Forecasting

The figures are in: online ad spending in Canada will continue to grow by double digits through 2014 to reach close to $4 billion. The highest growth rates, eMarketer says, won't be found in social media or search, but in good old-fashioned video advertising.

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Some of Canada's marketing execs. answer this question with their insights and predictions for 2012 in a recent Marketing magazine article.

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This month eMarketer released its latest Global Media Intelligence report for North America, and as always it contained some valuable insight into media consumption habits and ad spending levels for the coming years.

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As digital marketing continues to appear in every client's campaign deck, there are three key measures of success that are also sure to gain in popularity.

"Marketers are embracing digital advertising even as they admit they don't completely understand what makes consumers engage. The key according to one expert is to consistently innovate digital campaigns, giving consumers are reason to click, read, view or otherwise engage with branded platforms. But, moving into 2012 there are three trends brands need to embrace - and which could help them perform even better in the coming year."


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Canadian retailers rejoice: new data shows that online spending is about to boom. According to the latest Retail Ecommerce Forecast from eMarketer, last year's online spending is set to double by 2015 to reach an estimated $30.9 billion.


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In this week's Adhocracy column, Why Rupert Duchesne has no problem being a nerd, Simon Houpt talks with Rupert Duchesnse, CEO and president of Groupe Aeroplan, a champion of loyalty and points programs, and the valuable data companies can reap.

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Amersterdam-based Trendwatching.com has just published 10 big-picture predictions for 2010.

The consumer trends firm writes, for instance, that "in thriving mega-cities, whose economic and cultural power already often surpass that of entire nations, inhabitants' identities will be closely tied to a city's culture, its brand, its heritage, its 'being.' This means that for big brands, delivering city-specific products, services and communications that truly incorporate a city's character will be a great, human and fun way to pay respect to urban citizens around the world."

Among the examples it cites:

• "Since August 2009, people using five bank machine ATMs in East London have been able to opt to have their prompts and options given to them in Cockney rhyming slang."

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Not so long ago, trend forecasting was a lucrative business. Now, any Joe with an Internet connection can use Google to predict consumer preferences. Or can he?

In Googling the Future, Newsweek looks at how easily accessible online tools can help companies determine rising or falling interest in products or services.

Google offers two such tools: Google Trends and Google Insights for Search. (It also offers Google Hot Trends, which shows users the most recent top 100 phrases entered into the search engine from U.S. destinations.)

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