Archive for December, 2016
Trends to look out for in 2017
Every year there’s a new trend and a new product that everyone wants to buy. Looking back in 2016, there wasn’t a major product that was on trends. There are technological, retail payment and entertainment trends, but no single product in particular that stood out. Commercially it was a bit of an average year for brands. This article will take a look back at the trends of 2016, and what we can expect in 2017.
Despite that, looking back on 2016, there were some crazes that took off. The social media and online trend was the Pokemon Go app. Theapp revived the TV show from the late 90s, Pokemon. Players would use the app to catch Pokemon in an area. The only downside was that you had to go to certain locations for it to be effective. If you were home for example, it was unlikely that you would catch a Pokemon, unless of course you had several flatmates that were also interested in the game.
2016 saw many TV programs revived, the most recent one being the Gilmore Girls, which originally ran between 2000 and 2007. The revival was a major success, with audiences calling for the show to be revived for another full season. It is not yet known if this was happen. Due to the success of the Gilmore Girls revival, calls once again started for a Friends and Sex and the City reunion. This is despite the Friends cast members saying multiple times since the series ended in 2004 that it’s not the right time for it to come back. Jennifer Aniston, who playedRachel Green drew attention to the fact that during the show’s run, people used to go to coffee shops with their friends, but due to the rise of mobile phones that’s no longer the case. Although the show may work if it was revived, it is unlikely that it would so I don’t think we can expect a reunion in 2017. That fuelled questions of whether or not Sex and the City will come back again. That answer is a little less clear, with cast members, most recently Kim Catrall, also known as Samantha, hinting that it is possible.
If we really think about it though, is it possible? The cast have just passed the 50 mark, so it’s unlikely that audiences would tune in to watch a group of 50 year old women prowl for men.
Gone are the days when retailers could just have bricks and mortar stores. Those days went a few years ago, but that is becoming more and more pronounced as time progresses. With higher amounts of people utilising the internet and mobile apps for their online shopping, it’s increasingly important for businesses to offer their products online. More businesses are doing so, and payment methods are changing. Of course there is still credit card and PayPal, but other methods like
AfterPay, an interest free layby type scheme where you pay the deposit and then get sent the product, are becoming popular as retailers try and get an advantage over their competitors.
When you’re not in the running it’s hard to keep your audience or customers’ attention, and nobody knows that more than those in the music industry. With international superstar Taylor Swift taking a break, that paved the way for soul sister, Adele to take centre stage and announce her world tour, which strangely, appears to be more popular than Taylor Swift’s, with tickets selling out worldwide, and extra shows being added. Either she is more popular, has a different audience with disposable income, or people want to see Adele because she doesn’t tour as much as Swift.
Swift has however just released a new song with former One Direction star, Zayn Malik so 2017 could be another successful year for Taylor Swift.
Speaking of music, Apple upset music fans this year with their decision to remove the headphone jack on the iPhone 7. There are now rumours that Samsung is going to do the same thing next year, so we may see phones become smaller and smaller, and cords disappear. That wouldn’t be a bad trend and would certainly solve the issue of tangled cords.
What are your predictions for 2017?
Why using Marketplace sites is good rather than going direct to a Business’ site
Over the last few years, we have seen the rise of marketplace websites. Marketplace websites, for those who don’t know, are essentially a collection of companies or brands, that come together on one website. Such websites include Tarocash, Rebel, MenuLog, Booking.com, My Chemist, Graysonline, Archfashion, Surfstitch and many others, countless in fact. When you use a marketplace website, there are so many advantages that you just don’t get when you go directly to an individual company’s website. You may not know what those advantages are, so we’ve created a list to let you know why you’re better off using these sites than going directly to one retailer.
Most people are time poor these days and don’t have the time to go to every single store that exists on the internet. They may even struggle to go to one store because of all that’s involved. You have to think about parking, go through the crowds, and then find the product that you want. Depending on where you live, that can add up to several hours of time, and even after all of that you may find that you do not get what you were looking for, so you’ve actually wasted the time.
Well, with marketplace sites that’s not an issue. You simply run a search online for the products you’re interested in buying and go to the marketplace site. Do another search on the site for the product you want, and you’ll come up with a list of options in less than 5 seconds (depending of course on how fast your internet connection is). When you’re there, you’ll be able to compare the prices of several brands, against the features. This enables you to make a better-informed decision rather than being limited to one brand in a location.
We’ve previously mentioned in blogs that when you buy online you have access to brands that you wouldn’t otherwise have access to due to geographical limitations. When you use a marketplace site you’ll get access to brands that aren’t in your geographical area and brands you wouldn’t have otherwise thought of. That will broaden your horizons and broaden your choices.
When you buy online, you don’t always know that the product you’re getting is quality or is going to be fit for purpose. It’s not always easy to get a refund or your money back after you’ve bought a product online. In some cases, the retailer you’ve bought from is overseas so they’re not governed or bound by Australian law. When you buy on a marketplace site, they tend to have a set of rules they expect the stores who use their platforms to abide by. If those stores do not abide by those marketplace rules then they have kicked off the platform and effectively stopped from trading. That actually gives you more rights than you would have if you dealt with them directly. It also protects the retailers because the marketplace site acts like a third party. If you like, you could almost consider them to be a governing authority.
When you go directly to a retailer you can’t compare prices. You may see a price and think it’s the best price for a particular item, but in reality, it may not be. You could find yourself paying 2 or 3 times more than you should. Take, for example, the recent Adele concert ticket sales. Many people bought tickets at the full rate, rather than doing their research. If they had done some research they would have seen that there were Adele tickets available in other cities for a lower price and they wouldn’t have to pay the premium. For household items or technology, like an iPhone, then buying through a marketplace site allows you to find the best price on the market, not just the price at the most popular store. That means you can keep more money in your pocket and won’t be overcharged for the same item. It gives you more rights and freedom as a consumer.
These are just a few of the reason why you should use a marketplace side rather than going directly to a retailer. There are of course so many other reasons, which we’re sure you’ll find out when you buy from them. If there’s some that you think we should know then send us an email and let us know.