In this month’s edition of Trends Across the Planet, we take a look at Amazon Prime’s upcoming original show about Manchester City’s soccer team, a trucker hat from Ford that helps keep sleepy drivers awake, tattoo regret, a dating app for self-professed geeks, and much more. We also share our final 2018 “Trend to Watch,” focusing this month on sleeping pods for weary airport travelers.

1. December 2017

2. TRENDS ACROSS
THE PLANETIn this month’s edition of Trends Across the Planet, we take a look at Amazon Prime’s upcoming
original show about Manchester City’s soccer team, a trucker hat from Ford that helps keep sleepy
drivers awake, tattoo regret, a dating app for self-professed geeks, and much more. We also share
our final 2018 “Trend to Watch,” focusing this month on sleeping pods for weary airport travelers.
We’ll see you again next month!
Happy reading!
Team Momentum

3. RETAIL/FASHION
APP OF THE MONTH
TRAVEL
JUST FOR FUN
QUOTE & STAT
OF THE MONTH
TREND TO WATCH
ENTERTAINMENT
TECHNOLOGY

4. SOCCER SNEAK PEEK
In November, Amazon Prime announced a new video series that takes viewers
behind the scenes during UK-based soccer team Manchester City’s 2017/18
season. An Amazon Prime Original, the program will be released in 2018 and
available for streaming in more than 200 countries. The program will include
interviews with the manager and access to executive meetings, along with a
peek into the club’s training facilities.
“The usual,” “conventional,” “typical.” These are words that today’s consumer tries to
stay away from. And brands? Well, they’re doing everything they can to try and make
sure that consumers don’t view them this way. Amazon Prime continues to prove it
has the pulse on what’s popular, relevant and and in-demand. Their recent endeavor
with Manchester City proves that they’ve done their homework, marrying the global
popularity of soccer with a behind-the-scenes perspective, wrapped up as original
content accessible on-demand. The world is changing–and consumer behavior is
changing. Brands need to adapt with consumers or risk extinction. If Amazon Prime
continues to develop original content like their soccer endeavor, they’ll be just fine.
VIEW
ENTERTAINMENT

5. GREAT GIFTING
US fashion brands Athleta and Banana Republic entered into a partnership last
month with the e-gifting service Loop Commerce to offer customers GiftNow.
The goal is to simplify the online gift-giving process which, while seemingly
worry and care-free, is actually not always that. With GiftNow, lucky recipients
receive an email with the gift’s details and can then select their preferences,
from color to size, as well as shipping address (or, exchange it for something
else entirely), ensuring that they get exactly what they want.
Let’s admit it right now, gift giving can be a stressful, tedious task.
Totally time-consuming. And remember what we’ve said in the past?
Today’s consumer wants convenience and superior service, seeking
out brands that make tasks like this a little easier (and faster). GiftNow
has done their homework, taking the time to understand the everyday
gift giver’s pain points and turn it into a solution. Consumers will
reward a brand or service that has made the effort to go the extra
mile to lend a hand, and more.
VIEW
RETAIL/
FASHION

6. SOCIALLY SHIP SHAPE
Recently, Costa Cruises expanded its WeChat Mini Program for guests on
board their ships in China. The cruise line’s program provides guests with
complimentary onboard Wi-Fi which enables them to participate. With access
to the program, guests are able to book entertainment on the ship, make
duty-free purchases, reserve tables at the ship’s restaurants, and pay for
experiences via WeChat.
Consumers have a desire for truly relevant and useful information. Tools
and services that provide the right information at the right moment, in
a simple and digestible format typically draw the most want and praise.
Costa Cruise’s WeChat program is a step toward streamlining customer
service–integrating technology to simplify the process, while taking
some of the burden off Costa and giving the guest a feeling of control
over their itinerary. We expect that this Costa Cruise example is just one
of many we’ll be seeing in 2018 when it comes to travel.
VIEW
TRAVEL

7. “Our concept success rate has improved
dramatically since we started taking the time
to get our insights and benefits right and in
consumer language.”
Derron Wrubel, Innovation Consulting
Foods Division, Nestlé USA
94% of Gen Z believe companies should help
address social and environmental issues (vs. 87%
of Millennials and 86% of general population).
Source: Cone Communications
QUOTE & STAT
OF THE MONTH

8. WAKEUP CALL
Ford has introduced a truckers’ hat designed to prevent drivers from
falling asleep at the wheel. To tie in with their 60th year anniversary of
truck production in Brazil, the Ford SafeCap has sensors and a gyroscope
to track head movements and warn the driver with sound, light, and
vibration. The cap has met with such praise and popularity, that Ford is
(smartly) looking to expand the product to include car drivers, too.
A recent global poll found 80% of consumers agreed that businesses
must act to improve social and economic conditions in places where
they operate (up from 74% last year). Ford has done just that, taking
their brand and enveloping it with meaning and purpose that catapults
them to a new level–a brand that stands for something. Small
companies (or start-ups) often have an easier time responding to
causes than their big brand counterparts (all that red tape!), but when
a company like Ford is able to make a difference, it’s a chance to show
consumers the brand’s power and ability to do good.
VIEW
TECH
NOLOGY

9. LOOKING FOR LOVE
Last month, a new dating app launched to help “geeks” find love. Created in
Asia, Cuddli matches people who share common interests that many might
identify as “geeky” like comic fandom and cosplay. Using a “swipe” system
similar to the Tinder app, Cuddli also includes a feature in which a user must
respond to an existing match request prior to matching with new people. There
is also “couples mode” which lets users who make a successful connection
make it official by enabling them to talk to other profiles, but not gain new matches.
The creation and evolution of the digital world has transformed how we
connect with strangers and friends and in some cases, even more. In the
case of Cuddli, you could classify it as your typical online dating app and
call it a day. Yet Cuddli shines by thinking deeply about the end user they
want to attract, defining the benefit to promote it and enforcing just that.
The app’s Tinder-like elements also offer up a familiarity that ensures an
instant comfort level. But, at the end of the day, Cuddli’s success will be
its curation of users who are linked by their similar interests and passions.
VIEW
APP OF
THE MONTH

10. RE-THINK THE INK
A rise in tattoos = a rise in tattoo regret. Even though the majority of people
don’t look back after getting a tattoo, roughly one-quarter (23%) do regret
getting inked (up from 14% in 2012). According to the International Society of
Plastic Surgeons, peoples’ regrets are for a variety of reasons, ranging from
poorly designed tattoos to drunken decisions and post-breakup name removal.
JUST FOR FUN

11. WILL THIS TREND ACTUALLY TAKE OFF?
What do you do when you get stuck with a long layover at the airport? Or, when your flight is
delayed? Well, you can hit the bar, shop the duty free, or sleep (with one eye open, of course),
however napping peacefully is close to impossible, right? One company will be pushing for a
solution with their nap pods, called napcabs, in 2018. Currently located only in Munich and
Berlin airports, but expected to expand (or, have copycats pop up across the world), they are
designed to give exhausted travelers a chance to rest their weary heads before their next flight.
Pods can be rented by the hour and come in a variety of different styles from a futuristic chair to
a capsule-style chamber (which are pretty much morgue-like drawers).
TREND TO
WATCH: 2018

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SOURCES:
Amazon Prime
GiftNow
Costa Cruises
Ford SafeCap
Cuddli
napcabs
Cone Communications
Trendwatching
Momentum Worldwide