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FEAR OF MISSING OUT


                      MAY 2011
WHAT WE‟LL COVER

Background and Methodology


Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO)
 •   Trend
 •   Drivers
 •   Who‟s Afraid of Missing Out?
 •   Manifestations
 •   Significance/Relevance
 •   Potential


FOMOs to Watch


Appendix
 • Learn More About Our Experts and Influencers




                                                  FEAR OF MISSING OUT
METHODOLOGY

        Our trend reports are the result of quantitative, qualitative and desk research
        conducted by JWTIntelligence throughout the year.


        Specifically for this report, we conducted a quantitative study in the U.S. and the
        U.K. using SONAR™, JWT‟s proprietary online tool, from March 4-15, 2011. We
        surveyed 590 Americans and 434 Britons aged 18-plus (data are weighted by age and
        gender); we also polled 87 teens aged 13-17 residing in the homes of adults
        surveyed.*


        In addition, we interviewed experts and influencers in technology and academia.




*All teen data shown combines U.S. and U.K. respondents; splitting the data by country would render unreliable base sizes.   FEAR OF MISSING OUT
TREND


Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) is the uneasy and
sometimes all-consuming feeling that you‟re
missing out—that your peers are doing, in the
know about or in possession of more or something
better than you. FOMO may be a social angst
that‟s always existed, but it‟s going into overdrive
thanks to real-time digital updates and to our
constant companion, the smartphone.




                                                       FEAR OF MISSING OUT
TREND    (cont‟d.)




Once social media makes people aware of things to which they otherwise might never
have been privy, it can spark a sense of vicarious participation or motivate real-world
behavior. Conversely, it can be a curse, fostering anxiety and feelings of inadequacy.



        “FOMO is the sometimes energizing, sometimes terrifying
         anxiety that you are missing out on something absolutely
  terrific. It could be a TV show, it could be a party, it could be a
  gadget, it could be that really good burrito from the food cart.
   The important thing to keep in mind with FOMO is that it‟s not
  just a state of mind; it is also a physical reaction. So as a FOMO
   sufferer, I can report sweating, itching, pacing and compulsive
                                    refreshing of my Twitter feed.”
        —BIANCA BOSKER, senior technology editor at The Huffington Post




                                                                               FEAR OF MISSING OUT
TREND    (cont‟d.)




The acronym is infiltrating vocabularies as more than just an amusing expression.
FOMO encapsulates an increasingly pronounced phenomenon in the age of social
media—an ageless concept that‟s reaching a tipping point. With 600 million-plus
active users on Facebook, not to mention Twitter and other social platforms, today‟s
unprecedented awareness of how others are living their lives will only heighten,
ultimately leaving people predisposed to FOMO.


While the fear of missing out has always been essential for marketers to understand,
it‟s growing more significant for brands, since today‟s intensified FOMO drives
behaviors on social media sites and, subsequently, real-world consumer actions and
self-perceptions.


    “FOMO is a great motivator of human behavior, and I think a crucial key to
             understanding social software, and why it works the way it does.”
                —Hunch and Flickr co-founder CATERINA FAKE, “FOMO and Social Media,”
                                                         Caterina.net, March 15, 2011



                                                                                    FEAR OF MISSING OUT
DRIVERS




• Radical Transparency meets
  Life in Real Time
• Digital natives
• Social one-upmanship
• Hashtag-friendly events
• Social media feeding into
  relative deprivation
• Life in overdrive: too much
  to do, read, buy, watch,
  etc.




                                FEAR OF MISSING OUT
DRIVERS   (cont‟d.)




• Radical Transparency meets
  Life in Real Time
• Digital natives
• Social one-upmanship
• Hashtag-friendly events
• Social media feeding into
  relative deprivation
• Life in overdrive: too much
  to do, read, buy, watch,
  etc.




                                FEAR OF MISSING OUT
DRIVERS   (cont‟d.)




• Radical Transparency meets
  Life in Real Time
• Digital natives
• Social one-upmanship
• Hashtag-friendly events
• Social media feeding into
  relative deprivation
• Life in overdrive: too much
  to do, read, buy, watch,
  etc.




                                FEAR OF MISSING OUT
DRIVERS   (cont‟d.)




• Radical Transparency meets      Social media brings us closer to other echelons
  Life in Real Time               yet simultaneously back down to reality.

• Digital natives                  “Those who used to dine behind
                                   thick stone walls and had caviar
• Social one-upmanship
                                now do so, Tweet about it and can
• Hashtag-friendly events         be seen by those sitting down to
                                dinner at Chipotle.”—MARC A. SMITH,
• Social media feeding into
                                 sociologist and chief social scientist at
  relative deprivation
                                    Connected Action Consulting Group
• Life in overdrive: too much
  to do, read, buy, watch,
  etc.




                                                                             FEAR OF MISSING OUT
DRIVERS   (cont‟d.)




• Radical Transparency meets
  Life in Real Time
• Digital natives
• Social one-upmanship
• Hashtag-friendly events
• Social media feeding into
  relative deprivation
                                “A friend who works in advertising told me that she
• Life in overdrive: too much   felt fine about her life—until she opened Facebook.
  to do, read, buy, watch,      „Then I‟m thinking, I am 28, with three roommates,
  etc.                          and oh, it looks like you have a precious baby and a
                                       mortgage,‟ she said. „And then I wanna die.‟”
                                —JENNA WORTHAM, “Feel Like a Wallflower? Maybe It‟s Your
                                       Facebook Wall,” The New York Times, April 9, 2011


                                                                             FEAR OF MISSING OUT
DRIVERS   (cont‟d.)




• Radical Transparency meets
  Life in Real Time
• Digital natives
• Social one-upmanship
• Hashtag-friendly events
• Social media feeding into
  relative deprivation
• Life in overdrive: too much
  to do, read, buy, watch,
  etc.




                                FEAR OF MISSING OUT
WHO’S AFRAID OF
MISSING OUT?
THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL




It‟s no surprise that Millennials, a generation shaped by online tools and social media,
are most closely linked with FOMO—they‟re the most exposed to what their network
of peers is doing.
                                                                               FEAR OF MISSING OUT
THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL   (cont‟d.)




                                        FEAR OF MISSING OUT
THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL   (cont‟d.)




                                        FEAR OF MISSING OUT
THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL             (cont‟d.)




          Millennials‟ link to FOMO is in part a function of
          their age and life stage:
          •     This is a more narcissistic time that‟s
                focused on defining identity and exploring
                others‟.


          •     Millennials tend to look to others to
                influence their opinions and decisions.


          •     This generation in particular belongs to
                expansive networks that include both real-
                and virtual-world friends, both of which
                they solicit for advice.




Image credit: Christine Miranda                                FEAR OF MISSING OUT
THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL               (cont‟d.)




          “Younger people are more engaged in identity formation than older
         people. They may be more open to the experience of FOMO because
         they are engaged in relative deprivation. Younger people have fewer
      resources to consume identity-forming products and experiences while
                     simultaneously having the most time and desire for them.”
                              —MARC A. SMITH, sociologist and chief social scientist at
                                                 Connected Action Consulting Group

Image credit: @MSG                                                                        FEAR OF MISSING OUT
MAN‟S BEST FRENEMY?




           Overall, our male respondents were more prone than female
           respondents to feelings of missing out via social media.

                                                                       FEAR OF MISSING OUT
MAN‟S BEST FRENEMY?      (cont‟d.)


This male skew toward FOMO is most pronounced in the U.S. More American men than
women could relate to FOMO—51% vs. 40%. And as with Millennials, more FOMO
correlates with more Facebook activity.




                                                                       FEAR OF MISSING OUT
MANIFESTATIONS:                 GROWING MEDIA BUZZ




Image credit: Cosmopolitan in Australia                        FEAR OF MISSING OUT
MANIFESTATIONS:                  SMIRNOFF, “BE THERE”


                                                                 “If you weren‟t at one of Smirnoff‟s
                                                                 ravishing Nightlife Exchange Project
                                                                 parties, then where the bloody hell
                                                                      were you?” —MICHELLE WILDING,
                                                                     “Smirnoff Nightlight Exchange Party,
                                                                        Bangalore,” Lost at E Minor Blog,
                                                                                       December 8, 2010




Image credits: Smirnoff, www.facebook.com/smirnoffus                                           FEAR OF MISSING OUT
MANIFESTATIONS:   APPLE, FACETIME




Image credit: srca2009                        FEAR OF MISSING OUT
MANIFESTATIONS:            CITYSEARCH AUSTRALIA, “FOMO”




Image credit: Citysearch Australia                                  FEAR OF MISSING OUT
ROAD SAFETY COUNCIL OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA,
         MANIFESTATIONS:
                               “ENJOY THE RIDE”




Image credit: EnjoyTheRideWA                                               FEAR OF MISSING OUT
FOMO IN ENTERTAINMENT:
         MANIFESTATIONS:
                           HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, “THE CURSE OF THE BLITZ”




Image credit: CBS                                                   FEAR OF MISSING OUT
FOMO IN ENTERTAINMENT:
           MANIFESTATIONS:
                             PORTLANDIA, “DID YOU READ?”




Image credit: ifc                                          FEAR OF MISSING OUT
MANIFESTATIONS:               DIGITAL RUDENESS




Image credit: My Phone Is Off For You                      FEAR OF MISSING OUT
MANIFESTATIONS:                   FACEBOOK GROUPS




Image credits: FOMO, Fomo Connect, FOMO disorder (fear of missing out disorder), Victims of
FOMO, FOMO: it's why you are in this group                                                    FEAR OF MISSING OUT
MANIFESTATIONS:   FOMO OP




           Young people are teasingly reminding absent friends that
           they‟re missing out on something by posting photos in
           which they spell out “FOMO” with their arms.

                                                                      FEAR OF MISSING OUT
SIGNIFICANCE/RELEVANCE


As adoption of social media, location-based tools
and mobile devices continues to surge, so too will
FOMO, as well as FOMO-awareness. For brands, this
has powerful potential. FOMO has the potential to
drive spending, since it heightens participation on
social media platforms and motivates consumers to
do more.


On social media, FOMO helps fuel a craving to not
only become part of the conversation online and
not miss a moment of it but to do things that will
induce FOMO in others and, of course, spread the
word about them. This in turn drives consumer
awareness and inclination to buy in. FOMO about a
concert? “I‟ll buy that overpriced ticket on
StubHub.” FOMO about the latest designer jacket
popping up in everyone‟s photos? “I can‟t afford it,
but I‟ll search out a good knockoff.”

                                                       FEAR OF MISSING OUT
SIGNIFICANCE/RELEVANCE          (cont‟d.)



Conversely, FOMO can be quite paralyzing—people can become caught up in their
fears, unable to decide just what they should be doing at any given moment. And
FOMO sufferers are often so distracted from the here and now that they fail to
fully experience the moment and appreciate whatever it offers.


                 “The fear of missing out might become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
                 The futile attempt to exhaust all available options can lead us to
                 not realizing any option at all and to missing all options
                 altogether.” —DAN HERMAN, CEO of international strategy consulting firm
                 Competitive Advantages


Teens and young adults are most susceptible to and cognizant of FOMO, but they‟re
not necessarily trying to mitigate it. They will be particularly receptive to messaging
and strategies that tap into FOMO and will welcome solutions, even when they didn‟t
know they needed them.




                                                                                 FEAR OF MISSING OUT
POTENTIAL


Brands have many opportunities to fine-tune messaging, offers, contests and more
to tap into fears of missing out. Although there‟s no cure for the common FOMO,
brands can focus on easing it, escalating it, making light of it or even turning it into
a positive.


One tactic for marketers is to help ease anxiety around FOMO. Brands can assure
the afflicted that they‟re not missing out on much after all; those offering simple
pleasures, for example, can convey that stepping back from the fray rather than
following the crowd can be a smarter choice. Another tactic is to explain that the
brand‟s offering is just as fabulous as whatever‟s inducing FOMO, pointing out how
and why it delivers the same or similar satisfactions.




                                                                                  FEAR OF MISSING OUT
POTENTIAL     (cont‟d.)



Alternatively, a brand might offer tools for avoiding FOMO to consumers who act on
their feelings rather than festering in them. Going to the hottest restaurant in
town and afraid of missing out on the menu‟s best options? An app like Foodspotting
provides tips and recommendations from other diners. (Indeed, real-time tools can
create FOMO, but they can also help people circumvent it.)


Or brands can address FOMO woes by encouraging people to join in on the things
that make them feel left out or showing consumers how to get a taste of what
they‟re missing (e.g., with more affordable or more convenient choices).


 “We‟ve always had this fear of missing out, but what‟s different
   is that now these tools give us a sense that we can actually do
something about it and catch what‟s going on in real time so that
                                           we don‟t miss out on it.”
        —BIANCA BOSKER, senior technology editor at The Huffington Post




                                                                             FEAR OF MISSING OUT
POTENTIAL     (cont‟d.)



Brands can also offer exclusive, unique or over-the-top experiences likely to inspire
FOMO in nonparticipants. Or messaging can escalate FOMO in order to motivate
desired actions. Millennials especially tend to share openly and likewise hear what
everyone else is up to, no matter how FOMO-inducing. Brands can facilitate this by
providing platforms for showing and telling.


Brands can tap into the rising importance of the social currency that experiences
provide people: contextual advertising on social networks (since consumers are
motivated to “get in on the action” after reading about friends‟ activities);
incentives for name-dropping in photo tags, check-ins and the like through
programs like Facebook‟s Sponsored Stories; or simply making direct connections
between the brand‟s offering and its potential cachet on social media.




                                                                               FEAR OF MISSING OUT
POTENTIAL     (cont‟d.)



Note that when tapping into FOMO, marketers must retain some sensitivity—this
state of mind can be a sore spot for many consumers. So while FOMO has great
potency as a marketing tool, it also has the potential to twist the knife for those
especially sensitive to it. The appropriate tone will depend greatly on the audience
and the category.




                                                                              FEAR OF MISSING OUT
FOMOS TO
WATCH
FOMO TO WATCH: MINDY KALING‟S IS EVERYONE HANGING OUT WITHOUT ME?


          The recently released cover of this book of
          humorous essays, to be published in
          November, is evocative of FOMO to a
          tee. Feeling like a wallflower and
          wondering what others are doing? FOMO at
          its best. The marketing effort is tapping
          into the growing meme. Kaling, who has
          written for and appears in the U.S. version
          of The Office, tweeted that New York
          Magazine‟s Vulture blog finds the cover
          “zeitgeisty”—and that it is.




Image credit: @mindykaling                                         FEAR OF MISSING OUT
FOMO TO WATCH:         THENEWNO2‟S THE FEAR OF MISSING OUT

          The L.A.-based alternative rock band from
          England is working on their sophomore
          album, to be titled The Fear of Missing
          Out. In April, Thewnewno2 singer and lead
          guitarist Dhani Harrison (son of The
          Beatles‟ George Harrison) explained the
          album name to Esquire:
          “Everything in life boils down to FOMO. It‟s
          what makes you go to a party when you're
          tired. It's behind broken relationships. And
          war. And I have FOMO about music. I like
          so many disparate types of music, so by
          understanding FOMO I can bring whoever I
          want to an album. Why not put it all
          together and see what happens?”




Image credit: www.esquire.com                                         FEAR OF MISSING OUT
FOMO TO WATCH:          LIAM FINN‟S FOMO

          The second solo album from this New
          Zealand musician (son of Crowded House‟s
          Neil Finn) is due out in June. It‟s titled
          FOMO because the artist has said Fear Of
          Missing Out is at the heart of the record—
          which he made while out of the spotlight,
          in a New Zealand beach cottage—and his
          life, since his musician friends and family
          are accustomed to catching up with each
          other by phone, email and Facebook
          photos while touring. He says of FOMO:
          “It‟s a very natural way to be, but it‟s also
          a slightly tragic term, because you should
          never wish you were somewhere else.”




Image credit: www.yeproc.com                              FEAR OF MISSING OUT
APPENDIX
LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR
 EXPERTS & INFLUENCERS
BIANCA BOSKER, senior technology editor at The Huffington Post




                                                APPENDIX: LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR EXPERTS AND INFLUENCERS
DAN HERMAN, CEO of international strategy consulting firm Competitive Advantages




                                                APPENDIX: LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR EXPERTS AND INFLUENCERS
MARC A. SMITH, sociologist and chief social scientist at Connected Action Consulting Group




                                                  APPENDIX: LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR EXPERTS AND INFLUENCERS
THANK YOU




Ann M. Mack                                                                                                  Christine Miranda
Director of Trendspotting                                                                                     Trends Strategist
JWT Worldwide                                                                                                  JWTIntelligence
ann.mack@jwt.com                                                                                   christine.miranda@jwt.com
@annmmack                                                                                                       @xtinemiranda

                            WWW.JWT.COM | WWW.JWTINTELLIGENCE.COM | WWW.ANXIETYINDEX.COM

                                         © 2011 J. Walter Thompson Company. All Rights Reserved.

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Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) (May 2011)

  • 1. FEAR OF MISSING OUT MAY 2011
  • 2. WHAT WE‟LL COVER Background and Methodology Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) • Trend • Drivers • Who‟s Afraid of Missing Out? • Manifestations • Significance/Relevance • Potential FOMOs to Watch Appendix • Learn More About Our Experts and Influencers FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 3. METHODOLOGY Our trend reports are the result of quantitative, qualitative and desk research conducted by JWTIntelligence throughout the year. Specifically for this report, we conducted a quantitative study in the U.S. and the U.K. using SONAR™, JWT‟s proprietary online tool, from March 4-15, 2011. We surveyed 590 Americans and 434 Britons aged 18-plus (data are weighted by age and gender); we also polled 87 teens aged 13-17 residing in the homes of adults surveyed.* In addition, we interviewed experts and influencers in technology and academia. *All teen data shown combines U.S. and U.K. respondents; splitting the data by country would render unreliable base sizes. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 4. TREND Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) is the uneasy and sometimes all-consuming feeling that you‟re missing out—that your peers are doing, in the know about or in possession of more or something better than you. FOMO may be a social angst that‟s always existed, but it‟s going into overdrive thanks to real-time digital updates and to our constant companion, the smartphone. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 5. TREND (cont‟d.) Once social media makes people aware of things to which they otherwise might never have been privy, it can spark a sense of vicarious participation or motivate real-world behavior. Conversely, it can be a curse, fostering anxiety and feelings of inadequacy. “FOMO is the sometimes energizing, sometimes terrifying anxiety that you are missing out on something absolutely terrific. It could be a TV show, it could be a party, it could be a gadget, it could be that really good burrito from the food cart. The important thing to keep in mind with FOMO is that it‟s not just a state of mind; it is also a physical reaction. So as a FOMO sufferer, I can report sweating, itching, pacing and compulsive refreshing of my Twitter feed.” —BIANCA BOSKER, senior technology editor at The Huffington Post FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 6. TREND (cont‟d.) The acronym is infiltrating vocabularies as more than just an amusing expression. FOMO encapsulates an increasingly pronounced phenomenon in the age of social media—an ageless concept that‟s reaching a tipping point. With 600 million-plus active users on Facebook, not to mention Twitter and other social platforms, today‟s unprecedented awareness of how others are living their lives will only heighten, ultimately leaving people predisposed to FOMO. While the fear of missing out has always been essential for marketers to understand, it‟s growing more significant for brands, since today‟s intensified FOMO drives behaviors on social media sites and, subsequently, real-world consumer actions and self-perceptions. “FOMO is a great motivator of human behavior, and I think a crucial key to understanding social software, and why it works the way it does.” —Hunch and Flickr co-founder CATERINA FAKE, “FOMO and Social Media,” Caterina.net, March 15, 2011 FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 7. DRIVERS • Radical Transparency meets Life in Real Time • Digital natives • Social one-upmanship • Hashtag-friendly events • Social media feeding into relative deprivation • Life in overdrive: too much to do, read, buy, watch, etc. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 8. DRIVERS (cont‟d.) • Radical Transparency meets Life in Real Time • Digital natives • Social one-upmanship • Hashtag-friendly events • Social media feeding into relative deprivation • Life in overdrive: too much to do, read, buy, watch, etc. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 9. DRIVERS (cont‟d.) • Radical Transparency meets Life in Real Time • Digital natives • Social one-upmanship • Hashtag-friendly events • Social media feeding into relative deprivation • Life in overdrive: too much to do, read, buy, watch, etc. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 10. DRIVERS (cont‟d.) • Radical Transparency meets Social media brings us closer to other echelons Life in Real Time yet simultaneously back down to reality. • Digital natives “Those who used to dine behind thick stone walls and had caviar • Social one-upmanship now do so, Tweet about it and can • Hashtag-friendly events be seen by those sitting down to dinner at Chipotle.”—MARC A. SMITH, • Social media feeding into sociologist and chief social scientist at relative deprivation Connected Action Consulting Group • Life in overdrive: too much to do, read, buy, watch, etc. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 11. DRIVERS (cont‟d.) • Radical Transparency meets Life in Real Time • Digital natives • Social one-upmanship • Hashtag-friendly events • Social media feeding into relative deprivation “A friend who works in advertising told me that she • Life in overdrive: too much felt fine about her life—until she opened Facebook. to do, read, buy, watch, „Then I‟m thinking, I am 28, with three roommates, etc. and oh, it looks like you have a precious baby and a mortgage,‟ she said. „And then I wanna die.‟” —JENNA WORTHAM, “Feel Like a Wallflower? Maybe It‟s Your Facebook Wall,” The New York Times, April 9, 2011 FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 12. DRIVERS (cont‟d.) • Radical Transparency meets Life in Real Time • Digital natives • Social one-upmanship • Hashtag-friendly events • Social media feeding into relative deprivation • Life in overdrive: too much to do, read, buy, watch, etc. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 14. THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL It‟s no surprise that Millennials, a generation shaped by online tools and social media, are most closely linked with FOMO—they‟re the most exposed to what their network of peers is doing. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 15. THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL (cont‟d.) FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 16. THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL (cont‟d.) FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 17. THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL (cont‟d.) Millennials‟ link to FOMO is in part a function of their age and life stage: • This is a more narcissistic time that‟s focused on defining identity and exploring others‟. • Millennials tend to look to others to influence their opinions and decisions. • This generation in particular belongs to expansive networks that include both real- and virtual-world friends, both of which they solicit for advice. Image credit: Christine Miranda FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 18. THE YOUNG AND THE FEARFUL (cont‟d.) “Younger people are more engaged in identity formation than older people. They may be more open to the experience of FOMO because they are engaged in relative deprivation. Younger people have fewer resources to consume identity-forming products and experiences while simultaneously having the most time and desire for them.” —MARC A. SMITH, sociologist and chief social scientist at Connected Action Consulting Group Image credit: @MSG FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 19. MAN‟S BEST FRENEMY? Overall, our male respondents were more prone than female respondents to feelings of missing out via social media. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 20. MAN‟S BEST FRENEMY? (cont‟d.) This male skew toward FOMO is most pronounced in the U.S. More American men than women could relate to FOMO—51% vs. 40%. And as with Millennials, more FOMO correlates with more Facebook activity. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 21. MANIFESTATIONS: GROWING MEDIA BUZZ Image credit: Cosmopolitan in Australia FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 22. MANIFESTATIONS: SMIRNOFF, “BE THERE” “If you weren‟t at one of Smirnoff‟s ravishing Nightlife Exchange Project parties, then where the bloody hell were you?” —MICHELLE WILDING, “Smirnoff Nightlight Exchange Party, Bangalore,” Lost at E Minor Blog, December 8, 2010 Image credits: Smirnoff, www.facebook.com/smirnoffus FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 23. MANIFESTATIONS: APPLE, FACETIME Image credit: srca2009 FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 24. MANIFESTATIONS: CITYSEARCH AUSTRALIA, “FOMO” Image credit: Citysearch Australia FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 25. ROAD SAFETY COUNCIL OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA, MANIFESTATIONS: “ENJOY THE RIDE” Image credit: EnjoyTheRideWA FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 26. FOMO IN ENTERTAINMENT: MANIFESTATIONS: HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, “THE CURSE OF THE BLITZ” Image credit: CBS FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 27. FOMO IN ENTERTAINMENT: MANIFESTATIONS: PORTLANDIA, “DID YOU READ?” Image credit: ifc FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 28. MANIFESTATIONS: DIGITAL RUDENESS Image credit: My Phone Is Off For You FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 29. MANIFESTATIONS: FACEBOOK GROUPS Image credits: FOMO, Fomo Connect, FOMO disorder (fear of missing out disorder), Victims of FOMO, FOMO: it's why you are in this group FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 30. MANIFESTATIONS: FOMO OP Young people are teasingly reminding absent friends that they‟re missing out on something by posting photos in which they spell out “FOMO” with their arms. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 31. SIGNIFICANCE/RELEVANCE As adoption of social media, location-based tools and mobile devices continues to surge, so too will FOMO, as well as FOMO-awareness. For brands, this has powerful potential. FOMO has the potential to drive spending, since it heightens participation on social media platforms and motivates consumers to do more. On social media, FOMO helps fuel a craving to not only become part of the conversation online and not miss a moment of it but to do things that will induce FOMO in others and, of course, spread the word about them. This in turn drives consumer awareness and inclination to buy in. FOMO about a concert? “I‟ll buy that overpriced ticket on StubHub.” FOMO about the latest designer jacket popping up in everyone‟s photos? “I can‟t afford it, but I‟ll search out a good knockoff.” FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 32. SIGNIFICANCE/RELEVANCE (cont‟d.) Conversely, FOMO can be quite paralyzing—people can become caught up in their fears, unable to decide just what they should be doing at any given moment. And FOMO sufferers are often so distracted from the here and now that they fail to fully experience the moment and appreciate whatever it offers. “The fear of missing out might become a self-fulfilling prophecy. The futile attempt to exhaust all available options can lead us to not realizing any option at all and to missing all options altogether.” —DAN HERMAN, CEO of international strategy consulting firm Competitive Advantages Teens and young adults are most susceptible to and cognizant of FOMO, but they‟re not necessarily trying to mitigate it. They will be particularly receptive to messaging and strategies that tap into FOMO and will welcome solutions, even when they didn‟t know they needed them. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 33. POTENTIAL Brands have many opportunities to fine-tune messaging, offers, contests and more to tap into fears of missing out. Although there‟s no cure for the common FOMO, brands can focus on easing it, escalating it, making light of it or even turning it into a positive. One tactic for marketers is to help ease anxiety around FOMO. Brands can assure the afflicted that they‟re not missing out on much after all; those offering simple pleasures, for example, can convey that stepping back from the fray rather than following the crowd can be a smarter choice. Another tactic is to explain that the brand‟s offering is just as fabulous as whatever‟s inducing FOMO, pointing out how and why it delivers the same or similar satisfactions. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 34. POTENTIAL (cont‟d.) Alternatively, a brand might offer tools for avoiding FOMO to consumers who act on their feelings rather than festering in them. Going to the hottest restaurant in town and afraid of missing out on the menu‟s best options? An app like Foodspotting provides tips and recommendations from other diners. (Indeed, real-time tools can create FOMO, but they can also help people circumvent it.) Or brands can address FOMO woes by encouraging people to join in on the things that make them feel left out or showing consumers how to get a taste of what they‟re missing (e.g., with more affordable or more convenient choices). “We‟ve always had this fear of missing out, but what‟s different is that now these tools give us a sense that we can actually do something about it and catch what‟s going on in real time so that we don‟t miss out on it.” —BIANCA BOSKER, senior technology editor at The Huffington Post FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 35. POTENTIAL (cont‟d.) Brands can also offer exclusive, unique or over-the-top experiences likely to inspire FOMO in nonparticipants. Or messaging can escalate FOMO in order to motivate desired actions. Millennials especially tend to share openly and likewise hear what everyone else is up to, no matter how FOMO-inducing. Brands can facilitate this by providing platforms for showing and telling. Brands can tap into the rising importance of the social currency that experiences provide people: contextual advertising on social networks (since consumers are motivated to “get in on the action” after reading about friends‟ activities); incentives for name-dropping in photo tags, check-ins and the like through programs like Facebook‟s Sponsored Stories; or simply making direct connections between the brand‟s offering and its potential cachet on social media. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 36. POTENTIAL (cont‟d.) Note that when tapping into FOMO, marketers must retain some sensitivity—this state of mind can be a sore spot for many consumers. So while FOMO has great potency as a marketing tool, it also has the potential to twist the knife for those especially sensitive to it. The appropriate tone will depend greatly on the audience and the category. FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 38. FOMO TO WATCH: MINDY KALING‟S IS EVERYONE HANGING OUT WITHOUT ME? The recently released cover of this book of humorous essays, to be published in November, is evocative of FOMO to a tee. Feeling like a wallflower and wondering what others are doing? FOMO at its best. The marketing effort is tapping into the growing meme. Kaling, who has written for and appears in the U.S. version of The Office, tweeted that New York Magazine‟s Vulture blog finds the cover “zeitgeisty”—and that it is. Image credit: @mindykaling FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 39. FOMO TO WATCH: THENEWNO2‟S THE FEAR OF MISSING OUT The L.A.-based alternative rock band from England is working on their sophomore album, to be titled The Fear of Missing Out. In April, Thewnewno2 singer and lead guitarist Dhani Harrison (son of The Beatles‟ George Harrison) explained the album name to Esquire: “Everything in life boils down to FOMO. It‟s what makes you go to a party when you're tired. It's behind broken relationships. And war. And I have FOMO about music. I like so many disparate types of music, so by understanding FOMO I can bring whoever I want to an album. Why not put it all together and see what happens?” Image credit: www.esquire.com FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 40. FOMO TO WATCH: LIAM FINN‟S FOMO The second solo album from this New Zealand musician (son of Crowded House‟s Neil Finn) is due out in June. It‟s titled FOMO because the artist has said Fear Of Missing Out is at the heart of the record— which he made while out of the spotlight, in a New Zealand beach cottage—and his life, since his musician friends and family are accustomed to catching up with each other by phone, email and Facebook photos while touring. He says of FOMO: “It‟s a very natural way to be, but it‟s also a slightly tragic term, because you should never wish you were somewhere else.” Image credit: www.yeproc.com FEAR OF MISSING OUT
  • 42. LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR EXPERTS & INFLUENCERS
  • 43. BIANCA BOSKER, senior technology editor at The Huffington Post APPENDIX: LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR EXPERTS AND INFLUENCERS
  • 44. DAN HERMAN, CEO of international strategy consulting firm Competitive Advantages APPENDIX: LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR EXPERTS AND INFLUENCERS
  • 45. MARC A. SMITH, sociologist and chief social scientist at Connected Action Consulting Group APPENDIX: LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR EXPERTS AND INFLUENCERS
  • 46. THANK YOU Ann M. Mack Christine Miranda Director of Trendspotting Trends Strategist JWT Worldwide JWTIntelligence ann.mack@jwt.com christine.miranda@jwt.com @annmmack @xtinemiranda WWW.JWT.COM | WWW.JWTINTELLIGENCE.COM | WWW.ANXIETYINDEX.COM © 2011 J. Walter Thompson Company. All Rights Reserved.