bio- dynamic

CONSUMER FORECAST
BIODYNAMIC
SPRING/SUMMER 2015
BIO-DYNAMIC:
TRIBES
INTRO
The consumer tribe associated with the BioDynamic trend is called The Adapters.
WHAT’S DRIVING THE TREND
The Adapters are driven by adaptability and
versatility, and they’re looking for brands that
not only mirror these traits but also allow
them to pursue the fluid lifestyles they crave.
They are ambitious consumers who are keen
to seize opportunities, but are also aware of
their impact on the world around them and are
determined to make a difference.
S/S 15 CONSUMER FORECAST
BIO-DYNAMIC
NO.1
VERSATILE
As the name of this (mainly) young consumer
tribe suggests, one of the key characteristics
of The Adapters is their versatility. They
continuously challenge the status quo and
value brands that will help them achieve the
fluid lifestyles they crave.
PRIORITIES
NO.2
MEASURING
CHANGE
The Adapters are keen to make a difference in
the world, and often prepared to pay more for
products or take on jobs that earn them less so
long as they can achieve this goal. Brands that
win with this consumer group are those that
recognise and exploit this characteristic.
BACKGROUND
We explore the qualities and characteristics
of The Adapters through three key themes:
Versatile, Measuring Change and Opportunity
Seizers.
NO.3
OPPORTUNITY
SEIZERS
This consumer tribe are not backwards in
coming forwards: they are adept at recognising
and seizing the opportunities that come their
way and are not afraid to make a change in
order to better themselves.
BIO-DYNAMIC
NO.1
VERSATILE
EXAMPLE
One of the key areas where The Adapters
show their versatility is the workplace. In order
to succeed with this group of consumers,
companies need to offer flexibility. They must
show a willingness to learn new ideas and
change the status quo with new structures
and hierarchies. “There should always be an
expiration date in mind, or an option to renew,
whether it’s a project, a product, or a new
business unit,” says Econovation author Steve
Faktor. Adapters appreciate organisations that
espouse a “startup” mentality, where change
is encouraged. Corporations and brands that
emphasise education or foster a learning
experience will also succeed. New companies
such as Learn27, which allows businesses to
form their own “online academies”, or Rypple,
which offers employees instant or “microfeedback” are beginning to meet this demand.
“Learning and working are becoming one and
same,” says workplace learning consultant
Jeanne Meister.
BIO-DYNAMIC
NO.1
VERSATILE
INTRO
Cutting-edge gaming company Valve is an
example of a brand that is pursuing a more
unusual and forward-thinking approach to the
workplace. “Valve fosters unorthodox thinking
through a corporate culture that’s unusual
even by the quirky standards of technology
companies. While many startups pay lip
service to flat organisational structures, Valve
emphasises that its workplace is truly ‘bossless’,” wrote Nick Wingfield in the New York
Times. Employees have no formal titles and
are not told where to sit or who to work with.
Instead, they decide where they think their
contribution will matter most. The company
also takes this approach to their products,
actively encouraging consumers to modify
their games, and in so doing engaging with
their audience.
BIO-DYNAMIC
NO.2
MEASURING
CHANGE
INTRO
Future employees are keen to make a
difference in society. According to a recent
survey by the nonprofit Net Impact that is
focused on social and environmental change
through work, 53% of US workers agreed with
the statement “a job where I can make an
impact” is “very important or essential to my
happiness”. The desire to achieve measurable
change was even stronger among young
people and students about to enter the
workforce; 72 percent of this group agreed
with the statement. And a lot of these would
even be prepared to take a 15 percent pay cut
to achieve that goal. “There is a huge, unmet
opportunity to connect employees to the final
product - no matter how far in the back-office
they might work,” says author Steve Factor.
BIO-DYNAMIC
NO.2
MEASURING
CHANGE
INTRO
Adapters are also keen to measure their own
changes and improvements in the workplace,
and we are beginning to see brands and
apps that help them achieve this. Vizify is
a new type of resumé that allows users to
display their talents as a “graphical bio”. By
plugging in information from their social media
sites, Vizify creates a series of “interactive
infographics that show the best of you” and
can “amplify your personal brand and show
off your expertise to people searching for
you”. This consumer tribe also responds well
to brands that help them effect social and
environmental change - but in a way that
retains street credibility. Warby Parker is “like
TOMS, but cooler,” according to WGSN’s
associate editor of retail and events Andrea
Bell. The brand offers an “alternative to the
overpriced and bland eyewear available
today”. And for every pair sold, a pair is
distributed to someone in need.
BIO-DYNAMIC
NO.3
OPPORTUNITY
SEIZERS
INTRO
Members of The Adapters tribe seize new
opportunities when they come along, and
are not afraid to change course mid-stream.
In the workplace, this means keeping these
consumers engaged and challenged if you
want to hold onto them. According to a joint
study by Mr Youth and Intrepid, the number
one reason why young people switch jobs is
that they “just needed a change”. And this was
seen to be more important than increased
salary, benefits or a more senior position.
Some 91% of Gen Y people expect to stay in
a job for less than three years, according to
Future Workplace’s Multiple Generations @
Work survey. This trend looks set to continue
as the rules of retirement change and older
people stay in their jobs longer. Without the
opportunities to seize within, Adapters are
more than ready to find the opportunities they
crave elsewhere.
BIO-DYNAMIC
NO.3
OPPORTUNITY
SEIZERS
INTRO
The notion of seizing opportunities and
responding to change as it happens is key
for The Adapters. This group lives on Twitter,
Instagram and other social networking
sites, constantly refreshing, responding,
commenting and updating. WGSN’s coverage
of Cannes Lions notes adaptability as a key
trend for brands to harness. WGSN’s senior
editor for digital media & marketing, Rachel
Arthur, wrote: “The speed of social media
means that marketers need to plan campaigns
on the go, so they can place brands at the
centre of the action.” Companies that are
doing well in this space include Visa, which
released new spots in real-time during the
2012 London Olympic Games, responding
to athletes’ achievements, and Tide, which
put out a picture of safety workers cleaning
up a fuel leak during a Daytona 500 event.
The benchmark for real-time, Arthur says,
is “Oreo’s effort at this year’s Super Bowl.
When a blackout occurred during the game,
it took the opportunity to push an image of an
Oreo cast in shadows over social media with
the tagline ‘You can still dunk in the dark’.” It
generated 15,000 retweets within 14 hours
and 20,000 “likes” on Facebook.
BIODYNAMIC
KEY
TAKEAWAYS
The Adapters tribe values versatility and the chance to grow, learn and
change.
They prefer brands and corporations that respect their need for new
structures and work environments.
This consumer tribe is keen to make a change in the world.
They like to measure their own progress and appreciate tools that allow
them to do this.
They are not afraid of change and actively seek out and try new
opportunities.
S/S 15 CONSUMER FORECAST
BIO-DYNAMIC
RESEARCH & REFERENCE
ECONOVATION
VALVE
Econovation is a trends book that the author
says “challenges business leaders to think
differently about the next decade” and
envisions a future “ruled by ‘producerism’, not
consumerism”.
Econovation: The Red, White, and Blue Pill for
Arousing Innovation, Steve Faktor (ISBN-13:
978-1118054000)
Valve is a tech company that has reinvented
the traditional workplace structure in order to
maintain a successful and creative output. .
www.valvesoftware.com
www.nytimes.com
www.amazon.com
LEARNING
NET IMPACT
Consumers are responding to brand efforts
to aid learning. Rypple helps managers and
employees improve performance through
continuous coaching, real-time feedback
and meaningful recognition. Learn27
helps organisations set up digital learning
academies.
Net Impact is a community of more than
40,000 student and professional leaders
creating positive social and environmental
change in the workplace and the world.
netimpact.org
www.social27.com/Learn27
work.com
FUTURE WORKPLACE
IDEA FAKTORY
Author and noted speaker Jeanne Meister is
a partner of Future Workplace, a consulting
firm dedicated to assisting organisations in
rethinking, reimagining and reinventing the
workplace.
Idea Faktory works with tech startups looking
to partner with bigger corporations to solve
big business challenges. They also work with
established companies to help transform or
revitalise brands or products.
futureworkplace.com
www.ideafaktory.com
S/S 15 CONSUMER FORECAST
BIO-DYNAMIC
RESEARCH & REFERENCE
VIZIFY
VISA GO WORLD
Vizify is an online tool that allows users to
implement their social networking data into
“graphical bios”. The idea is to reinvent the
resumé.
Visa’s Go World campaign responded in real
time to the athletes achievements during the
London 2012 Olympics.
www.vizify.com
corporate.visa.com
WARBY PARKER
TIDE
Warby Parker is an eyewear company that
is also helping to make a difference, helping
people who need glasses but can’t afford
them.
P&G detergent brand Tide became the centre
of the action when it was used by safety
workers to clean the track following fuel spilled
during the Daytona 500 race.
www.warbyparker.com
news.pg.com
WHEN MILLENNIALS
CALL THE SHOTS
OREO
The goal of the Millennial Inc study was to
“show you what your company would look like
if Millennials were already in charge”.
www.millennialinc.com
Oreo turned an unexpected blackout during
the Superbowl to its advantage with the “You
can still dunk in the dark” campaign. They have
also reacted in real-time to newsworthy events
such as the Mars Rover landing.
www.fastcompany.com
S/S 15
THE ADAPTERS
CONSUMER FORECAST
SEASONAL
EVOLUTION
The Adapters are driven by their qualities of
adaptability and versatility and they are looking
for brands that not only mirror these traits but
also allow them to pursue the fluid lifestyles
they crave. They are ambitious consumers
who are keen to seize opportunities, but are
also aware of their impact on the world around
them and are determined to make a difference.
A/W 14/15
THE MACHINISTAS
INTRO
Every six months, the consumer forecast
offers a breakdown of how consumer tribes
are developing, offering you the top line of
our consumer research department’s ongoing
research. The consumer tribe associated with
Bio-Dynamic is evolving, from the New Wave
Culturalists we identified for 2013, through
the entrepreneurial Machinistas of Industrial
Evolution to the versatile and globally driven
Adapters.
As our relationship with machines change,
we will become different types of consumers
and workers. The Machinistas - the Industrial
Evolution tribe - will invent new roles for
themselves in the workplace. They are
energetic entrepreneurs, always experimenting
with new ideas and embracing technology.
2013
NEW-WAVE
CULTURALISTS
New-Wave Culturalists will have pride in
the idioms of their own community but also
be inspired by those of their growing global
network. “New-Wave” refers to this complex
layering of cultural reference, and to the youth
of the majority of its participants. People from
the emerging middle class will make up much
of this consumer tribe, and consumer identities
will be shaped far more by whether they are
dipping into or out of it, rather than extreme
poles of poverty and wealth.