Anjali Lai says, “Many times, what we want says more about us than what we do. This is why readers are fascinated with news from the Consumer Electronics Show, which gives us an aspirational glimpse at the technology of tomorrow. This is why Google publishes the most frequently searched “how-to questions,” which reveal what people are striving for. It’s also why emerging customer insights methodologies like social listening, which uncover visceral consumer reactions and desires, are gaining traction. Two weeks ago, people around the world expressed their wishes for 2016 by sharing... [...]

Steven Wright says, “It’s that magical time of year for many companies when year-end closing and Q1 sales kick-off planning are in full, folie a deux swing. For this analyst, 2016 will be the first time in over 20 years when I haven’t been involved in planning and delivering a sales kick-off event. My sigh of relief far outweighs any twinges of nostalgia. After all those kickoffs some things are clear: The more marketing and product management talk about products the less sellers will remember – This is a sales event, not a marketing one – the focus should be on how to sell to,... [...]

Fiona Adler says, “A few weeks ago, I learned that my credit card number was part of a large data breach and that I needed to cancel it immediately. My first thought? Panic and trepidation – what if someone already charged my card? What about the companies I have recurring payments with – will they reject them and charge me fees? How do I remember all the companies with which I even have recurring payments? As all these questions entered my mind and I started questioning my loyalty to Capital One, I received the following email (pictured) explaining what I needed to do as a customer,... [...]

Xiaofeng Wang says, “Marketers in China are increasingly investing in social marketing: Three-quarters of the marketers we surveyed in 2015 plan to increase their social marketing budget in 2016. However, they struggle to determine the best social marketing strategies and tactics to engage with their target audience. My report, Take Three Steps Toward Social Success, introduces Forrester’s Social Technographics® model to help them. Step 1: Use the Social Technographics Score to evaluate how important social media is to your marketing plan. Based on how much social media matters to consumers’... [...]

Paul Miller says, “The Internet of Things, or IoT, finds its way into a lot of conversations these days. CES in Las Vegas last week was awash with internet-connected doo-dahs, including cars, fridges, televisions, and more. Moving away from the home and into the world of business, the IoT furore continues unabated. Instead of connecting cars to Netflix or a teen-tracking insurance company, we connect entire fleets of trucks to warehouses, delivery locations, and driver monitoring systems. Instead of connecting the domestic fridge to Carrefour or Tesco or Walmart in order to automatically... [...]

Gaurav Kohli says, “Consumers increasingly turn to their mobile phones for searches, store visits, and purchases engaging with a seamless overlay of real and virtual mobile-optimized shopping experience. Mobile search is always on, — on the go, at home, in-store, and at work, and through a mobile web browser, in-app access, or voice commands. As the consumer purchase cycle on mobile devices, — from browsing to researching to buying, — becomes more consistent, conversion rates and mobile cost-per-click (CPC) will go up. In the future advertisers will generate more search revenue from... [...]

Kate Leggett says, “It’s a no-brainer that good customer service experiences boost satisfaction, loyalty, and can influence top line revenue. Good service — whether it’s to answer a customer’s question prior to purchase, or help a customer resolve an issue post-purchase should be easy, effective, and strive to create an emotional bond between the customer and the company. Here are 5 top trends – out of a total of 10 – that I am keeping my eye on. My full report highlighting all trends can be found here: Trend 1: Companies Will Make Self Service Easier. In 2015,... [...]

Kristopher Arcand says, “With the winter shopping holidays now behind us, Forrester is wrapping up its annual qualitative exploration of US consumers’ perceptions of the holiday season, both for their own behavior as well as what they observed across retailers. The retail industry has seen an increase in consumer spending compared to last year — possibly due to savings from lower gas prices. Overall, we saw that consumers felt less compelled to go out and buy gifts on Black Friday itself, but they still love a good bargain. Some other insights we gathered: Black Friday sales effectively... [...]

JP Gownder says, “If I hear one more story about “the next big thing” only to find it’s a niche product like a skateboard or a toy like a consumer drone or a convenience tool like a smartwatch or a fancy way to open a door or detect smoke, I think I’ll puke. The last big product innovation was smartphones. And it was a doozy. Most people don’t really need another new gadget. They need the game-changing gadget they have to do more. I believe we are still at the beginning the biggest technology-fueled shift we’ve every seen, the mobile mind shift. A smartphone... [...]

Andrew Bartels says, “Forrester has just published our global tech market report for 2016 and 2017 (see “The Global Tech Market Outlook For 2016 To 2017- The Five Themes That Will Define Tech Spending In The Next Two Years”). For the first time, our January 2016 global forecast includes telecommunication services (voice and data, wireline and wireless), which increases the overall size of the global market for tech purchases by business and government by $625 billion to a total of $2.9 trillion in 2016. However, even the addition of telecomm services cannot pull the global tech market... [...]