1. INSTANT SKILLS
All the gear, AND the idea.
Why 2015's status-hungry prosumers will LOVE services that allow professional-quality output – minus the learning or time barriers.
We’ve been banging on about STATUS SKILLS for years now (since 2006!). And in 2015 – fueled by everything from mass affluence to digital narcissism – hundreds of millions of ‘post-status’ consumers will care less about what they have or buy and more about what they can do or create.
Nothing new there. But, with cravings for lifestyle maximisation still as intense as ever, reducing if not eliminating the barriers to the creation of high-quality output will be the key to delighting aspirational consumers everywhere in 2015.*
Mindful of how Instagram created an army of instant art-photographers, try kicking off a brainstorm by asking how your products and services give prosumers the INSTANT SKILLS (and corresponding status fix) they will demand in 2015.
Seedsheet, Palete and HEXO+
Crowdfunding during November 2014, the Seedsheetoffers aspiring gardeners a simple ‘plug and plant’ approach. The service enables customers to enter the location of their garden (to identify which plants will thrive), and plan their bed using the online garden-building software. A custom ‘Seedsheet’ is then despatched, which can just be unrolled onto soil and watered.
Announced in September 2014, US-based Palate Home's Smart Grill promises to ensure that food is perfectly cooked. The sensor-equipped device connects to an accompanying app, through which the user (‘chef’? ;) inputs what’s being cooked and their cooking preference. The grill can sear meat, and automatically hold food for up to an hour once cooked.
HEXO+ is a drone that follows and films its users autonomously. Once people have entered the perspective from which they wish to be filmed, the drone follows their every move, automatically maintaining the desired framing. Developed in the US, the HEXO+ raised over USD 1.3 million