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Digital trends you need to know before investing

Sarah Stowe

Before you buy a franchise, check out these leisure, travel, dining and outsourcing trends. 

Leisure trends

Experience not possessions is the key to how people use their time off. Consumers are looking to attend events or take part in sports or fitness classes, suggests Euromonitor.

And the short break, the newly-named Staycation, or skipping holidays altogether are all ways that consumers respond to less time and greater anxiety about being away from work.

Digital entertainment is all about mobile, with music, videos and games consumed on the go, anywhere, anytime.

Social networking managed through social media is replacing meeting up with friends and family. We Are Social reports the global social media base had reached more than two billion two years ago.

The use of fitness devices and applications have been a positive in the leisure field.

Travel boost

Global travel and domestic trips are both on the rise and this sector will be most affected by the digital shift, predicts Euromonitor.

OPPORTUNITY

  • The new-look, hi-wired budget accommodation suited to modern travellers
  • Serviced apartments catering for business guests and families
  • Customised travel

Flexible, fresh food

Interesting food experiences are on the menu. Consumers are looking for fresh ingredients, simple preparation, variety, and flexible formats.

“Third party delivery businesses have emerged as consumers seek out ways to maximise convenience,” the Euromonitor report reads.

This could be restaurant meal deliveries or the ingredients for a home-cooked meal.

Cafes are a popular global choice for socialising and for business and informal meetings.

OPPORTUNITY

  • Coffee outlets
  • Cafes and casual dining
  • Takeaway and home-delivered food
  • Customised menus and self-service kiosks

Outsourcing chores

Busy consumers are turning to a raft of new businesses to take on the everyday errands and chores they are too busy to complete.

The HERE survey (where 1000 Australians were surveyed by global open location platform company, HERE) discovered on-demand labour services could be the next step for the industry with 22 per cent wanting a pickup/drop off auto repair service for their cars, while one in 10 want cleaning, maintenance and DIY jobs at the tap of a smartphone app.

OPPORTUNITY

  • Domestic services
  • Personal services
  • Landscaping/gardening
  • Auto services
  • Tutoring

The middle generation will be facing the commitments of caring at the same time for both elderly parents and children, and will themselves be pushed to work beyond retirement age.

But a shrinking workforce means improved flexibility and employee benefits will be increasingly important for employers to attract and keep staff.

“A recent concept that may take off is wellbeing leave, whereby workers are offered extra days’ holiday to spend on wellness activities.”

There will be more time spent with friends and family, thanks to digital connections, but this connectivity will encroach on leisure hours.

Boundaries no longer exist: think work-life integration not work-life balance.

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