Welcome to 2011. 100 Things to watch this year.

Happy new year everybody! 2011 is finally here and we are ready for the final few months of our undergraduate education. Exciting times.

So to kick things off in 2011, let's have a look at JWT's annual forecast and their 100 Things to Watch in 2011. The list has generated a lot of buzz online and puts forward a lot of interesting ideas.


These are my top 3 things I will be watching for in 2011:



1) Electronic Profiling


What would you say if the next time you buy a beverage from a vending machine, the machine will have the ability to to decide which drink you are thirsting for?

It is already happening in Japan and it's called 'electronic profiling', where cameras built into the machines match customers to profiles based on both age as well as gender. In addition, the technology is also used for facial recognition billboards that change their message according to gender.




2) Scanning Everything

Scanning barcodes and QR codes will become ubiquitous. Customers will be able to shop and engage with brands directly from their phones through a QR code link.






3) F-Commerce

Facebook has overtaken Google in the US, in terms of traffic. With 500m users worldwide, more and more brands use Facebook for their campaigns and to engage with consumers. A recent trend has seen some big brands like Victoria's Secret and Delta Airlines selling directly through the social networking site. I think 2011 is going to see more and more brands using 'F-Commerce'.







Check out the full presentation. Which are your top things to watch in 2011?

JWT: 100 Things to Watch in 2011