Nine things that will define 2009...

Today Adverblog posted Leo Burnett's 9 predictions in marketing for 2009. Take a minute to read them and tell me there isn't a tremendous opportunity for the church to make a difference in 2009. It's being handed to us. I'm praying we step up to the challenge, change where needed and don't drop the ball.

I'm personally absorbing this set of inspirations for the new year and asking myself how this changes what we do and why: on the web, on the printed page, in our programming, etc.

1. New realism. Economic conditions will profoundly affect our context going forward. The speculative affluence era will be replaced with a grounded and socially creative phase. Our culture will become more tangible and honest forcing us to be much more realistic. The human story will be one of value reassessment; examining our priorities and purchases in light of what is truly meaningful to us.
2. Hyper-reality. The pace of change is accelerating around the world. Status quo is changing real-time with real consequences
3. Trust economy. In turbulent times we look to organizations who share our concerns, manage anxiety and take the lead.
4. Eco austerity. Austerity turns the environmental case to an economic one. Products that use less energy, and are cheaper because of it, can’t be argued against.
5. Digital TV. We’ll reach a tipping point for broadcast quality. Media neutral TV (watching tv online) will go mainstream.
6. Thread marketing. Content will be free from central control and will be tradable across multiple networks. Ideas, brand logos or simple web URLs will form the threads that link content together.
7. Generation game. As economic pressures encourage us homeward, soon we will all be part of generation game. Did you ever expect to be playing tennis with your granny in the living room? No. Well, don’t be surprised when gaming pushes things even further beyond our comprehension.
8. End of fact. Perceived wisdom now changes on a daily basis. This year expect more contradictory opinions and diverse solutions being presented as definitive. In the future we will cherry-pick what constitutes fact. It will be the modern equivalent of the hypochondriac with the medical textbook.
9. Brands as vehicles. Brands are landing points. We follow our needs and and we invariably end up at a brand. This is all set to change. The days of the static brand are increasingly numbered. They are the means not the end. The brands of the future will be vehicles not just destinations.

Comments

[jordan]

"affluence era will be replaced with a grounded and socially creative phase"

Translated =
Goodbye Nordstroms
Hello Wal-Mart

Oh wait you said socially creative...hmmmm.

[dan ohlerking]

i particularly appreciate your description of item #9 "end of fact" - it is a concept that is intriguing to say the least.

and i think, i hope, i pray that we as the body of Christ will seize the opportunity of a culture that is increasingly devoiding itself of absolutes and stand with a clear message of hope anchored in the Truth.

and nate, i believe there are actually a LOT of us who are finding there are great churches out there who are ready for the changes kem describes. thank God we aren't all sticking our heads in the sand.

great post kem!

[Nate]

Wow. . . and how will the Church react? Somehow I get the impression that most churches will yell about how the end is near, and we need to pull ourselves away from society's evil pluralism.

But then, I spent 17 years of my life in a Bob-Jones-Univ-dominated lifestyle. My assumptions were proven wrong when I found Liquid Church. Maybe there are more churches out there who are willing to view these predictions objectively.