Home as a Polymorph
In other cases, we also see that home is a place to educate, nurture and grow as home schooling and online classes take on new significance in our daily lives during lockdown. Physical health is the most oft-quoted driver of people’s sense of health and wellbeing, and the home is increasingly turning into a place to exercise and heal. Peloton, the fitness company offering gym hardware and online workout classes, more than tripled its number of subscribers over the last two years. The integration of live streaming and social elements has led to rapid developments in replicating the gym experience in the home, from yoga instructors moving their classes online to Joe Wicks, a YouTube fitness instructor dubbed UK’s Physical Education Teacher for leading daily classes for kids to stay in shape at home. Meet MIRROR., by getthemirror on Vimeo. Consumers’ in-home access to experiences has increased exponentially over the last years. While media is the heart of these new immersive moments, advertising sits at the fringes. Many of the ecosystems supporting these experiences were not originally designed to embed advertising, and their business models (e.g., subscriptions, micro transactions, games sales) do not rely on advertising to thrive. This creates a dual challenge for brands. First, to find their place in these environments, they need to develop innovative content-led integrations that add value to platforms without alienating users. Second, as these experiences do not exist in a vacuum, consumers’ expectations do not disappear once they sign out. This increases pressures on brands to elevate their overall marketing effort through a renewed focus on interactivity and experience if they are to build lasting connections. This article is excerpted from the new Vizeum report Future of Home. Download it now for key insights on the trends shaping the home revolution. 1399 Home is much more than an entertainment hub. It has become a polymorphic space where we work, dine, play, get healthy and replicate outside world experiences. Pandemic confinement accelerated this pre-existing trend, and the home is now under pressure to become the primary – and for many, the only – venue for life’s various activities: work, learning, downtime, shopping, fitness, dining, rest, childcare, socialising, creativity, romance, and cultural nourishment. With the constant need for economical accommodation, particularly in cities, the home has to multitask and be more efficient with space than ever before. Working from home is not a new phenomenon. In 2019, about 27 million Americans[i] and 13 million Europeans[ii] were already working remotely. However, the mass work-from-home experiment due to stay-at-home orders is making it a reality for millions more for the first time, and many companies have been forced to adapt to agile working almost overnight. What does this mean for the future of work? As cloud computing and collaboration tools such as Microsoft Teams have enabled many of us to work from home fairly seamlessly, the needs to occupy large costly office space in city centres and business travel are likely to come under scrutiny. After working from home for months, employees will expect flexible working arrangements with the option to work from home and minimise commuting. Home is also a place to pamper, and we expect beauty and care services performed at home to become a fast-growing category. With the rise of platform-based services such as blow LTD and Urban, there is no need to leave home for a haircut, a massage or a manicure. Beauty specialists will come directly to you. While such companies have not reached mass market levels yet, their platform models enable them to better understand their clients' individual wellness needs over time. Consequently, they will probably gain a competitive edge over independent or single-service salons to provide personalised beauty services to consumers.
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