Part of the attraction for consumers in the digital world is the notion that with greater interactivity comes more freedom and flexibility to find the information they need. Not what the media or advertisers think they need.

In 2009 we have seen an evolution of this consumer trend. Rather than people using search as their only tool to get information, people started to sit back and wait to be alerted by the things (be it a brand or a person) that are important in their lives.

The attraction? Relevance. Consumers want relevant information and they want it in a relevant delivery format.

Here are a just a few examples, but this is an area we will see evolving to new levels in 2010. Now is the time for your brand to start considering how it can alert consumers.

Mediclim.com is an email alert system that offers subscribers weather-related health alerts, specific to their disease, with additional email newsletters providing information on how to avoid problems and what to do if they do arise.

Kogi bbq alert Twitter followers when they are in their local neighbourhood.

Brazilian Transit Authority uses Twitter to let people know about traffic news in their area and invites people to share their experiences too.

This is an important trend to watch because it changes the relationship people have with brands to an even more intimate one. It also changes the way we, as communication specialists, approach audience targeting. No longer is it always relevant to build a target group by age or demographic. For this purpose, targeting parameters should also be built around psychographic dimensions like attitudes, behaviours and interests to ensure we are creating a target with a certain mindset and relevancy to the brand.

Posted by: Carmen Campbell
Thanks to: Kogi bbq, Brazilian Transit Authority, Mediclim and Trendwatching.com