Eye Sightings
The Consumer Eyes Blog
Category: Services
Your Life Online, For All To See
The line between virtual and reality is becoming even blurrier. Netflix has introduced legislation that changes the Video Protection Privacy Act, which requires a customer's consent before sharing video viewing information. When the law was enacted in 1988 it may not have seemed particularly relevant, but now Netflix is hoping to let user's Facebook friends know exactly which movies they're streaming.
The Latest from Food 2.0
We recently sent a team member to the Food 2.0 conference, a daylong series of panels here in NYC that looked at the growing relationship between food and technology. With all that we learned, "growing" might be too gentle a word - the relationship between food and tech is booming!
Anger Release
Every once in a while, a new business concept appears that seems to answer a heretofore unmet consumer need in a wholly original, and yet stunningly obvious way. Recently we heard about a canny entrepreneur in China who has had one of these "catching the zeitgeist in a bottle" ideas: a novel way of letting his customers deal with the surplus frustration and anger floating around the world today.
Bartering Is Back
It's the oldest type of human transaction...well, practically. Person A's goods (or services) traded for person B's. Participants barter till both sides are satisfied. No need for money (or personal checks, or gold doubloons, or wampum beads). Just commerce in its simplest form, as practiced centuries ago. So guess what's suddenly hip, and surprisingly high end? That's right. Bartering is back, a hot trend for summer 2006!
Beer for Bags
Unlimited Opportuni-Tees
Limited editions have turned the lowly t-shirt into a status symbol. Often intentionally crude or unpolished, they provide consumers an affordable way to express their individuality. And, while it may seem the limited edition concept would have a limited shelf life, its success shows no sign of fading. A few ways limited edition tees are staying au courant:
Locking In Subscribers
Silent Night
Ah, the holiday season, filled with fun and frolic. Sometimes it's enough to make a person long for the quiet calm of the bleak midwinter! For those who can't wait until the post-New Year's lull, here are a few handy holiday helpers:
What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?
One Man's Laziness is Another Man's Opportunity
Obvious Statement #1: Today's consumers are overworked and overstressed.
Obvious Statement #2: Life is easier if you're waited on hand and foot.
Surprising Truth: Consumers no longer have to be fabulously wealthy to enjoy some of the benefits of having a fleet of servants or a full support staff. Here are some new websites that take personal service to a whole new level:
SaveMyAss.com
The Smallest Keeps Getting Smaller
Every time we think that technology developers can't compress power and performance any more than they already have, that's just what they go ahead and do. And, despite being used to it, sometimes we can't help but still be impressed. Not just at how tiny, but at the diversity of products that are getting the mini treatment.
Don't drop it in your coffee by mistake.
Consumer to Consumer
eBay began an internet phenomenon of consumers transacting business with one another directly. Today, the model continues to morph and be utilized across a range of new services. More than ever before, the internet is a place where consumers can reach out directly to one another for financial gain and personal expression. Here are just a few examples:
Zopa.com (consumer as banker)
The Nose Knows
As the summer heats up, and the air in the city fills with scents both sweet and...well, not so sweet, we thought the time was ripe to see what's making news in nose-land. We sniffed around, and here's some of what we found.
Focused Fragrances:
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