Buzz Marketing's 2007 Trend Forecast

So you've seen some of the items that will be hot in 2007--but what about the larger trends? Tina writes about Wharholism, teens' expectation of fame; Massclusivity, exclusive products designed for the masses; Technoholics, the rapid development of technology that is becoming popular amoungst the younger crowd; and Celeb-Zero, the idea that celebrities are no longer worth idolizing. Read about all this and more in Blue Note!

Nothing starts a new year off fresh like some trend predictions! While 2006 saw the launch of many innovations, I believe that 2007 will see the launch of even more products along with some major behavorial trends. Here's my list of the top four trends that all should pay attention to in 2007:


Wharholism – Today's youth truly believe that they will indeed be famous for at least 15 minutes! With quickly emerging sites like Myspace and Youtube, user-generated content is opening up opportunities left and right. And, of course, there's still reality TV to help with the fame game. But it's not just teens that are doing this. Fisher Price launched a toy last year called the “Star Station” that allows the user to perform karaoke while simultaneously broadcasting the performance on TV! Now every 3 year-old in the country can actually have their experience with fame. How will this shape their generation?


Technoholics – Technology will continue to reign supreme in 2007. From computers to cell phones and even gaming machines, youth will be fascinated by any and all things hi-tech. With innovative products for tweens like the Nintendo DS (with its text messaging capabilities), technology is becoming even more manageable for the younger set, too. Systems like the Wii are making gaming a family activity, and it will only grow stronger in 2007.

Massclusivity – It was one of my favorites in 2006, and it's only going to get bigger in 2007. I've defined this as creating exclusive products for the masses. The iPod is a great example, allowing each user to have the product while “exclusively” customizing it to their liking. Massclusivity is popping up everywhere. You can now customize TV viewing, music listening, and even clothing items. 2007 will see the birth of even simpler, and even more popular, massclusive products.

Celeb-Zero – Youth used to aspire to be like their favorite celebrities. While weekly magazines may still be selling millions of copies at the newsstands, they have led to creation of this last trend: celeb-zero. These weeklies and web sites like tmz.com – not to mention countless blogs writing up every celeb's dirty deed - have lost their effectiveness with the youth audience. Couple this trend with Warholism and you quickly get the picture: Why would I want to praise you for being a famous pill-popping, no-underwear-wearing, unintelligent person when I can launch my own blog/Youtube show and garner fans myself? Marketers will have to rethink the celebrity endorsement strategy, as consumers are steadily losing faith in celebrities' ability to be inspirational.

There are, of course, a few mini-trends that will also be happening in 2007:

Social Networking 2.0 – more niche networks will appear and thrive with targeted groups.
Retail Experience – youth will be apt to spend more time in the malls this year. Retailers like Hollister are burning up the youth market, and with the re-launch of Macy's, malls will once again be the cool place to go.
Girls Gaming More – It's becoming cooler and more fashionable for girls to play video games. Nintendo DS even comes in a cute pink color for girls! Online sites like Yahoo! now feature female-friendly games on their site.
Books Are Important – Even though periodical readership is on the decline, I think that young people will again become interested in reading books this year. With the launch of one new interesting book series, the reading flame will be reignited. There will be a peaked interest in history and politics, and of course music and fashion.