Ten strategies for survival in the attention economy

Vying for the attention of the time‐challenged, choice‐saturated consumer characterizes the thrust of competition for the coming five years. There will be a continuing explosion of new technologies and new ways to connect electronically. For the foreseeable future, demands for the consumer’s attention will continue to escalate. Consumers will gravitate to trusted brands to manage and filter the bombardment of choices. In the attention economy, therefore, consumers exert greater power to shape content and experiences. In response, companies will need to deploy a much more sophisticated electronic infrastructure to respond and, will also market to ever‐smaller, more finely targeted segments. Successful brand‐owning business models will form collaborative alliance networks. Development will center on strategies that capture the attention of selected targets through deep responsiveness to the consumer’s experience of the brand, and on new business models that respond proactively to the rise of digital media.