‘I’
I am the centre, it’s all about me.
What’s in it for me? I strive for me. I want to do something for me. Whether my reward is status, a good feeling for myself, a product or financial reward, I’ll take it. Do we all need to be ‘green’? Sure, if it helps me sell my products or services. Do we need to give to charity? Obviously; if it relieves my guilt or it gives me a great story to tell my friends. Do we want problems to be solved? Clearly, but only if there’s a reward.
…and make it happen With a world of possibilities and multiple identities I have the tools to fulfill all my dreams. I have the ability to create my best image. Whether in the virtual or real world, I can be what I want to be without necessarily having the talent. Participating in a group art installation by Sagmeister enables me to make the claim ‘I am creative’. Showing my fashion in an art gallery, like Marlies Dekkers did in the Kunsthal, makes me a vendor and an artist.
Control
I am in control of my own life, my environment and my interactions. Time is mine, and I will use it in the way that suits me best. Cafés are not adhering to the smoking ban, as rules and regulations no longer matter. I’ll find a way around it, as I am in power. Also, are you ever late for an appointment and still expect to be seen? I am in control. Choosing SMS and email over personal contact to not have a direct response, gives me feeling of control over conversations. Having a laptop that can be taken to every place, and with the possibility to always be online through hotspots in trains and cafés, gives me mobility and therefore control. Evidently I am more loyal to myself than to my employer, as there is an increase of 215% in freelancers, since February 2007, researched by simplyhired.com. I have the need to choose the assignment that I, myself, benefit from.
Be it all‌
Possibilities are never-ending. Make sure I am everything and anything. I am a singer/songwriter. I am a lawyer/writer. I am a DJ/VJ and an AJ. I am a freelancer/employed/ student. I am the /generation.
iChange
Marriage, careers and dreams are not forever any more. Even countries that believe in marriage are changing, in Spain for example, a couple divorces every 4 minutes. Planning long-term is too far away and becoming a surreal wish. And why should I? The world is open and full of choices, why compromise this by making long term plans? Take a sabbatical and after it, I’ll change my career and move abroad. I’ve seen it all before. Accountability is only to myself. I’ll do what I want, change what I want.
‘I’
Retailforcast
I am the centre, it’s all about me. I am your future consumer, difficult to please. I want to be everything, do everything and control everything. And if I need a change, I’ll change. I have no loyalty to anyone, but to myself. Brands beware! Make sure there’s something in it for me. Cut to the chase; what to keep in mind? Forget groups; consumers are all individuals. Collect as much information on them as you can, because you’re going to need it. When the economy is slumping consumers really will want to know what’s in it for them. Without brand loyalty you need to win the consumer by finding out what they really want for themselves. Needs might be the same, but fulfilling of these needs is different for every individual. Give them a choice of brand benefit.
Choice is a good choice, as our consumers want control. They already have a say about the product they buy, retailers ask them for advice. This is just a tipping point, for them to be more and more in power in the near future. As a retailer, keep this fact in mind. If your client wants to be in power, give them the power, at least give them the illusion of being in control. In the near future they will not only have a say in the product itself, but also in the other p’s; place, promotion and even price. Customers will be bargaining about the price of every t-shirt and jeans they buy.
So our future consumers are selfish and have a need of being in power. The /generation is taking over. A generation embraces their selfishness and control. Excluding everyone -unless they need them- and they’ll be everything themselves. Give them a chance to be everything. Make them their designers. Make them their stylists. Make them their photographer. Make them everything they want to be. Just help them make it happen.
Responsibility is only for the consumers themselves. If they want out, they’re out. Erase and rewind, because they’ll change their mind. They’re short-term planners. They bought trousers last week, but want a shirt now. See how you’ll make a shirt out of those trousers. Just married? Marriage is not sacred any more. What to do with that suit or dress when they’ve changed their minds? The clothing library is a solution, consumers borrow an outfit and give it back... tomorrow they will borrow another outfit, because they changed their mind anyway.