Methodology
How to create, track and use our trends
Scroll down
The Seven Human Needs
The seven human needs are timeless and universal. Based on a value system that supports human nature’s physical and emotional programming, each human need is of importance to us as individuals and together they form the foundation of society as well as that of our methodology:
Why they matter:
Every day consumers make decisions based on what they feel and believe is most important. By aligning our research with these static needs, businesses gain a deeper understanding of how the needs of early adopter consumers will translate into product and service needs as their values shift with the global drivers.
To find out what the seven human needs mean for your business, contact our team.
GET IN TOUCH01. Attainment
02. Belonging
03. Curiosity
04. Fulfilment
05. Identity
06. Purpose
07. Security
Attainment
All human beings need to feel respected and recognised among their peers, which drives the desire to constantly express our significance and success, our knowledge and tastes, with our achievements often reinforced through the acquisition of symbolic goods
KEY ELEMENTS
Knowledge
Taste
Work
Respect
Prestige
Connoisseurship
Ownership
Belonging
It is a social need to be physically connected to a group of like-minded people. We have an emotional urge, on an individual level, to create support systems and relationships that provide us with acceptance and approval
KEY ELEMENTS
Nationalism
Tribalism
Roots
Conviviality
History
Culture
Curiosity
To both create and co-create makes us push the boundaries of what is ultimately humanly possible. Our in-built intuition makes us inquisitive beings with a shared inclination to discover or challenge the norm
KEY ELEMENTS
Exploration
Education
Connoisseurship
Discernment
Fulfilment
There is a human desire to direct our own lives, to create forms of freedom and to find deeper meaning and balance in life. It is the psychological need to fully realise our personal potential with the resulting feeling of satisfaction
KEY ELEMENTS
Wellness
Spirituality
Love
Emotions
Self-esteem
Beauty
Identity
We have a need to distinguish our character or personality from others and to feel unique and respected for who we are. We build our sense of who we are through a personal exploration of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity and age
KEY ELEMENTS
Gender
Age
Ethnicity
Religion
Nationality
Self-image
Language
Collectivism
Morals
Purpose
It is in the interests of the human species for all of us to contribute, participate and add collective value to progress. Each day we plan for a better tomorrow, aligning our passions with our purpose to grow and achieve collective betterment
KEY ELEMENTS
Meaning
Ethics
Mastery
Learning
Collectivity
Sustainability
History
Culture
Security
At the core of humanity is a fundamental need for structure, control, certainty and stability. It is a basic human survival instinct to protect ourselves and our loved ones from perceived physical, emotional and economic threats
KEY ELEMENTS
Finance
Health
Food
Shelter
Employment
Safety
Environment
Wifi
The Six Global Drivers
Global drivers represent the cultural, social, economic, political, technological and environmental eventualities reshaping the world we live in. They are factual, objective and long-term structural forces that are pervasive, powerful and transformative.
Why they matter : What’s next
These are the fundamental shifts or external forces that have the potential to reshape the future trajectory of a brand or business. They help to contextualise decision-making by considering why and how the world is being reshaped. They enable clients to rethink what kind of world consumers will live in and therefore what will drive the businesses of tomorrow.
To find out how the six global drivers affect your business, contact our team.
GET IN TOUCH01. Accelerating Technologies
02. Climate Change and Resource Scarcity
03. Dislocated World
04. Global Versus Local
05. Evolving Demographics
06. Urban Mindset
Accelerating Technologies
Today, the ubiquity of technology in our daily lives has transformed the way society operates, and for billions of people around the world, technology has become enmeshed with their humanity.With technological adoption and innovation continuing to accelerate, and new developments in AI and blockchain technology dominating headlines over the past year, the limits of technological progress and its impact on civilisation are almost unfathomable.
Climate Change and Resource Scarcity
Driven by the climate crisis, our planet is fast approaching a tipping point as the consequences of historic lack of action result in increasing disruption and devastation across every corner of the globe.The urgency surrounding climate change is now a full blown emergency, existentially threatening humanity and industry. But ambitious goals and targets are emerging, backed by tangible action plans, alongside a growing sense of pragmatism over doomerism.
Evolving Demographics
Over the next decade, the shape of our global population is set to change dramatically. These shifts will redefine tomorrow’s demographics and profoundly reshape societal and cultural systems in terms of identity, beliefs and values.Global economic instability due to falling fertility rates and ageing populations in some regions may be rebalanced by a growing youth workforce emerging in others. But the more human impact on who we are, how we live, who with and where, will also have far-reaching repercussions for societies and industries.
Fragmenting Societies
Fractious inequalities and divisions are being exposed in a fast-changing, unstable world. VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) has often been used to describe this situation, but today, BANI (brittle, anxious, non-linear and incomprehensible) is emerging as a more appropriate acronym.The deterioration hinges on the increasing fragility and fragmentation of social, political and environmental ideologies, driving factions into isolated silos and resulting in discord leading to societal polarisation, with apathy and suspicion regarding a way forward.
Micro-Globalisation
After decades of liberalisation, the world we live in is inextricably interconnected – socially, technologically, economically, environmentally and politically. But lack of equitable collaboration has stymied mutual progress, leaving us in a state of co-dependency rather than cooperation.Without this alignment the world is reconsidering whether resilience can ever come from an integrated and interdependent global economy, driving movements towards a recalibration of this complex eco-system and a renewed championing of localism and national pride.
Urbanising World
Despite ever-evolving migration patterns and there percussions of a global pandemic, cities remain the financial, technological and cultural epicentres of society, acting as the main environments for daily life and work for a vast majority of the global population.Priorities for living, working and playing in these urban environments are being redefined, subsequently reframing the requirements citizens have of them, with liveability, connectivity, sustainability and health and wellbeing becoming expectations rather than aspirations.
