People come to together in a time of crisis. The Internet is enabling the spirit of mutuality but more interestingly the recession is driving people towards collective buying. A strategy that people have little time for when the economy is good but in harsher times could turn tables on companies who are seen to be too greedy.
Last week's Economist describes how the residents of the San Francisco have been signing up enthusiastically for a new green energy campaign called 1BOG- short for "One Block off the Grid". It asks homeowners to switch solar energy one block at a time by organising them into buying-clubs. The more people who sign up, at any time the bigger the discounts. Finally the contract to supply, install and maintain the system is put out to tender the "Carrotmob" outsources the work to the most competitive bidder.
Marketers have long harped on about the shift of power moving from the company to the consumer, but it's not actually happened until now in any great measure (with the exception of a few groups on Facebook). The fact remains that the majority of technology companies are still interested in what interests them rather than what interests their customers.
So many women tell me that technology is "way to complicated" "designed by men for men" "lacks any intuition" "is frustrating and dull."
Imagine another world, where women Carrotmob for intuitive and sexy technology. Technology that was made with women in mind. Where substantial numbers of women gather together and say what they want. Where ten-thousand women were to draw up a list of their ideal next phone/TV/PVR/console and pledge to buy it. Where tech brands bid to build and support this product knowing that they had guaranteed buyers, and in return women would have to honor their contract.
It's about time we carrotmobbed for intuitive, human technology that reflects what we are interested in.
What would your ideal phone/TV/PVR/console/piece of kit look like? How would it feel using it? How would it be different from whats out there now?
Your thoughts please.
This is the type of consumer empowered behaviour that inspired us to write Crowd Surfing. It provides corporations with a new set of challenges and opportunities. The smart ones, such as Virgance (one of the driving forces behind 1BOG and other campaigns) will work out how to harness this spirit of collective action.
Style and function in't a new concept, but today's functionality with yesterady's style might be? I miss the big plastic phones with the finger pinching rotating dials. I'd love to have one of these again but have the receiver be a cordless phone and its base serves as a cradle rather than the other half of the phone. I just got a modern DAB radio but wrapped with a vintage look. I wish the word modern isn't synonymous with sleak, shiny and minimalist. When something is modern, it operates with the latest technoloy but is packaged in a style most befitting the buyer's taste.
Belinda Parmar
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Member since: 17 Aug 2008
Last login: 18 Nov 2009
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