The Top Ten consumer drivers for the next decade are predicted to be:
1. Highly desirable products. The willingness and ability of consumers, especially Baby Boomers and Generation X'ers, along with immigrants, to buy highly desirable products, which can be described as products offering features above and beyond those of current products. The challenge of companies will be to offer exciting products for hard-to-please customers in highly competitive markets.
2. Product-related services. Consumers will want service during and after the purchase of items. They may desire the service even more than the product. For example, households may pay for the services of digital TV rather than buy new sets. And they will pay for the comfort of heating and cooling rather than the equipment that produces it.
3. Superior performance and utility. Quality and functionality will be extremely important to consumers, especially Boomers and Generation X'ers. Products will not only have to meet high expectations, they will have to exceed them.
4. Safety and health. Boomers will insist on safe and healthy products, and they will pay more for products and services that offer good health and an active lifestyle. The market for nutritional and wellcare products will expand further. For example, air filtering will become very important, especially if active, but safe, agents are used to kill bacteria, viruses, and spores rather than just trap particles.
5. Ergonomic comfort and ease of use. Too many household products today are difficult and unpleasant to use. Products for chores like cleaning are not very user-friendly, and need better angles and pressure points. As they age, Boomers in particular will demand that products be comfortable to use.
6. Aesthetics. Product styling will be even more important in the future than today. Appliances, for example, will need to have appearances that fit many home decors. They will also take on more designer qualities now seen in clothing and bedding. Even furnaces and air conditioners will be stylish, particularly if they are integrated into living spaces.
7. Functional integration of products. Today, consumers are their own systems integrators. Very few appliances and products are currently linked together. By 2010, we will see functional and physical integration of TV, computing, and telecommunications. We will also see integration of air and water heating and cooling throughout the house. Imbedded microprocessors and "smart" controls will permit extensive appliance networking.
8. Environmental quality. Consumer behavior so far has been inconsistent: People say that they want environmentally friendly products, but they are reluctant to pay more for them. Home water and air treatment and waste recycling will be much more important by 2010 than they are today. Generation X'ers and idealistic, but affluent Boomers will drive the demand for "green" products and services.
9. Brand name and reputation. Brands will still be important by 2010, but not if products fail to meet the first eight value points. Buying decisions on brand identity alone will decline as consumers face the multiple buying options provided by both virtual and physical shopping.
10. The shopping experience, both in person and over the Internet, must be convenient, speedy, and entertaining. Speed and convenience will be highly valued by Boomers, and the socialization and entertainment benefits of shopping will be highly valued by Generation X'ers.