The Happy Spotters Handbook

www.happyspotting.com

The Happy Spotter’s Handbook

Hello!This is a guide for veteran and rookie Happy Spotters. It contains tips, examples, and more so that you know exactly what we are after and are inspired to send your spottings to us!

1www.happyspotting.com


Contents:

3 Who are we?

4 What makes a great Happy Spotter? / What’s in it for you?

5 Words from some (very) Happy Spotters..

6 Getting started!

7 Writing a submission...

8 Tips!

9-13 Examples of requests and spottings

14 Get Spotting!

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www.happyspotting.com 3

Who are we?

We (that includes you!) discover innovations around the world. From major brands to small businesses, from low-income to luxurious, from urban to rural, from Beijing to Boston… we track it all.

Your spottings provide trendwatching.com with worldwide evidence of its trends. This global view is part of what makes it such a valuable resource for business professionals.

Great spottings end up in the monthly Trend Briefings (with over 160,000 readers) and the Premium Trend Database.

Each accepted spotting is awarded points, which can be redeemed for gifts. If you want to maximize your chance of earning points, keep reading...

90+ countries2,400+ spotters

Happy Spotting is trendwatching.com’s global network of savvy spotters.


We track all of your contributions, crediting your account with points when appropriate.

When you earn enough points you can redeem them for gifts that include Amazon vouchers, Kindle Fires, iPad 3s and more!

Along with the gifts, you see our insights on the trends we track before anyone else. You get invaluable experience in the world of trend spotting that you can put on your resume or share with your colleagues.

Finally, your spottings might be viewed by some of the biggest brands in the world!

Here is a selection of trendwatching.com’s readers:

Spotters come in all shapes and sizes; students, professionals and retirees can discover fantastic local content.

You do not have to be stylish, we are not about fashion! You do have to be observant.

Spottings can be: new businesses and startups, new products and services, or new marketing campaigns.

A great spotter discovers innovation all around them: on a billboard, in a local café, in a magazine, at a museum, from a friend’s tweets, and more.

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Be curious. Be open. Have an opinion.

What makes a great Happy Spotter?

What’s in it for you?Gifts and more!

* Eschweger Klosterbrauerei, a German brewery, launched a pilsner named after the fictional beverage from The Simpsons


I always feel that the people at Happy Spotting really value my submissions. They treat me like an individual even though they only know me virtually. I have been with Happy Spotting since March 2012 and up to this point I have always received replies to my emails, which to me - in the Internet Age - has become an indicator of basic respect. There are many trend consultancies who also offer you the opportunity to contribute as a trend scout, but you will not regret joining Happy Spotting.

- Marizanne Knoesen, South Africa

Every month or so, interesting new trends are posted, and as a naturally curious person I relish the task of finding out more about this subject matter and uncovering some interesting examples from all over the world. You become very knowledgeable on certain emerging trends - people are constantly wondering where I get all this information from! So, not only is the task enjoyable, and completely pressure free (as there is no commitment to provide a certain number of spottings), but you get great rewards for your time. I’ve just started a Masters course so having the opportunity to collect Amazon vouchers to equip me for my studies has been a total blessing. I’d certainly recommend joining for anyone who’s naturally interested in new trends and innovations and wants a nice way to get rewarded for it!

- Milly Sell, Netherlands

Before being introduced to Happy Spotting I used to surf, search, read, write and share a lot of creative and trend information online. I was not expecting anything in return out of it. I just did it as good karma for my influences. But when I focused on the requests from Happy Spotting as a fun task, I started to see points accumulate in my account along with evaluation of my shared info. I enjoy diving into the ocean of trends... every day!

- Murtaza Patel, Egypt

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Words from some (very) Happy Spotters...


When you log into your account you will see an OVERVIEW. There you will find our current Live Requests.

Each Request is for a trend we are tracking. Some are for existing trends and some are completely new, so you are the first to see them!

Click a Request’s title to expand the description. It will explain what we are looking out for and include a few examples of the trend in action.

Navigate via the tabs to view:

GIFTS - See what is available, and make claims once you have enough points!

HISTORY - Check your old spottings and see which have been accepted.

SUBMIT - Go here if you have a submission...

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Getting started!


Once you have clicked SUBMIT, choose the relevant trend name from the drop-down menu.

Your submission has to be in English; we wish we had the capability to handle other languages but we don’t at this point!

Each example you spot needs its own submission, please do not put multiple examples into one entry.

The description does not need to be long!

Always include the WHO, HOW and WHERE:

WHO - which brand or company did it?HOW - how does it work?WHERE - which country did it happen in?

Please tell us WHEN it happened if you can.

Include a URL that either links directly to the brand/product/service/business or to an article about it.

Then click SEND and you should see a confirmation. You are automatically notified as soon as we process your spottings.

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Writing a submission...

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Tips! Three ingredients for a great spotting:

LOCALWe love it when you send something from your own turf!

RECENTSend examples from the last year only.

RELEVANTMake sure what you send actually relates to the Request!

Improve your chances of getting points:

You will not be awarded points if the submission has already been spotted.

The newer the spotting, the better your chances!

Make sure it is B2C (business-to-consumer), not B2B (business-to-business). The innovation has to affect the consumer, we focus on consumer trends!

Please do not submit new trends that you have spotted. We need examples of the trends we already track. If you have spotted a consumer trend of your own, why not put it on your blog?

If you send us something from major content providers (e.g. The New York Times, PSFK, Springwise, TechCrunch, Fast Company) we are more likely to have already seen it... We read a lot ;-)

Remember – we usually don’t have access to your local newspaper or blogs in your native language.

You have that advantage over us. It is one of the many reasons you are all so valuable.

Finally, the more you submit, the better you’ll get!



Examples of requests and spottings:

Here are four examples of Trend Requests that we have posted in the past along with four

cool spottings from your fellow spotters.

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Description:Molecule-R in Canada offers a kit that includes some instructional DVDs and the required equipment to create molecular gastronomy. Customers can experiment at home with the techniques (gelification, spherification, emulsification) used by top chefs at high-end restaurants.

URL: http://www.molecule-r.com/en/66-cuisine-r-evolution.html

- Sonia Riesco, Spain

Spotter’s response:

EXAMPLES

Professional quality products that enable consumers to master skills.

Consumers are naturally curious about how things are made. They are creative and enjoy learning new things. As many of them grow more affluent, they have the time and money to learn. In today’s knowledge-based economy, skills such as watchmaking, brewing, or professional filmmaking are rare and therefore a source of status.

As more consumers seek to master new skills, new technologies have arisen to match this demand.

We’re looking for examples of (relatively) affordable professional quality products that enable consumers to create premium output.

Request: PROFESSIONALL

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Description:Axa Protection Familiale Intégr@le is an insurance contract designed to protect you and your family from online reputation risks and the dissemination of harmful information (e.g. photos or abusive language on social networks). If there is an issue, AXA guides you through the steps necessary to recover your e-reputation and remove malicious data from the Internet - supporting the cost of resolving the dispute.

URL: http://www.axa.fr/prevoyance-protection-des-proches/Pages/protection-familiale-integrale.aspx

- Florent Lesauvage, France


EXAMPLES

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Products that remove, protect, or restore one’s online (and therefore offline) reputation.

Consumers are spending more and more time online, accessing their profiles and social networks whenever and wherever. Everything that is written, posted or uploaded, is saved somewhere (and can therefore be accessed).

No matter how many times consumers try to opt-out, companies are still tracking their online behavior.

We are looking for examples of products and services that help users protect or clean up their online reputation.

Request: REPYOUTATION



EXAMPLES

Description:The ChuChu Tune is an app from Japan that assesses the compatibility of those in a relationship by comparing their music playlists. Users launch the free app (available in both English and Japanese) and hold their devices face to face “as if they are kissing”. The app searches through both music libraries; if it finds a matching song, it brings it up for shared enjoyment on both users’ phones. If multiple matches are found, the app indicates strong compatibility; if none are found, it delivers a message indicating that the two partners might be better off seeing other people!! PS. ChuChu means kiss kiss in Japanese :)

URL: www.tyo-id.jp/chuchutune/index_e.html

- Arthur Chan, Australia

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Request: COUPLE CATERINGBusiness innovations that meet the needs and desires of couples.

Since the dawn of commerce, brands have offered tailored products, services and experiences to couples. The modern couple is urban, highly mobile, tech-savvy, and very busy!

We are looking for examples of innovations that help couples stay connected, send gifts, and enjoy time together.

We aren’t looking for Valentine’s Day promotions or gimmicks.


Description:Ford India’s “I Pledge To Drive Safe” is a Facebook app that rewards fans for pledging to drive safely. Users can make promises to always use a seat belt, or to check their rearview mirror frequently, and then share them with friends to earn virtual badges or stickers for their vehicles.

URL: http://lighthouseinsights.in/ford-india-launches-i-pledge-to-drive-safe-facebook-campaign.html

- Radhika Kulshrestha, India


EXAMPLES

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Request: BRAND MOVEMENTSBranding with a higher purpose.

Consumers are always looking to be part of something greater than themselves, whether it’s a connection with a higher being, discovering their higher purpose, membership in a like-minded community, and more. They welcome brands to help them in this, as long as the campaign is genuine and has that human touch.

We are looking for examples where brands encourage sharing (often by social media) in a community, and consumer participation toward a cause.


Get spotting! We hope this handbook has helped explain how Happy Spotting works and inspired you to contribute!

We try to keep abreast of global happenings as best we can from our offices in London, Sao Paulo, and Singapore, but there is a certain amount we can’t see.

We aren’t immersed in your national culture, or your local scene. You are. We want you to be motivated to represent your region and send us plenty of cool innovations from wherever you live :-)

There is no minimum amount you have to submit, however, the more the better!

If you move to another country or city after signing up, please let us know. We will always try to email you when we are in your town so that we can meet you and other local spotters. We’ll even buy you a few drinks to sweeten the deal!

Finally, please don’t hesitate to email me with any questions or suggestions you have about the network or system. We are actively planning to make it bigger and better!

Thanks for reading,

Maxwell Luthy,Global Director

[email protected]

The Happy Spotters Handbook

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