Happy New Year, reader. Here are the headlines and links to more than 15 trend reports for 2021.

Artificial intelligence, climate crisis, media chaos, COVID-19 impact and the reorganisation of organisations themselves, are among key trends identified by think tanks, analysts, consultants, agencies, brands, and other self-interested organisations.

Thanks to Daniel Eckler for scouring the internet and collating reports. Many are creative and highly original (Facebook, PwC, Trendwatching and We Are Social are standout), but most are marketing guff. I’ve skimmed them all so that you don’t have to, but decide for yourself.

7 consumer trends that will define the digital economy in 2021 – Adobe

Online shopping

Contactless

Solidarity spending

Bot conversations

Couched based content

Brand disenfranchisement

Health and wellness

 

Technology, Media and Telecoms (TMT) predictions 2021 - Deloitte

Edge intelligence vs cloud migration

5G safety

Radio access networks

Women’s sports parity

Hyper quantified athlete

8k television

Virtual becomes reality

 

2021 Global marketing trends - Deloitte

Purpose

Agility

Human experience

Trust

Participation

Fusion

Talent

 

2021 The Topics and Trends - Facebook

Education and action

• Awareness becomes action

• The joy of reading

• Beyond the textbook

Lifestyle

• Grow your own

• Casual culture

• Hardworking homes

Technology

• Expanding connection

• Neo banking

• Hybrid shopping

Leisure

• Digital art

• Personalising fashion

• Old wheels, and new tricks

 

Further with Ford 2021 - Ford

Pressure points (COVID-19)

Time to escape

The company that you keep

Minding the gap

Good buy

Traffic detour

Sustaining sustainability

 

Trends 2021 – Fjord/Accenture

Collective displacement

Do it yourself innovation

Sweet teams are made of this

Interaction wanderlust

Liquid infrastructure

Empathy challenge

Rituals lost and found

Let’s map out new territory

 

Gartner Top 10 Strategic Predictions for 2021 and Beyond – Gartner

Traditional technology tanks

DNA storage becomes a reality

Physical experiences expand

Farms and factories face automation

CIOs become chief operating officers (COOs)

Record work conversations drive change

Freelance customer service experts increase

Voice of society metric matters

On-site childcare entices employees

Malicious content takes over

 

2021 Key Takeaways - Future Today Insight

Welcome to the Synthetic Decade

You’ll soon have augmented hearing and sight

AI-as-a-Service and Data-as-a-Service will reshape business

China has created a new world order

Home and office automation is nearing the mainstream

Everyone alive today is being scored

We’ve traded FOMO for abject fear

It’s the end of forgetting

Our new trust economy is being formed

 

2021 Social Trends – Hootsuite

Social bridges the gap to a new customer experience

Brands find their place in the conversation

A generation ignored by digital marketers booms on social

Tying engagement to identity gives advanced marketers new momentum

Bold brands start in the boardroom, not the front lines of social

 

9 Social Media Trends to Watch in 2021 – Hubspot

Brands will continue to take a less is more posting approach

Content value will beat production quality

Conversational marketing will change its tone

Consumers will crave snackable content

Video will continue to take center stage

More brands will go live

Social media platforms could double as shopping channels

Users will embrace gaming and VR Authenticity will be vital

 

8 Influencer Marketing Trends Coming in 2021 - Later

Video content will remain king

A focus on diversity and inclusion

The “no-edit edit” will evolve

Value driven content

More ongoing partnerships

A focus on micro and nano influencers 

New social platforms and creator tools

New forms of influencer media

 

Global Consumer Trends 2030 - Mintel

Wellbeing: seeking physical and mental wellness

Surroundings: feeling connected to the external environment

Technology: finding solutions through technology in the physical and digital worlds

Rights: feeling respected, protected, and supported

Identity: understanding and expressing oneself and one’s place in society

Value: finding tangible, measurable benefits from investments

Experiences: seeking and discovering stimulation

Data and Artificial Intelligence 2021 - Altimeter/Prophet 

1. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated data use and data strategy

Larger companies still have the advantage when it comes to data science

Data and AI are becoming critical enablers of business strategy, possibly accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic

AI is becoming table stakes but without the scale needed for real transformation

Conversational technologies are now mainstream, but their real potential is yet to be realised

AI predictions 2021 - PwC

No uncertainty here: AI investments will increase

Your strategic ally: Faster and better decisions, thanks to AI

From risk awareness to risk action: Responsible AI’s time is now

Beyond upskilling: New talent strategies will emerge

The model is never done: The AI reorganization accelerates

 

21 meaningful, trend-driven innovation opportunities for 2021 – Trendwatching

15-minute cities

Pandemoment

Designed for wellbeing

Virtually grounded

Old spice

Plant-ed

Systemic justice

Transcycling

Robo-roaming

Talent transfer

Extra-mile sustainability

Norm recalibration

Carbon labelling

Digital parity

Mindsumers

Blurred gaming

Workers, inc.

Earth positive

Ambient learning

Lab to table

Omni-accessibility

Think Forward 2021: The Social Reset – We Are Social

The simple life

Practical advocacy 

In-feed intimacy

Reliable idols 

Platforms unbound 

Open-source creativity