most recently
0 1 0 0 1 0
highlighted in August 2014, Governments and intelligence
when it was uncovered that the services meanwhile are
company’s Google Maps service desperate to get their hands
was tracking each device it on this data. Who will win
1 0 0 was installed on — leading this fight will shape the way
users to quickly review and our data is used, but even for
1 0 1
update their privacy settings. a betting man, it’s way too
0 1 0 soon to tell which side will
Is it Google’s responsibility
succeed.
to make everyone aware of
this, or should we make In 2014, Facebook has been
efforts to look into this for taking some steps to help
ourselves? users gain control of
1 0 0
1 0 1
their privacy settings by
Respectful advertising
0 1 0 introducing a blue helper
As advertisers and marketers, dinosaur and by launching
1 0 0
it’s natural that we want as a Tor-friendly version of
1 0 1
much data as we can possibly its site for those who want
0 1 0
gather to better understand to cover their tracks. If
our target audience. But, there’s even a hint that
in 2015 the smart marketers individuals involved in
will balance this desire crimes and terrorist plots
for knowledge with an are involved, we’ll see one
1 0 0 understanding and respect of hell of an assault on Facebook
1 0 0
1 0 1
1 0 1 the limits people want to put by security services who
0 1 0 0 1 0 on their own data. will blame them for letting
suspicious individuals plot in
If someone has location
protest.
services turned off and isn’t
checking into places through Privacy is here to stay and
apps such as Foursquare, we the challenge for us is to
shouldn’t bombard them with get ahead of the game. Let’s
“I would be really excited 1 0 0 geolocated advertising — even use the data people are
1 0 1 if we are still able to access comfortable sharing to inform
to see other tech companies 0 1 0 that data. our marketing strategies,
that want to do the same. And What we’ll also see is
they’ll thank you for it.
I’d love to help them.” – 1 0 0
increasing tension between
1 0 0 1 0 1 the big tech companies and
Runa Sandvik about
1 0 1 Facebook’s 0 1 0 governments. The companies
launch of a Tor-powered
0 1 0 are gathering this data
for their own ends, but are
version of their offering. also becoming increasingly
29

8. Tech is so not
in, darling
While there are many
early adopters out there
scrambling around to get
their hands on the latest
smartwatch or iPhone, there
are a group of much cooler
kids working out ways to
kill tech altogether.
Welcome to the era of the
neo-luddite. They’re here to
make sure you switch off.
30
Talk to the hand, the phone
ain’t listening
Most of us are either happy,
ambivalent or a little
irritated at the appearance
of adverts on our mobile
apps, YouTube videos or
web searches. But overall
we accept that there is an
unspoken contract between
us and the web. We can
access content for free, in
exchange, brands can make us
look at adverts for a bit of
time.
But there are a growing
number of people who want to
take that virtual contract,
burn it and dance around its
ashes. So much so that they
will be more than happy to
part with a bit of up front
capital in exchange for
the facility to get rid of
adverts from their online
experience altogether. Ad
blocking, as it’s known,
is at an all-time high.
What’s more it’s not grumpy
40-something IT managers
that are doing this — it’s
the youth!
The 18-25 year olds form
the majority demographic
of those looking to banish
the unsolicited advert.
Ad-blocking is set to
continue to grow and as
we look to forthcoming
generations, advertisers
and marketers are going
to have to contend with a
much more hostile audience
when it comes to serving
unwelcome content. But
it doesn’t stop there,
there’s an undercurrent of
people wanting to switch off
altogether.
Digital detox
Like most trends, people
need a place to gather and
show off. Mobile lovers have
MWC, gadget lovers have
CES, anti-techies have
digital detox retreats.
Not content with just
blocking content on their
phones, droves of people
are heading to the hills
to spend time meditating,
pressing juice and smugly
gloating at the fact that
they’re at a strictly no
tech event.
Think that this is just While it’s unlikely that
a flash in the pan? we’ll be seeing thousands
Think again. An entire of people take to the
organisation and business streets in their anti-tech
model has sprung up in the jackets, we will be seeing
US, where people can book
on a variety of different
detoxes and retreats. The
a growing number of people
aggressively dismissive
towards new technology, and
fact is, it’s becoming a the brands that generate
social statement to say “oh unwanted content through
I’m not on Facebook” or “oh new devices.
gosh I just care about a
Building for the anti-
phone that calls people.”
tech generation will grow
Have we saturated people
in 2015 and this, combined
with so much tech that the
with a growing sense of
cool or trendy thing to do
privacy on the web, could
is to rebel by ignoring
fuel a significant economy
and rejecting it? Perhaps.
built around anti-tech.
We’ll undoubtedly see more
But there’s something
of an industry built around
more interesting taking
making real, not virtual
place within fashion and
connections, and perhaps
technology that may bring
savvy marketers will amp
some of the anti-techies
up the emotional, human
back into the warm glow of
connections their brands
the mainstream.
enable rather than focus on
innovation.
But even the anti-techies
are quite techy.
Building tech for anti-tech
A new slant on wearable
tech. Wearable anti-tech!
That’s right, fashionable
items that are being made
to help you disconnect.
How about a dress that cuts
off a mobile connection so
you can interact with real
people? Or a shirt that
wipes out your WhatsApp?
Tech designed to rid
yourself of, well, tech.
31
9. Moving fashion forward
Where Burberry leads,
the rest follow. So,
what should we make of
the designer’s decision
to launch an innovation
division tasked with
exploring the intersection
of fashion and technology?
In an industry where
chasing the new, new thing
is not so much an ideology
but a business model,
staying two steps ahead of
the competition is a smart
move.
For fashion retailers,
that means considering how
technology can enrich and
more greatly personalise
both the shopping and brand
experience. But which
technologies should they
pay attention to?
Wearables
There’s no doubt that
the market for wearable
technology is growing,
but the rate of growth is
unclear. Estimates for the
volume of annual shipments
range from 30 million to
more than 300 million
globally in 2015, as
industry watchers struggle
to predict how consumers
will take to these new
devices.
32
For an industry that Google search for “Polka
makes its money from what Dot Green Jacket” brings
people wear, wearable up more than 18.5 million
technology seems like a results.
shoe-in for the fashion
Apps like ASAP54, The Hunt
business. They generate
and Snap Fashion are aiming
heaps of data, offering
to solve this challenge by
retailers unprecedented
employing image recognition
access into the lives of
technology to look through
their consumers and their
vast catalogues of clothes
products. Insights such
in search of the same or
as how often shoppers
similar item. It’s a step
typically wear a pair of
forward, however image
shoes, can greatly inform
recognition is a tricky
retailers’ research and
business, and further
development efforts as well
development is needed if
as their marketing, paving
these services are to
the way for retailers
prove useful and generate
to target shoppers with
sufficient returns.
personalised communications
when they are likely to Shopping assistance
be thinking about making
Start-ups like Thread.com
another purchase.
and Lyst are digitising
This provides a huge the shopping experience
opportunity to extend and with a personal assistant.
enhance the relationship By combining shopper’s
between retailer and personal preferences with
consumer, going far beyond insights from an analysis
the after sales support of shopping habits, they
offered today. deliver personalised
recommendations to
Visual search
subscribers.
It can be incredibly
Aside from helping shoppers
frustrating when you know
find clothes that they want
what you want to buy but
to buy, this intelligence
don’t know where to buy it.
offers fashion buyers an
Particularly when what you
insight into what consumers
want to buy isn’t easy to
want right now and what
describe. For instance, a
33
 the next hot trend may be. Information
that could be a real money spinner if
managed correctly.
However, success is dependent on
whether a large enough user-base can be
acquired to make these insights truly
representative. Without this, it will
be hard to convince retailers of the
value to be gained through selling via
a third party platform. The race is on
to reach this critical mass.
Virtual fitting rooms
While virtual fitting rooms (VFRs) have
been touted as powerful tools for
personalising the shopping experience
through sizing, low adoption rates
and a desktop-first approach have made
it difficult for retailers to justify
investment. Just one in ten currently
offer a VFR service, according to
Conlumino.
As m-commerce is set to rise by 45.9
percent to $298 billion globally in
2015, it’s clear where the future
for VFRs lies. However, with other
technologies leapfrogging VFRs and
proving more attractive to both
retailers and investors, going mobile
may be too little, too late.
34
Wear next?
Retailers who were hit for six by
10. Going digital: the
road to the UK General
the net and hit again by mobile, are
desperate to stay ahead of the latest
advances in technology. But despite
the best of intentions, retailers
already appear to be failing to keep
up with the fast pace of innovation and
increasingly sophisticated consumer
Election
expectations.
Research by Conlumino reveals a growing
disparity between what shoppers want
and what retailers offer. For instance,
while 40 percent of consumers want
to use virtual fitting rooms, just 9
percent of retailers offer this service
today. Equally, retailers are out of
step with consumers when it comes to
3-D printing, wearables and facial
recognition, with relatively few
planning to adopt these technologies in
2015.
At present, concerns over what return
on investment can be expected from
embracing fashion technology have
deterred more than two-third (71
percent) of retailers. Clearly, fashion
technology must prove its worth if it
is ever going to be truly in vogue. The 28th of April is ”Ed Digital hasn’t radically less resource and to a
Balls day,” where the changed what politicians do potentially bigger audience.
internet commemorates the or why they communicate,
As Ed Balls and others
time the Shadow Chancellor but it has transformed how
have shown, this immediacy
accidentally tweeted his own they do it. They are still
and speed has potential
name. Three Digital Trends attacking their opponents,
pitfalls, and of course
Reports later, it’s a good engaging with their
some MPs are better at it
starting point to see how constituents, expressing
and are using in genuinely
far politics has come in their opinions, but they
imaginative ways. MPs are
using digital technology. are doing it faster, with
now crowdsourcing opinions
35
for what to ask the Prime and (controversially) by political fanatics and election ever. Indeed users have told them.
Minister or Secretaries electronic voting at whilst it does help set we experienced a great Out of home spend will
of State, and just as elections. The first step the agenda, normal voters example of how elections dominate, but the
brands use social to build has already been taken use Facebook more and can be truly brought insights, analytics and
an identity, MPs will with electronic voter there’s no real evidence to life through social ROI advantages of using
often tweet and discuss registration, which may as yet to suggest social media activity during data have convinced
personal matters outside well see an increase in media will get someone to the Scottish referendum, election co-ordinators
of politics, which lets turnout next time round. vote differently. with viral campaigns to spend big on digital.
voters get to know them sparking intense debate.
Missing the point However, like many Conservative Chairman
better than ever before. All the parties have
consumer brands, political Grant Shapps MP is
Despite all these been gearing up for May
Socially savvy MPs parties understand the a big advocate of
efforts, it’s clear that 2015 hastily copying
opportunities these digital and has already
The 2010 election saw the politicians will continue sections from the 2012
channels present to get established a network of
biggest new intake of MPs to not quite get it right US Presidential election
their message out speedily single issue on-message
for a long time and they when it comes to digital. playbooks (and even
and in easily digestible websites, plus very
tended to be younger and hiring former Obama
Perhaps the most high formats to a large regular emails months
more digitally savvy. This staff).
profile example of 2014 audience. before polling day.
will increase in 2015,
was when the Government There is still no real
as new MPs arrive armed Social media as a whole As the election draws
BuzzFeed post persuading evidence of voters
with their tablets, fully will still most definitely nearer the need for
Scots to vote ‘No’ in the being tempted to switch
geared up with Facebook be dominated by Twitter politicians and parties
independence referendum allegiances by social
and Twitter accounts as and Facebook, despite to get their digital
was panned and considered media, but what the
well as a flashy website. the fact that younger communications right
patronising. Obama campaign did so
audiences are moving will be more pressing
Beyond MPs, political well was use social,
Other stunts, such as to new platforms to than ever. We look
institutions have embraced old fashioned email and
the Prime Minister live communicate and share forward to the mischief
digital and several other digital tools
tweeting the re-shuffle information (such as making, rumour mill and
Select Committees have to mobilise existing
were a case of social for Instagram, Pandora, and news scoops that it will
been crowdsourcing ideas supporters to volunteer
the sake of it. The media Whisper). These tend to be bring!
via their websites and their time, donate and
lapped this up, but it more private and harder
social channels for to spread the message By: Nicholas Lansman,
didn’t make any difference to engage with, and when
how to hold Ministers to their online and Group Managing Director,
to ordinary voters and the combined with the fact
and Civil Servants to offline networks. This Political Intelligence
constant drip-feeding of that young people vote
account. Next year will use of digital is also
information simply fuelled less, politicians need to
also see the Speaker’s appealing to the smaller
‘who’s next’ speculation, have tailored messaging
“Digital Democracy parties who do not have
leading discussion away and content that works for
Commission” report, with the resources for major
from the merits of each this audience.
specific recommendations nationwide advertising.
appointment.
on how democracy can use A social media election?
This election will
digital. Ideas so far This misunderstanding
2005 and 2010 didn’t quite see more data driven
have included MPs using of when to employ
deliver the promised campaigns, with
electronic voting in social media will bleed
“internet election,” but advertising, messaging
Parliament (which will into 2015. Twitter is
it’s clear that 2015 and actions all being
save time and money) probably the most loved
will be the most digital based on what end
36 37
Conclusion
Choosing your own path.
It’s such a simple idea,
but it’s one digital
marketers have struggled to
give consumers until now.
We all want to feel in
control of our experiences
and the smart marketers
will be those who place
this choice firmly in the
hands of their audience.
Whether it’s letting them
choose whether to hear an
audio clip, watch a video
or read the copy at their
own pace, choice will define
38
what we do.
This personalisation of
the end users experience
will go way beyond the
content they consume. Their
daily routine, choice of
device and personal health,
will all become powerful
sources of data we can
use to create beautiful
experiences.
For industries as diverse
as fashion and politics,
the challenge for
communicators is the same.
How do we use digital
techniques to enhance
our offering and convince
a sceptical audience of
the merits of our brand
and message. Not every
technique will work, but if
we accept this and learn
from our failures we’ll end
2015 in a stronger position
than we started.
The consumer is king in
2015, and choice is their
power. Remember this and
you’ll thrive. Forget and
you’ll be left scrabbling
for scraps at the bottom
table.
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