Could consumer goods companies meet the individual needs of people in real time, rather than making assumptions about what they want based on what they bought a few months ago?
In two worlds modeled in our London and LA hacks, our teams explored the potential for vitamin-fueled, bespoke energy shots that were tailored 100% to the individual’s nutritional needs – manufactured at the point of sale to a recipe that reflected real-time biometric data.
I think the relationship between a consumer and retailer or manufacturer will matter just as much, if not more than, the product or service on offer. Value for money will shift to value for time, and consumers will only spend that time with the people, products and brands that meet their needs.
In many of our future worlds, successful goods and services are those that are tailored to the needs and preferences of individuals, not to groups. But in the future these individuals will become harder to categorize. As people shift their priorities and their focus, brands will have to respond much faster to a changing audience.
Resumen
Future consumers will use new technologies to reshape their sense of identity. The categories that companies use to understand consumers today will become less relevant.