Trend: Accelerated Culture

In an Accelerated Culture we have to operate and function within the fast-pace of our networked culture and the slow-pace of our physical culture. While some can’t keep up, others gain business.

Trend Description:
The same amount of information we now absorb in 1 year was absorbed in 100 years in the 17th century. No doubt: Email and wireless accelerated the flow of information. Information now moves so fast, that it is often hard to keep up. Still, there are some companies that capitalize on the fast-pace of information. Others just can’t keep up. Plus: Information moves so fast our days, that the actual truth-factor is often hard to judge. As a result of this successful companies and marketers can’t follow the “truth of information” or so called information culture any more, they have to create their own culture, brand.

Cases:

H&M
H&M moves fast. Just weeks after the latest fashion hits the runway, the fashion-retailer has mass produced copies on the sales-racks. The clothes look good, are affordable and even if they are not of the highest quality: Consumers don’t mind, because fashion moves fast, too!

Starbucks
Comfy chairs, wireless internet connection, good coffee and some healthy snacks: Starbucks defines coffee culture in the US. As laid-back European cafés, you might find in Paris or Vienna, are basically not existent, the idea of Starbucks was not hard to establish. Starbucks moved fast and defined a new café-culture with the approach of a huge business-chain. Now it is so successful, that it even spreads to Europe.

Walmart
Despite all the criticism against Walmart: The retail giant has successfully established a brand for itself that is more than alluring to the consumer: The concept of “Everything cheap - Always” even inspired a collaborative to create the idea of a giant discount-city, called “Waltropolis”. Now Walmart also wants to make “organic food” available for the masses. If this is good or not is another question, but it is a fast and bold move making the retail giant a winner in today’s accelerated culture.

Trend Impact:
Traditionally marketing has always followed culture. Products were pitched to certain target groups, sorted by demographic factors and researched by surveys and focus groups. But now it gets harder and harder to figure out, who belongs in a certain group. People cannot be figured out by age and income any more, marketers have to know their interest, their taste. An almost impossible goal thinking of all the different interests and tastes there are. Therefore the marketer has to define the product, the brand and try to attract as many people as possible. Marketing is not about finding the right target group, but the target-groups finding the brand. It is all about buzz and brand-recognition.

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