Industry, Online, Consumer and Mobile Trends in Retail 2009

With the standard flurry of predictions at the start of every year, it's always hard to pick out the value from the vast swathes of text that fill up the multitude of published articles. To make it easier I've distilled out some pointers towards what I believe are the key trends you should be keeping an eye on for 2009.

General Retail Industry Trends

1. The credit crunch will continue to get worse
2. The e-channel is still growing fast
3. Experience is everything – Compelling cross-channel experiences are driving product sales and loyalty
4. Outsourcing is maturing
5. Customer-centricity is driving business transformation
6. Business innovation is being driven by creativity and design
7. Disruptive innovations are lowering barriers to entry
8. Buyer niches are changing (gender, age, generations 'Y' and ‘Z’)
9. Trial before purchase is becoming expected"
10. Social credentials are defining brands (eco, green, CSR & PSR)

Online and Ecommerce Trends

1. User participation e.g. reviews and ratings is taken for granted
2. RSS syndication and sharing capabilities have become the norm
3. Price comparison is a de-facto expectation
4. Businesses are increasing their spend on digital advertising
5. Businesses are leveraging social media and networking for strategic marketing
6. Revenue sharing advertising and affiliation models are becoming the norm
7. Virtual payments are taking off e.g. Paypal Secure Card, Google Checkout
8. Branded prepaid payment cards are becoming more common e.g. Payoneer
9. Local and Hyper-local social networks are gaining traction e.g. Ning
10. Virtual worlds are expanding
11. Internet TV and Video streaming are becoming mainstream
12. Make it yourself media has exploded – collaboration, pictures, blogs, music, video, games

Consumer Trends

1. Customers are becoming more demanding as web2.0 is giving them a voice
2. Customers are expecting convenience and collaboration
3. Group buying is taking off - Crowdstorm, Yub.com
4. Social Shopping is becoming popular - Kaboodle, Wists, ThisNext
5. Crowd-sourcing is becoming normal in both decision making and purchasing behaviour (starting with reviews)
6. Social Media online is exploding
7. Premium products and services still sell well
8. Green is becoming iconic and a brand differentiator
9. Personal Social Responsibility is beginning to supplement Corporate Social Responsibility
10. Peer to peer selling of second hand items is increasing

Mobile Trends

1. Mobile notifications are becoming standard
2. Mobile payments are becoming viable
3. Mobile marketing is still under-utilised
4. Mobile games are gaining popularity
5. Location and Bluetooth based mobile social networks are increasing
6. Downloadable and Developer applications are becoming popular
7. Open source platforms are being released

[Trends originally posted by me on my work blog]