Future Commerce takes deep dive into psychological and philosophical trends shaping commerce

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Do you put your phone in airplane mode so it won't track you?

Do you try not to talk about a product out loud so you don't suddenly start receiving ads for it?

Do you click social media content with the intention of training the algorithims?

If you answered yes to any of these questions you're certainly not alone.

In fact, 43 percent of people say they recently changed their digital behavior to "protect their algorithm or identity," according to the 2022 Visions Report just released by the retail media research startup Future Commerce.

Future Commerce says these actions are "rituals" made in an effort to appease our new technology and brand overlords, whom consumers have begun to worship.

"At this point, everyone does have a responsibility to be proactive about their own algorithm," said Grace Clark, founder of Grace Clarke Consulting and a member of the panel put together to discuss the Visions Report. "It's incumbent on humans to have a front foot there and not simply be passengers in the experience they're having."

The themes and finding of the Visions Report were based on an online survey with 1,000 consumers across the United Stated between the ages of 18 and 64. The survey was conducted in May 2022 and all respondents were screened for shopping behaviors, personally earned income, and digital savviness.

"In this year’s annual report, we’ll examine the three areas where the greatest shifts are occurring: Consumer, Culture, and Modernity. We’ll ask hard questions and propose some solutions," Future Commerce states in the report. "VISIONS isn’t a trends report as much as it is a recognition of the underlying psychological and philosophical ideas that are shaping the world around us."

With high-level topics like The Sacraments of Commerce: Brands are the new religion, the Future Commerce report is unique in that it's less about trends and more a psychological study of how we're being impacted by technology.

“We’re in the midst of the greatest technological shift in a generation. The town square is now fully digitized, our every interaction is quantified and commerce stands at the center of it all. VISIONS isn’t a trends report as much as a recognition of the underlying psychological and philosophical ideas that are shaping the world around us,” said Phillip Jackson, Future Commerce Co-Founder.

Other findings from the report include:

• 64% of consumers agree it’s rare to come across a website that feels unique or has unexpected functionality;
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• One in three respondents say they frequently post images of things they don’t own on social media to make their lives look more interesting/appealing
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• 50% are more likely to post than to donate to the Green New Deal/Climate Change, Blue Lives Matter, Blood:Water, or Defund the Police
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• 70% agree that “everyone” posts/shares things online that they wouldn’t in real life
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• 72% of consumers feel that it's too frictionless to buy online via 'one-click' checkout
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• Two in three consumers think it's plausible we're living in a simulation

A full copy of the report along with access to a 16-episode podcast and video series breaking down the report can be accessed today.

BANKNOTES' parent company, #PAID, is a presenting sponsor of this year's Visions Report.