We’ve got about two weeks here at the One Degree offices (virtual as they may be) before we break for the holidays. To wrap up the year in fine style I’ve asked some of the One Degree Contributors to provide us with a rewind of 2006 and a fast forward to 2007 to give you something substantial to chew on as the days get shorter. Kate Trgovac shares her thoughts on the highs and lows of this year and what we can expect next year…
1. Rewind – What trends in Internet marketing surprised you in 2006? Brands having MySpace pages.
2. Rewind – Did you add any new tools to your online marketing toolkit in 2006? YouTube … PumpTalk at Petro-Canada was really successful and provided some great learnings and insight.
3. Fast Forward – What do you see as the biggest trends in Internet Marketing in 2007? Niche rules. The long tail rules. Marketers are going to have to get way smarter and way faster about finding their really passionate and really profitable audiences. Marketers must embrace the long tail and stay nimble. Also .. tech & marketing will need to develop closer relationships. I don’t know that marketing, in its current traditional form, can stay up to date. Consumers innovate faster than we do. We need to surround ourselves with smart geeks and smart customers – people who can keep us up to date and honest.
4. Fast Forward – At the end of 2007, what do you expect we’ll be looking back at as overhyped?
At the risk of being unpopular … SecondLife. I don’t think it’s sufficient for realworld brands just to open stores there. What about the unique SecondLife brands? My concern is that it’s working simply because its new. But is there a sustainable model for using SL for a realworld brand? I’m not convinced we’ve seen it yet.
5. Fast Forward – Any SPECIFIC predictions for 2007? Buy-outs, bubbles bursting, records broken, reputations toppled, break-out companies? In sticking with my niche theme … big social networks that don’t protect my privacy or my identity will fail. Smaller, more easily trustable social networks will thrive (so MySpace drops while Maya’s Mom grows). More focus on kids and families as we start to realize that the current generation lives and breathes digital in a way older folks don’t. Integration of assets across delivery platforms—anyone who can easily get my pictures to be stored on flickr, featured in my blog, streamed to my brother’s cell phone and featured on the TV in my parents living room will win. One content source; many painless access points.