Digital Trends to Watch in 2010

From a digital marketing perspective, the landscape continues to evolve.  These are some of my picks for issues that I’ll be watching this year.  What will you follow in 2010?

1.  TV Viewing – Many touted 2009 as the end of network television. With the advent of Digital On-Demand, DVRs, Hulu, mobile phones, and iTunes, to name just a few viewing opportunities, I am certain that the way we watch our favorite shows will continue to evolve in 2010.

2.  Augmented Reality – By combining digital graphics with real world, real time views using tools like GPS and cameras, applications are being developed that enable us to see where Tweets are coming from in real time or “touch” GE wind turbine holograms in our living rooms. Walmart is trying it and there a number of iPhone and Android mobile applications that continue to become available.

3.  e-Books – As the popularity of the Kindle continues to grow, so does e-book competition.  Like the music industry at the beginning of this decade, book publishers are trying to figure out how to distribute their content electronically without destroying their business model.  It will be interesting to see whether they can figure it out.

4.  Mobile – iPhone, Android and Blackberry wars will continue and get even tougher. As Google plans to sell the Nexus 1, I’m eager to see usage and popularity statistics at the end of the year.  In addition, mobile seems to have hit the tipping point, just as broadband did a few years ago, of changing the ways we do many common tasks – watch tv, listen to music, pay our bills, shop, and of course, communicate with our friends and family.

5.  FDA and pharma interactive marketing – The FDA held hearings in November to determine formal guidelines for pharmaceutical companies and their use of social media and online advertising to consumers.  Will 2010 finally be the year that the FDA decides to join the party?

6. 3D TV – Marketers have started experimenting with 3D TV.  And now, Sony, IMAX and Discovery have announced a new 3D channel to launch in 2011.

7. Social Media/Crowdsourcing – The idea that we can ask a group of people to weigh in with their thoughts and ideas to generate an effective solution continues to gain momentum, particularly as social media keeps growing.  Companies like Starbucks and Best Buy use crowdsourcing to generate new product ideas from both employees and customers.  Sites like AllRecipes.com demonstrate how recipes evolve as many cooks weigh in with their variations. Will it hold true that many folks collaborating can be as effective at finding the optimal solution as an educated, experienced expert?

8.  Cloud Computing – In October, the City of Los Angeles announced it had approved a deal to switch to Google email and applications .  Although there are many cloud applications available and growing, with Apple, Google, and Microsoft all focused on the cloud, competition is heating up.  With Cloud capabilities enabling us to approach tasks from a more mobile perspective (just get online anywhere and log-in), how will this added flexibility impact our productivity and evolve into different ways of getting things done.

9.  Digital and Education – eBooks are already changing how younger generations read and how we use the library.  And innovative educators are finding ways to incorporate social media, mobile devices, and ebooks into their curriculum in order to keep students engaged.  What’s next?

10.  Healthcare – The web has had a major impact on healthcare and the way that patients and caregivers manage their own health and that of their loved ones, even from the earliest days of the internet.  Today, social media like Sermo and Twitter, mobile applications, and Electronic Medical Records are just a few of the online tools that promise to change how healthcare providers practice medicine, provide care, and keep themselves up-to-date.