Isobar 2016 Trend Report: Australian Edition

K E Y T R E N D S

F O R 2 0 1 6

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Our overarching themeis the continued rise of what we call brand commerce

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The gap between brandexperiences and retail experienceswas once immense

Inspiration Transaction

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The connected world hasclosed that gap

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Bringing pointsof inspirationand points oftransaction evercloser together

Social

commerce

Connected

stores

Shoppable

content

Same day

delivery

One click

as standard

Mobile

payment

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We call thisbrand commerceUsing technology to bring moments of inspiration and

points of transaction ever closer together, delivering

seamless, delightful and secure shopping experiences

throughout customer journeys.

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The world of brand commercemanifests in a number of areas we’ll explore now

T H E R I S E

O F T H E M A C H I N E S

AI disrupts everything

T H E O N D E M A N D

E C O N O M Y

Now is the new normal

I N V I S I B L E I N T E R F A C E S

When is an interface

not an interface?

T H E N E W

S T O R Y T E L L I N G

Emotion in the digital age

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Each of which is underpinnedby a number of sub trends

T H E R I S E




E C O N O M Y




not an interface?

T H E N E W



Virtual workforces

The last mile reimagined

Data driven narratives

New narrative touchpoints

Prediction as expectation

Virtual companions

Big data, small things

Messaging as interface

The rise of biometrics

Invisible commerce

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The rise ofthe machinesAI DISRUPTS EVERYTHING

AI is becoming a constant part of our lives, from predicting what we’re going

to say, to predicting where we need to be next.

This will create a new set of minimum expectations from customers, where

brands will be expected to not simply meet but to anticipate needs. Virtual

assistants will move beyond the realm of clunky interfaces to become

genuinely valuable.

S U B T R E N D :

P R E D I C T I O N A S

E X P E C T A T I O N

S U B T R E N D :

V I R T U A L

C O M P A N I O N S

S U B T R E N D :

B I G D A T A ,

S M A L L T H I N G S

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Prediction asexpectationFrom recommendation to prediction: while

recommendation is at the core of today’s digital

commerce experiences, we will see brands

begin to use data to predict when and why

customers are likely to transact with them next.

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N O W

PREDICTIVE MESSAGING

Our reliance on AI is already deeply embedded in

our daily lives. Both Android and iPhone now offer

the ability to predict the next part of a message

based on your and many thousands of others’ prior

conversations.

PREDICTIVE SHOPPING

Pinterest is experimenting with visual search – a

system which combines image recognition and

machine learning to enable users to select an image

then explore thousands of visually similar results.

The ability to “learn” users’ aesthetic preferences,

not simply recommend product based on data

tagging is a potential game changer.

PREDICTIVE SHIPPING

Amazon have patented “anticipatory shipping” – a

system of shipping product before a consumer has

even placed an order. The algorithm predicts future

shopping decisions based on previous behaviours

on site, enabling the retailer to ship packages to a

generalised location in advance of, and anticipating,

a future purchase.

“The (Amazon) patent exemplifies a growing trend among technology and consumer firms to

anticipate consumers’ needs, even before consumers do. Today, there are refrigerators that

can tell when it’s time to buy more milk, smart televisions that predict which shows to record

and Google’s Now software, which aims to predict users’ daily scheduling needs.”- W a l l S t r e e t J o u r n a l

F U R T H E R O U TF U R T H E R O U T

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Prediction asexpectation: in practice

From rec om mendation to predic tion: whi lerec om m endation is a t the c ore of today’s digi talc om m erce experiences , we wi l l s ee brands begin

to us e data to predict when and why cons umersare l ik e ly to transact wi th them nex t.

A N A I P O W E R E D F A S H I O N

S U B S C R I P T I O N

StitchFix is a subscription fashion service powered by

Artificial Intelligence.

Each month users receive a curated selection of

product personally chosen for them by a combination

of machine learning and human stylists.

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COMMERCIAL EFFICIENCY

Knowing what your customers want can be a game

changer when it comes to the commercial side of

the business; it allows businesses to more

effectively plan and deploy their resources.

CONSUMER LOYALTY

Predictive analytics have the potential to transform

our approach to loyalty. Anticipating user needs

before they have the opportunity to look elsewhere

can create smarter auto-replenishment models and

build brand habits.

CROSS MARKETING OPPORTUNTIES

With a clean data set that allows you to predict

consumer habits, there is an opportunity for smarter

cross selling across a brand portfolio.

This adds a layer of intelligence to consumer

segmentations that might not have previously

have existed.

AVAILABILITY OF DATA (AND DATA

SCIENTISTS)

Prediction relies heavily on having a robust and

dynamic data set. Not every brand will have access

to a volume of user data which will make retailer

partnerships increasingly important. Even those

brands with a body of data will require investment in

talent to make that data meaningful - Stitch Fix for

example employ some 50 data scientists.

THE CREEPINESS CONUNDRUM

There’s an extremely fine line between a company

knowing enough to delight you and a company

knowing enough to creep you out. Brands will have

to walk this line carefully and understand how ready

their customer base is for this. In almost all

instances however, perceived value will override

privacy concerns.

O P P O R T U N I T I E S C H A L L E N G E S

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Virtual companionsThe last few years have seen the rise of virtual

assistants, yet interfaces have been clunky and

responsiveness low. The next few years will see

the growth of super-powered companions able to

fulfill complex tasks with little or no input from the

user.

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N O W

CORTANA / SIRI

We’ve all used Siri, either to get it to say something

funny (try asking Siri to beatbox) or to complete a

basic task – such as ‘what’s the weather like

outside?’ These services primarily pull data from the

web and still lack the intelligence or personalisation

to be truly useful.

FACEBOOK M

Human operators are assisting a beta group of

Facebook messenger users in everything from

buying flowers to plane tickets. Each of these

interactions is training an AI which when fully

trained will shift over to being the operator.

Everything in future may be a facebook message

away: need that cab? Simple, send a cab emoji to

FB M and it will be with you in 5 minutes.

F U R T H E R O U T

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Virtual companions: in practice



C O R T A N A P O W E R S B U S I N E S S

I N T E L L I G E N C E

The power of ‘the companion’ goes beyond consumer

applications. Microsoft recently integrated Cortana

with it’s BI intelligence software allowing users to

quickly mine large, complex data sets using voice

commands.

Once connected, Cortana can answer spoken and

written questions such as ‘revenue for last year’ or

‘how many leads has Jeff Jones got in the last

month?’. In future ‘companions’ can effectively

become middle management, drawing data and

making simple recommendations that improve

businesses.

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PERSONAL SERVICE MEETS

PERSONALISED DATA

A well trained AI can offer personal service at scale,

particularly when you add voice recognition.

This would enable digital platforms to replicate at

scale the kinds of service currently offered by

personal shoppers, concierge services or high end

showrooms.

BALANCING MACHINE LEARNING

AND HUMAN INTERVENTION

Even the largest technical platforms occasionally

suffer outages. What are the implications then if a

majority of your customer service function is

outsourced to AI, or delivered via a third party?

Even when everything goes according to plan, AI

still needs to “learn” its responses from human

interactions. An intriguing challenge for the future

will be to train virtual assistants in a set of brand

values and tone of voice.


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Big data, small thingsAs data processing capabilities become more

sophisticated, we will see the power of small

actions, at scale, to make big differences. Think of

them as AI driven ‘nudges’ in the right direction.

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N O W

SMART METERS THAT LEARN

Nest has progressed significantly over the last

couple of years to become a learning thermostat.

It can detect if you’re at home, how long it takes to

heat the home and even wakes up when someone

is near.

SMART CITIES WORKING FOR US

Barcelona is not only a cultural capital, it’s fast

becoming one of the most tech-enabled cities in the

world, with bins that alert the council when they

need emptying and sensors that measure air quality

every minute.

EMOTIONAL NUDGES

Facebook ran a controversial study in 2015 where

they altered the newsfeed mood of almost 700,000

users, and then observed the tone of their

subsequent posts. As you can imagine, both

positive and negative emotions proved infectious.

It is not hard to imagine a scenario in which these

behavioural “nudges” are the new norm.

“Today’s adtech has within it the glimmerings of a computing architecture that will underpin our entire

society. Every time you turn up your thermostat, this infrastructure will engage... Every retail store you

visit, every automobile you drive (or are driven by), every single interaction of value in this world can and

will become data that interacts with this programmatic infrastructure.”- J o h n B a t t e l l e

N E A R F U T U R E F U R T H E R O U T

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Big data, small things: in practice



A M I C R O C H I P I N A H A Y S T A C K

Farmers in Australia are using yield monitors to act like

personal agronomists supplying information to optimise the

real world – a little less fertiliser here, more weed spray

there. With this data, equipment can be programmed for

optimal results, not only resulting in increased yield but also

decreased costs which can run to late six or early seven

figures depending upon the size of the farm.

Data is now gathered across farmlands from sensors built

into just about any piece of equipment, from tractors,

sprayers, harvesters and cattle tags to milking machines

and aerial drones.

At this stage, the data is used mostly by individuals,

however the opportunity and capacity for sharing and

associated macro analysis is enormous.

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SMARTER SYSTEMS

As AI “learns” about situations, it becomes

progressively smarter and more effective, whether

that be Nest learning how to optimise energy within

the home or smart cities learning how to balance

traffic volumes versus air pollution. These smart

systems have the potential to impact everything

from supply and distribution to pricing models.

NEW DATA SETS

As sensors become smaller and lighter, new data

sets are opening up all the time, enabling us to track

everything from mood to movement at scale. The

more data we capture, the more opportunity we

have to use that data in imaginative ways.

DATA ARCHITECTURE

Combining diverse data sets in intelligent ways

requires significant skill in data analysis and

architecture. Even where those skills exist, it will

take time, trial and error for AI to learn and respond

in appropriate ways to complex situations. As

anyone who has ever been mis-targeted online

knows, precision targeting is no easy feat, even

within the relatively simple world of online

advertising.


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The on demand economy‘NOW’ IS THE NEW NORMAL

If next day delivery once seemed impressive, our expectations

are rapidly shifting to encompass same day or even two hour

delivery windows. Flexible workforces enabled by mobile are

springing up to meet the demands of our Uber-fied and Tinder-

fied world.

“Consumers’ expectation that they can get what they want with

ease and speed will continue to rise. This changes fundamental

underpinnings of business”

- Mary Meeker, State of the Internet Report

S U B T R E N D :

V I R T U A L

W O R K F O R C E S

S U B T R E N D :

T H E L A S T M I L E

R E I M A G I N E D

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Virtual workforcesA new economy is growing up based on fulfilling

the needs of the new on-demand consumer. This

is the Uber model applied across a host of other

industries, creating a flexible, on demand

workforce enabled by mobile and powered by

reputation.

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N O W

“AN UBER FOR…”

The Uber model is expanding across industries,

from drinks to domestic cleaning. Services like

Airtasker match users with trusted local cleaners,

errand runners and handymen, enabling them to

filter by reputation and book a one off or regular

service. On the other end of the spectrum, services

like Tipple and Cocktail Runner will deliver alcohol

to your door in less than an hour.

HEALTHCARE ON DEMAND

A cluster of companies such as 13SICK are

competing to offer healthcare on demand, offering

bulk-billed appointments for an in home consultation

around the clock.

ON DEMAND EMPLOYMENT

In the US, the Wonoloapp offers a glimpse of the

future of hiring and resourcing – sourcing workers in

a matter of hours or even minutes for tasks where

companies have difficulty predicting demand.

In Australia we’re seeing the emergence of some

startups in this space, such as TikForce.


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Virtual workforces: in practice



A N U B E R F O R L O S T D O G S

Pedigree has created ‘Pedigree Found’, an app to help

find lost dogs. Owners download the app and create a

profile for their dog.

If their dog gets lost, tapping the alert button inside the

app will immediately generate Google Ad Network banners

acting as instant ‘Lost Dog Posters’ for users in the

surrounding area.

The app was downloaded by 10% of all Auckland dog

owners, with twice as many more people visiting the

mobile web site to check for lost dogs in their area.

An amazing 91% of people who downloaded went on to

register their dog’s details.

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INSTANT GRATIFICATION

The power of mobile means it has never been

easier to match supply and demand. This opens up

a host of new possibilities for brands eager to

surprise and delight their users.

COMMUNITIES OF INTEREST

The peer to peer economy has the power to bring

together communities of interest, not only those

interested in a more transactional relationship.

Services like “Borrow my Doggy” bring together dog

owners with dog lovers in a scenario where

everyone wins.

EVERY BUSINESS IS A SERVICE BUSINESS

In the age of the virtual workforce, any business can

be a service business; employees are no longer a

fixed cost and service design is king. There is a

huge opportunity for brands across categories to

add a service layer to their proposition, such as

Audi’s Unite co-leasing programme.

EMPLOYEES RIGHTS AND STATUS

As Uber have demonstrated, the virtual workforce

raises significant questions about what constitutes

an employee, and what rights and responsibilities

the new virtual economy confers on both workforce

and corporation.

BUILDING A MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL

MARKETPLACE

Virtual marketplaces work when they work to

everyone’s benefit. It is important to consider the

dynamic from the perspective of both buyers and

sellers, borrowers and lenders, employers and

employees in order to build a vibrant and enduring

community.


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The last mile reimaginedIn order to fulfill the expectation of ever faster and

more responsive deliveries, companies are being

forced to reinvent the last mile, creating new

infrastructure and new business models.

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N O W

ON DEMAND DELIVERY

A host of start ups are competing to reinvent the

click and collect model and enable same day

delivery beyond urban locations. Pass my Parcel

leverages a network of convenience shops to

provide same day delivery to over 3,000 locations in

partnership with Amazon. Doddle provide a network

of stores, linked to commuter hubs, where users

can pick up or return eCommerce deliveries.

RESPONSIVE DELIVERY

In yet another example of the uberification of

everything, Amazon are experimenting with an

“On Demand” workforce, equipped only with their

car and their smartphone, enabling them to meet

ever more demanding timeframes. UberRush are

experimenting with a similar proposition.

RISE OF THE ROBOTS

While delivery drones are beset with safety and

legislative concerns, few are betting against them

for the long term. In the interim, Starship

Technologies are hard at work on their land based

robots – small autonomous vehicles designed to

travel on pavements alongside pedestrians.


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The last mile reimagined: in practice



PREMIUM FOOD DELIVERY

Suppertime and Deliveroo have recently launched

in Australia, enabling some of the most

fashionable food outlets in our cities the ability to

deliver to your door in under 30 minutes with just

a few swipes.

When combined with services such as that

offered by Pink Flamingo Pizza in Paris (pizza

delivered in a park to your location marked by a

balloon), the opportunity for impromptu takeout

picnics is obvious.

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NEW PATHS TO PURCHASE

New delivery models open up entirely new paths

to purchase for brands. As new delivery models

proliferate and barriers to entry come down we will

see brands experiment with shorter and shorter

delivery windows, particularly around key peaks

in demand.

FIRST MOVER ADVANTAGE

Data shows that online grocery baskets are often

habitual purchases – shopping lists and favourites

are useful shortcuts. The first brands to experiment

with new models such as Amazon Pantry will gain

a disproportionate advantage from their place in

the list.

CRACKING THE BUSINESS MODEL

While one hour delivery windows for everything

from shoes to soap sounds utopian, not every

category will justify a delivery charge when in many

cases a convenience store is within reach. Yet,

looking to the WeChat model, which has proved

successful in China, we see willingness to invest in

delivery models for relatively low cost purchases –

Durex for example have successfully adopted

WeChat commerce for the Chinese market.

DISPERSED POPULATION

Whilst our international friends enjoy the

opportunities of high density populations, in

Australia they simply set largely unachievable

expectations for consumers.


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Invisible interfacesWHEN IS AN INTERFACE NOT AN INTERFACE?

Currently when we think ‘interface’, images of typing on our mobile

phones, laptops and tablets spring to mind. However, this is the tip of

the iceberg when it comes to what an interface can be.

What we understand by an interface will dramatically shift over the

next few years. Force touch, Amazon Dash buttons, voice and facial

recognition mean we are ready for the rise of the invisible interface.

More and more sophisticated interactions, from authentication to

transaction, will take place with minimal conventional interaction.

“You’ve probably heard the argument that for an app to be truly

successful it needs to earn a place on your home screen…. we could

see another whole class of apps that not only don’t need to fight for a

home screen slot, they don’t need to be opened at all to add value.

And that’s interesting.” Matthew Panzarino, TechCrunch.

S U B T R E N D :

M E S S A G I N G A S

A N I N T E R F A C E

S U B T R E N D :

I N V I S I B L E

C O M M E R C E

S U B T R E N D :

T H E R I S E O F

B I O M E T R I C S

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Messaging as interfaceSMS and messaging apps don’t have the complex

UI of other apps. They’re something all of us know

how to use. Increasingly complex interactions are

now being carried out via messaging apps due to

their ubiquity and ease of use.

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N O W

ORDER WITH AN EMOJI

Domino’s famously created a service that allowed

people to order a pizza by simply tweeting a pizza

emoji. This removed the need to login, choose

toppings or even press pay. Using twitter as the

interface was novel but it shows the potential of

using social apps as an interface for transactions

not just communications.

TEXT ME ANYTHING

GET IT ASAP is an SMS based service that will

complete most tasks for a user, over SMS. Want to

order a pizza? Need something picking up? Want a

flight? GET IT ASAP has operators available that

will complete a task over SMS. The next frontier

(see the Virtual Companions trend) will be to begin

to apply machine learning to these kinds of

services.

TRANSACT WITH A MESSAGE

The WeChat messaging app in China is a glimpse

into the future of messaging as an interface. Users

can interact with multiple other brands via “Official

Accounts” without leaving the WeChat app. They

are able to access the core functionality of those

brands – e.g. book a taxi or order food – within

WeChat and with full access to their WeChat Wallet.

Facebook and Google’s experiments with peer to

peer payment via messaging suggests real potential

within this space across multiple platforms.


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SCALE

Messenger apps have huge built in audiences using

them, be it Facebook messenger or Whatsapp. This

will allow brands to reach audiences at scale,

without the cost of building an audience for an

owned platform.

SIMPLICITY

Messaging apps are ingrained in their users’ daily

habits. They are effortless to use, and constantly at

the user’s fingertips making transaction as effortless

as possible.

CONTEXT

Messaging platforms have huge contextual

understanding of their users – where they are, who

they know, how they’re feeling. This creates an

opportunity for uber (pun intended) relevant

targeting, with the opportunity for each transaction

or interaction to capture further data and build ever

more sophisticated targeting, albeit within a “walled

garden” environment.

THE MESSENGER ARMS RACE

From SMS, to whatsapp, to Facebook messenger,

to wechat, there are a number of players in the

market with significant user numbers. One of the

key challenges for brands will be understanding the

role of multiple platforms and which platforms will

triumph against which audience segments and use

cases.

OWNING CUSTOMER DATA

As with any retail platform, data ultimately belongs

to the retailer – in this case, the messaging app.

The challenge will be to broker partnerships where

the app is willing to open up audience insight to

brands.


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Invisible commerceCommerce as we know it will be transformed.

Contactless payments have already created a step

change in our comfort levels with new interfaces.

A host of new technologies promise to make

secure payment as frictionless as taking a selfie, or

walking out the door.

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AUTO REPLENISHMENT

Amazon’s Dash Button and subscription-based

services are now old news, but signposted the

beginning of a trend oriented around convenience

and it’s a theme throughout this report. With the rise

of connected homes, it’s not hard to see how

subscriptions and items like Amazon’s Dash will

soon not be manually operated or time based, but

rather triggered on actual usage.

PROXIMITY PAYMENTS

From PayPal’s beacons to ApplePay’s NFC to

Uniqul’s facial recognition software, cashless,

location-based payments are on the up and a

logical continuation of the convenience theme.

Moreover, they present a range of opportunities for

retailers looking to offer speed of service and slick

customer experiences.

N O W F U R T H E R O U T

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FEWER BARRIERS TO TRANSACTION

Abandoned shopping carts are a challenge for

every business, online and offline. When transaction

becomes as effortless as swiping a wristband or

pushing a button, opportunities for users to drop out

of the path to purchase are dramatically reduced.

INTEGRATING THE ON AND OFFLINE USER

EXPERIENCES

New technologies such as Facebook’s Atlas

Platform make it increasingly possible to recognise

users across devices. The ubiquity of mobile in

store, the advent of beacon technology and the rise

of new interfaces will make it increasingly possible

to recognise the user across on and offline

channels, building a continuous dialogue across

channels and devices.

CONSUMER ADOPTION

It remains to be seen how comfortable users will be

with new interfaces when it comes to transaction.

The phased acceleration of contactless payment

has helped mitigate concerns but it remains to be

seen whether users will find a degree of friction

reassuring when it comes to payment.


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The rise of biometricsJust as we have been moving beyond the mouse

and keyboard since 2007, we are now starting to

move away from the touchscreen interfaces of our

mobile phones. New ways to interact are opening

up which take more of our senses into account:

voice, facial recognition, even smell and taste.

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N O W

FACIAL RECOGNITION

L’Oreal have experimented with smart vending

machines which map users’ features and enable

them to virtually try on new cosmetics. If they like

the look, they can purchase then and there.

Meanwhile, Listerine Mouthwash have created a

smile detector app designed to notify visually

impaired users when someone is smiling at them.

PAY WITH A SELFIE

Mastercard are rolling out a “pay by selfie” feature

that allows retailers to verify an online shopper’s

identity using a picture of their face. The

functionality will be available in the US by mid 2016,

and in the rest of the world by 2017. In parallel,

Halifax are experimenting with a bank account you

unlock with your heartbeat.

BODY AS AN INPUT

One of the big challenges with buying clothing

online is knowing if it will fit your body type. A range

of technology providers are springing up to tackle

this problem by allowing users to scan in their body

types and create a ‘size passport’ that travels

across the internet with them.


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The rise of biometrics: in practice



A T O V O I C E I D E N T I F I C A T I O N

The Australian Tax Office has begun using voice

biometrics to identify people calling the

department with plans to roll the technology out to

the service’s App in the near future.

The projected impact of the technology is a

reduction of around 75,000 hours per year in call

times.

From a customer service perspective though, it’s

not just a matter of time. Callers no longer need to

remember passwords or other forms of

identification for a service they don’t frequently

use.

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MORE INNOVATIVE AND

INTUITIVE INTERFACES

Being able to interact with brands in more than one

way opens up new commercial and creative

opportunities across all media. Imagine being able

to order from a billboard with a smile, or pay with a

song.

NEW DIMENSIONS IN BRANDING

Typically we have thought of branding in two

dimensions: audio and visual cues. The new world

of biometric interfaces opens up a new world of

branding opportunities, prompting us to think about

the rhythm, texture and ergonomics of a brand in a

world where consumers can touch, and be touched

by, brands in ways never before possible.

PRIVACY CONCERNS

As interfaces become increasingly intimate, privacy

concerns will inevitably arise. As alarming is it may

be to feel passwords or email data is vulnerable, our

biometric data feels more private and precious still.

DEMONSTRATING UTILITY

While biometric interfaces feel innovative and

attention grabbing, demonstrating genuine utility will

be important in securing long term adoption (versus

one off gimmicks). A real opportunity does seem to

exist in categories where face to face interaction

would once have been vital-beauty or skincare

consulting, trying on clothes, etc.


42

The new storytellingEMOTION IN THE DIGITAL AGE

Storytelling remains at the heart of everything we do as

marketers. New technologies are opening up new ways to tell

those stories, and new narrative opportunities.

In the world of programmatic, the opportunity is to see data as a

new canvas for storytelling, experimenting with new, non linear

and personalised stories at a scale never before possible. As

Google’s Ben Jones puts it:

“Data is waiting for its Scorsese”

More broadly, we must begin to think of a brand narrative as

something that lives across every touchpoint – where commerce,

packaging and delivery are not interruptions to the story but

opportunities for the story to reach its climax.

S U B T R E N D :

D A T A D R I V E N

N A R R A T I V E S

S U B T R E N D :

N E W N A R R A T I V E

T O U C H P O I N T S

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Data driven narrativesProgrammatic at its simplest is about marrying

context and content to deliver more personal,

relevant messages. We see 2016 being the year in

which data and creativity come together, to create

new models and opportunities for storytelling.

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N O W

RESPONSIVE CREATIVE

The last 18 months have seen the rise of

responsive creative, reacting in real time to real

world events. On a global scale, this was most

obvious during 2014 World Cup activities, where

smart brands such as Adidas and Nike responded

in real time to events on the pitch and served up

relevant copy to joyous or despondent fans. In

Australia, Isobar have worked with Holden to create

responsive social content during NRL matches.

DYNAMIC STORYTELLING

Few brands have as yet grasped the potential of

programmatic as a new canvas for telling brand

stories. Yet the opportunity is ripe for personalised

narratives, narratives played out in different ways to

different audiences, narratives pieced together by

fans. The “Lost my Name” book is a superb

example of the power of technology to deliver

personalised narratives offline - how long before we

see its equivalent online?

DATA DRIVES ALL MEDIA

More and more channels are now available to buy

programmatically, from TV to Outdoor. This opens

up the opportunity to bring data driven context to

every creative interaction. Imagine a billboard that

alters its messaging based on weather, time of day,

your gender or the data stored on your phone?

While dynamic messaging based on facial

recognition has been trialed to great impact in a few

cases, expect responsive creative to become much

more widespread.


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Data driven narratives: in practice



S E E K G E T S D Y N A M I C

Together with Isobar, SEEK have been exploring the

boundaries in creativity and programmatic.

Six industries within the SEEK target market were

identified, offering more than 70 different creative

permutations in all.

It’s early days for the campaign however results to

date are very strong, providing an early indication of

where we might be able to go in the near future with

personalised ads.

The promise of the internet allowing one to one

communications may yet become a reality.

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PERSONALISATION AT SCALE

The tension between making the most of data and

targeting opportunities while delivering at scale has

been a challenge for many brands, particularly in

the FMCG category. The opportunity going forward

is to deliver personal relevance with no loss of

reach.

A NEW CREATIVE MEDIUM

Programmatic offers brands new ways to stretch

their creative muscle. Seek is just one example, but

it is relatively straightforward in its approach despite

the many variations. We predict 2016 will be the

year when brands begin to use this canvas to

deliver completely new kinds of narrative.

COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS

Although agencies will seek to find ways to deliver

more assets more cost efficiently, inevitably multiple

copy variations means increased cost. The question

will be: when does the cost outweigh the benefit? Is

the increased personal relevance (and likely impact

on conversion) delivered by dynamic copy worth the

increased cost? And how many variations prove

effective before diminishing returns set in?

BRINGING DATA AND CREATIVITY TOGETHER

Great storytellers are not often great number

crunchers and vice versa. The challenge (and

opportunity) will be to bring these diverse skillsets

together in ways that inspire rather than intimidate.


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New narrative opportunitiesAs the gap between moments of inspiration and

moments of transaction shortens, we must think

not just about how to enable effortless transaction

but how to ensure every touchpoint is an

opportunity to build brand equity.

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N O W

PACKAGING AS NARRATIVE

Mast Brothers have built an extraordinary narrative

around their “bean to bar” chocolate, a narrative

made tangible through it’s quirky, covetable

packaging. That narrative has recently come under

scrutiny, with questions around provenance

demonstrating the importance of authenticity and

transparency.

RETAIL AS NARRATIVE

Starbucks understand better than anyone the

importance of building a compelling, integrated

narrative across their stores. Not only does their

mobile ordering app form an indelible link between

online and offline brand experiences, capturing rich

cross channel user data, their “Starbucks Reserve”

stores capture the authentic theatre of coffee

making.

DELIVERY AS NARRATIVE

While few brands have a clearly differentiated

delivery proposition today, the Net a Porter group

have long lead the way. With same day delivery, the

ability to schedule free returns, iconic packaging

and slickly suited delivery teams the experience

embodies the brand from start to finish. Similarly

Ocado, having built a clear delivery proposition (and

technology infrastructure) are expanding far beyond

their origins in grocery.


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New narrative opportunities: in practice



L Y R I C C O K E

Isobar China partnered with Coca-Cola to turn every

bottle of Coke into a conversation starter.

Each bottle featured a QR code that could be

scanned to activate a short music clip – a “musicon”

as the agency put it. Those short clips featured fun,

playful lyrics that users could then share on

WeChat.

The animated musical clips were designed

specifically to be shareable in social media, and to

leverage WeChat’s QR code scanner, making every

bottle of Coke a social object that extended the

brand narrative of fun and shareability.

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EVERYTHING BRANDS, EVERYTHING SELLS

Opportunities to connect everything from packaging

to stores in a seamless digitally enabled journey

enables brands to tell a connected brand story at

every touchpoint.

CONSISTENCY AT EVERY TOUCHPOINT

As the number of brand touchpoints proliferates,

and the number of third parties involved expands,

ensuring a consistent and distinctive narrative at

every touchpoint will become challenging.

Brands will need to identify key points in the journey

which become signature experiences - opportunities

for them to surprise and delight.


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The world of brand commerceis enabled by a number oftechnologies we’ve explored

T H E R I S E




E C O N O M Y




not an interface?

T H E N E W



Act or accept.- Anon

Isobar 2016 Trend Report: Australian Edition

Technology

Transcript of Isobar 2016 Trend Report: Australian Edition