This is the time of year that predictions flood the web. I usually do a list of my own and was going to bail on it this year because I just didn't have the energy. However, over the past 24-hours, I've had a handful of people ask me where my list was.
So, in typical Big Guy fashion, here's the only 2012 prediction list you'll ever need to read:
Industry Predictions
- Social media isn't going to mature; it will continue to be a space that evolves and never settles.
- There will be even more "gurus" writing books, working hard to self-promote, but not actually doing any work that's measurable and impacts business.
- The gap between those that "know" social media and those that don't will widen, despite attempts by "strategists" to be sheep herders.
- PR, advertising and marketing shops (traditional and "new"), all want a part of social media budgets because each of them think they own the space, when in fact, each of them own a portion of it.
- Measuring PR/digital marketing initiatives is going to be really big in 2012, but business and agencies will continue to struggle to do it -- mostly because of how the space will continue evolve. This isn't to say that there are people, brands and agencies out there doing it well, but what I'm saying is that we'll need to dive deeper, much deeper. It's WAY more than likes and retweets at this point.
- Agencies that have a niche will continue to do well, but will have to work harder at driving thought leadership in order to get noticed. Agencies can't pretend to do it all anymore. Clients are too smart and see right through it.
- Social CRM is the 2012 buzzword, but it's a bullshit play only because EVERYONE is going to try and own it. It's just another way to categorize the process to which brands engage with, distribute content to and measure their marketing efforts -- offline and online.
- Mobile will continue to grow and it will be increasingly important for brands to have robust mobile engagement strategies that are more than just brand awareness -- this goes for agencies as well.
Career Predictions
- I'll find a job that I really love and one where I will be appreciated for all the various talents I bring to the table -- professionally and personally.
- I'll make more connections that really mean something to me and I'll value -- so much so that I'll put in the time needed to build those relationships and make them fruitful for both yours truly and my contacts.
- I'll continue to learn new things about myself as well as the industry I'm in because there are a lot of smart people out there -- much smarter than me.
- I will depend and broaden my readership across all the platforms for which I produce content, simple because I'm good at it.
- I will trim off relationships that provide no value to me professionally.
- The job I have is one I'll have for five-eight years, if not longer.
- I will do more speaking engagements.
- I'll work harder to mentor and create opportunities for those who are junior to me.
- I'll continue to love what I do and want to do more of it.
New England Sports Predictions
- The Patriots will win the Superbowl because of a couple of freak plays, timely turnovers and the fact that the Packers will choke in the NFC Championship game at home.
- The Bruins will continue their nasty, hard hitting, exciting type of play to win back to back cups. Yes, I said it, back to back cups.
- The Celtics will struggle this year, but will make the playoffs -- only to lose to the Knicks, of all teams.
- The Red Sox will continue to lose relevance in Boston, regardless of what baseball fans say. They might make the playoffs, but won't have enough pitching to go far. And, of course, The Collapse will continue to haunt the team and not to mention, be plagued by some Bobby V outbursts.
World Predictions
- Obama will get a second term, like it or not. The Republicans are too all over the place and Mitt's a moron -- moron, not Mormon.
- There will continue to be political upheaval started because of a tweet.
- The world will continue to get smaller because of social media and content creators.
- We the people will become THE media source for breaking news, while traditional media outlets will be curators.
- The environment will continue to take a backseat as a real issue, which is unfortunate because we will continue to have bizarre weather happens all around the world.
- New governments will be formed and true world democracy is slowly but surely coming to fruition (which doesn't necessarily mean world peace, but t's better than dictatorships).
Random Predictions
- Viral videos will come and go. Some will capture our attention more than others, but all of them will either be funny, sad, strange or simple unbelievable (or manufactured).
- Music will continue to grow in the streaming realm with the help of apps like Spotify.
- Apple will release some cool-ass products, which I'll end up buying because I'm addicted.
- Windows will continue to try and compete with Apple, but will fail.
- Facebook, Google+, Twitter, etc. will all continue to grow, with some going public -- launching a new dot-com type economy.
- Speaking of the economy, things will turn around, but big businesses will try to do things on the cheap, while cutting labor costs.
- Movies will continue to suck because no one has the time to actually go to movies anymore. There will be a few gems, but most people will say, "eh, I'll wait for it to come on to iTunes."
I could go on and on, but those are what popped into my head. However, one last one I'll throw your way is one that I pretty much say year to year, which is:
I'll continue to be me. Love it or hate it.
Happy New Year everyone!