TODAYShow.com contribuer Peter Greenberg recently posted his top picks from this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Among the top picks were Wildcharger, a charging pad that allows you to wirelessly charge multiple cell phones, even if you’re using an MP3 phone, and it charges just as fast as a wall plug, Driving Alert Master, a device that hooks onto your ear (like a wireless headset) and alerts you when you are nodding away at the wheel, Go Gear Flash audio video player, a 4GB digital audio video player is small (about the size of an iPod Mini) and lets you watch videos for up to 4 hours, and my personal favorite, the RoadTrip Blender, a camping blender that mixes up to 30 pitchers of margaritas before it needs recharging from your car’s lighter. Now that sounds like a FUN roadtrip!!

Marketing Trends: Top Consumer Trend Predictions for 2009

As we approach the end of 2008, and businesses begin to prepare for the new year, it is important that marketers begin looking ahead to try to understand the top consumer trends that are forecasted for 2009.  There are many new changes in the ways consumers are behaving, and as a result the traditional marketing techniques are not performing as well as they have in the past.  In order to be successful in 2009, it is critical that businesses understand these changes, and are able to adapt to accommodate them.

Here are my top consumer trends for 2009.

Community Development - As 2009 begins, look to see an increase in community development, both online, and in the real world. Traditional, hierarchical social groups are breaking down, a result of the wholesale fragmentation of America. Basic needs to connect are getting met in smaller communities more directly relevant to people’s interests and experience.

Consumer Control & Customization - Consumer desire for total control is raising the bar on what products and services are expected to deliver, and customization of these products and services is going to be critical.

Thrifty Shopping - This trend is about an evolution, maturation, and stabilization of the new economy.  As the country struggles to re-gain its economic stability, new measures of “success” are emerging, with status awarded for tenacity, creativity, and entrepreneurial smarts – survival skills of this new and challenging time.

Hyper-Activity – We live in a multi-sensory, multi-tasking world.  Consumers today use cellphones, PDAs, computers, video games, and instant messaging – all at the same time. Managing the most info, and being the person “in the know” is seen as a badge of pride. Because of this trend, consumer messages are packed into every inch of time and space, vying for attention, so businesses must really find new, edgy ways to make their messaging stand out.

These macro-trends signal a major shift in consumer needs, wants, desires or passions in the upcoming year.  If you plan to successfully engage your consumers, you must understand these trends, and learn how to use them for your benefit.

Viral Advertising: Engage Your Consumers!

In today’s marketing world, consumer engagement and communication is critical.  Customers want tailored communication from companies, and if the message is strong enough, consumers will pass the message on to their friends, family and colleagues.  This transfer of messaging from one person to another can create potentially exponential growth in the message’s visibility and effect, making the message “viral.”  Compared to traditional marketing, viral marketing campaigns may only require initial costs and minimal maintenance fees after launch. They can be very cost effective for their reach.

There are many different marketing mediums that can be used to create and distribute a “viral” message, including blogs, email, audio messages, mobile messaging (text messages), online videos, podcasts, and online games, but it is the message itself, where the true value lies.  If the messaging is not compelling, than the campaign will not turn viral, and the message will not be relayed.  A 2007 survey by Deloitte & Touche found that 62 percent of consumers read consumer-written product reviews on the Internet.  Of that percentage, more than eight in 10 say their purchase decisions have been directly influenced by the reviews.  Seven out of 10 of the consumers who read reviews share them with friends, family or colleagues, thus amplifying their impact.

So how do you get your message to go viral?  There are three key components in a successful viral campaign:
1. Distribution: The size of your “patient zeros” – or your base participants.  You must have a target audience to communicate with.
2. Engagement: It is critical to understand what drives people to pass the message on.  Common drivers include humor, common interest, and value.
3. Relationship Building: You must be able to capture the audience’s attention immediately, and bring them back again and again.

As you begin to develop your campaign strategy, remember the following critical points:
Your main goal should be to engage and involve your consumer. Create a personalized experience that each consumer can “show off” to family and friends.
Leverage social media tools such as blogs and social networks to reach a large audience in a short amount of time.
Update the campaign frequently to encourage revisits and increase exposure.

Lastly, don’t expect your viral marketing campaign to pay off immediately. Like a real virus, viral marketing takes time for the campaign to develop and reach critical mass.

Social PPT: How to Create a Standout Social Media Presentation.

There are a wealth of social power point platforms available to users today, meaning that there is also a wealth of social media information and content out on the net just waiting to be read.  With all the “competition” out there, how do you make your presentation stand out from all the rest?  Here are some professional tricks of the trade to get you noticed.

1.) Become a thought leader.  Don’t simply create another presentation on “What is Social Media” or “how to Use Social Media,” because you will surely get lost in the shuffle.  Instead, focus on developing a niche in the market, and become a thought leader in that niche. Stand out from the crowd!

2.) Build a compelling presentation.  Remember, you are uploading this presentation to the web for others to find and read.  Your presentation must be edgy, and informative, in order to keep users engaged in your content.

3.) Use keywords, and tags, when you upload your powerpoint to the website, to maximize search-ability.

4.) Keep it visual.  Your viewers don’t want to be sitting around reading slide after slide for fifty-two slides.  Use graphics whenever possible to convey your message, and try to balance your writing with imagery.

Hopefully these tips will help you develop your own intellectual property for the web.  If you would like additional information on social media, check out our whitepaper on slideshare (one of my favorite social ppt sites.)

Online advertising directly impacts web design strategy.  Over the past decade, online advertising has made a large impact in the marketing space, and the way that companies represent themselves online.  In the past, online ads were viewed much like television commercials, unpopular amongst consumers, and marketing experts had not fully bought-in to their value.  Now, online visitors seem to expect to find ads on commercial sites, and advertisers, now understanding the real value of the advertisements, have even begun to develop new and innovative advertisement techniques.

One great example of this is an ad that Mac placed on the Wall Street Journal home page.

Mac broke the boundaries of traditional online advertising, and inadvertently, created a viral video campaign that flew with amazing success around the net.

The learning lesson here?  If you are going to advertise online, throw away traditional marketing boundaries, and think outside of the box…er…banner ad.  It is only through creativity that this industry will grow and prosper.