Content: Consumer Trends

I’m obsessed with how consumer trends influence business development and growth across categories. Maybe it’s because as an entrepreneur it was crucial to track trends and growth of categories. Or perhaps it’s because my work as an editor and researcher for a hugely popular women’s lifestyle magazine allowed me to follow trends from behind the scenes. Last year I began contributing articles to Medium.com that trace consumer trends in the areas of wellness, travel, family, and culture. Below are a few of my favorite pieces of content.

TRAVEL TRENDS

As the weather in New York City finally starts to warm my mind automatically turns to summer vacations and travel plans. I’m not alone: Almost half of all Americans take at least one trip during the summer months.

For me, vacations have always been one of my favorite ways to reconnect with my family. Traveling together as a family affords us time to form new memories, enjoy unique experiences, and spend time together in ways that work and school don’t usually allow. It turns out my reasons for traveling with my family are common ones. In fact, research by New York University’s School of Professional Studies, found that half of families have a main priority of visiting new places and exploring together when they take a vacation, while more than 40 percent of families travel in order to relax and unwind together.

THE RISE OF PERSONALIZATION

We might as well call the age in which we live the era of the individual because of the huge increase in hyper-personalized goods and services. And the latest development is the boom in companies using genetic testing to create the ultimate in customization based on an individual’s DNA.

Consumer genetic testing was named one of the top 10 global consumer trends for 2018.

Euromonitor International named consumer genetic testing to be one of the top 10 global consumer trends for 2018. In fact, the direct-to-consumer genetic testing market is expected to increase by more than 500 percent by 2026 from from $117 million last year to $611 million, according to Credence Research.

WHY PLAY IS IMPORTANT

Every week I read an article about a future in which AI takes over jobs that are currently done by people. It is a terrifying prospect to think of robots taking our place in the office. In fact, it was a major theme of discussions at this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos.

Luckily many experts believe that AI will never be able to replicate the creative and empathetic work that people are able to perform. At Davos, Kai Fu Lee, a Taiwanese venture capitalist and AI expert said we need to develop the skills that are unique to humans. “There are four things AI cannot do as well as humans: creativity, dexterity, compassion, and complexity.”