FOMO: How Can Brands Tap into Fears of Missing Out
We’re in a FOMO state of mind, and it isn’t pretty. That’s Fear Of Missing Out, for those of you who’ve missed out on the acronym.
Today we are exposed more than ever before to what others around us are doing, and we’re filled with a gnawing uncertainty about whether we’ve made the right choice about what to do or where to be—not just in a given moment, but in stages of our lives as well. And our friends aren’t helping, touting their every FOMO-worthy move in real time.
We’ve always had a fear of missing out, but it’s exploding with the onset of real-time, location-based and social media tools. This presentation, which is based on a new quantitative study JWT conducted in the U.S. and U.K. and interviews with experts and influencers in technology and academia, will identify which cohort is most prone to FOMO and how they respond to it, spotlight how FOMO is manifesting in the zeitgeist, and look at the potential for brands seeking to tap into FOMO.
Presenters
Ann Mack oversees global trendspotting for JWT where she and her strategic content team help brands turn shifts in the zeitgeist—related to everything from digital technologies, gaming and globalization to retail, philanthropy and the environment—into opportunities.
Ann has worked on strategic projects for clients including Unilever, Kellogg’s, Estée Lauder, Kimberly-Clark and Humana. She is most widely known as one of the industry’s most famous experts on cultural and behavioral movements, trends and memes and their impact on brands and brand behavior.
The reports Ann and her team generate have become famous in their own right. For example, her annual “10 Trends” and “100 Things to Watch” are highly anticipated cultural markers not only for brand marketers but for the public as a whole. A strong reason why Ann is a much-in-demand guest speaker across multiple media channels.
Ann has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, The Early Show on CBS, Fox and Friends, and Sky News; has been interviewed by numerous radio outlets, including the BBC and NPR; and has been quoted in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, USA Today, and International Herald Tribune for her thought leadership. Ann’s most recent speaking engagements include AMAP in Mexico City, WPP’s Global Retail Forum in Argentina and Social Media Week in New York.
In addition, Ann has led the re-launch of JWTIntelligence.com and the development of JWT’s AnxietyIndex.com, which focuses on helping brands navigate consumer anxiety. To do so, she has harnessed platforms like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to establish, grow and galvanize a global community that feeds into not only these projects but other seminal reports like “Social Commerce,” “Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)” and “Transmedia,” among others.
Before joining JWT in 2004, Ann led Adweek's coverage of the digital advertising industry as Interactive Editor. She started her career as a crime reporter for the Mansfield News Journal in Ohio after graduating magna cum laude from Ohio State University with a BA in journalism.
Saturday, March 10
