07 January 2019

2019: The Year of No Predictions

Last year there was a prediction. It was a pretty good one, coming true over and over again:

image02 JULY 2018
The Year Of Big Gets Bigger
NostraChuckus, famed soothsayer of the obvious, continues to amaze with his humdrum prognostications…

This year will be too crazy for predictions. (Whoops. I just made a prediction.) And I’m not even talking politics.

Troublemaker Mark Ritson has fun with end-of-year predictions:

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/816023246659153920/GJd223zm_400x400.jpgDon’t be seduced by the pornography of change
Marketers would be far better off focusing on what definitely won’t change in 2019 and making a list of all the things they could do better than being distracted by hollow predictions…

Colleague Barry Robertson over at Boomer/neXt looks back at 2018 and offers a few predictions:

Times Square Drops The Ball Once A Year: Madison Avenue Drops It Every Day
… Among the 20/30-something advertising and brand professionals whose creativity is fenced in by Big Data and carefully crafted research that meets management’s meme of the moment, the world beyond the 18-49 demo is not only mysterious but forbidden territory…

imageI’ll make some predictions that will not come true. If they do, I’ll eat my Echo:

Hire older, board reports say
… While younger people are usually better equipped with hard skills, especially degrees and certifications, older workers have a leg up on soft skills many employers say are lacking…  (More on this topic.)

Ignoring Baby Boomers Leaves Revenue on the Table
image…Despite the enormous spending power of this generation, they are largely neglected by advertisers. Despite controlling 70% of the nation’s disposable income, only 10 percent of marketing dollars target consumers over 50… (My prediction is that this market will continue to be ignored, leaving billions on the table.)

Now we should heed the wisdom of age
by Yvonne Roberts
image… The stereotype of an elderly person is frail and weak; what is too often overlooked is the sagacity, resilience, appetite for new experiences, wisdom and strength that come from a perspective formed through decades of life unfolding and the patience that older age can bring…

I just got a great idea! This’ll be a running gag theme in my blog this year – predicting what won’t happen.