With the clock-change coming up on Sunday, we would like to help you stay ahead of time. Micro-trends appear in the limelight and impress you with an outstanding performance of real innovation. From our 300 micro trends, that we identify every month we offer you a small selection of 5 micro-trends in our monthly newsletter.
One of these is from the American company Udorse, which has developed a tool for Facebook that allows users to highlight recognised brands with a link, so that hotel operators, for example, can be endorsed from your holiday snaps, and Lichtblick who joined with Volkswagen to put the production of energy where it belongs to – in the houses where the ernergy is actually being used.

RECOMMENDATIONS VIA GPS & AUGMENTED REALITY

The iPhone app from the American website yelp.com for reviews and recommendations of all kinds of companies is now making it much easier for users to get the opinions of other users and send in their own views. Wherever users are, reviews of restaurants or shops in the area appear on the iPhone via the augmented reality mode “Monocle”. After using the app to find the company he was looking for, the user can directly send out a short, Twitter-like 140-character statement on the product he has consumed or purchased.

SWARM POWER THANKSTO GENERATOR IN THE CELLAR

Lichtblick, the Hamburg-based provider of environmentally-friendly electricity, has put forward a highly ambitious programme of using so-called “swarm power” in home-based power units to replace the power from two nuclear reactors within a single year. The plan is to install small, gas-fired power generators in homes, which can be connected to the main power network. As well as producing electricity, the generator – installed in the cellar of the building, could also provide the house’s necessary heating. By responsibly utilising the heat lost, approx. 60% less CO2 will be emitted than with the more conventional gas heaters.

AUCTIONS VIA INSTANT MESSAGING

The auctioning website “Auctionopia” is now mainly using Instant Messaging as a communication channel between buyers and sellers. As is customary, the sellers put up their wares on the website for bidding and set a calling price. Any interested buyers then have the chance to contact the seller via IM and haggle over the price. As soon as the price negotiations begin, the auction timer is set at 2 minutes and an agreement must be reached within this period. The timer is put back only if another interested buyer joins in the bargaining and makes a bid.

GOOGLE PRINTS BOOKS ON DEMAND
The Google Books virtual library is set to make its entry into the real world too. In collaboration with the New York company “On Demand Books”, Google is about to allow over two million different works to be printed. All users who in future wish to read one of the books found on Google in printed and bound form can simply order a copy of their own.

UDORSE – SOCIAL ADVERTISING VIA FACEBOOK

The company Udorse has developed a tool for Facebook that allows users to highlight brands on photos with a link, so that hotel operators, for example, can be endorsed from your holiday snaps. If anything is bought or booked via the link, the user who placed the link can choose to receive a part of the payment via PayPal or donate the money to charity. The first partners for this enterprise are the fashion labels Armani and American Apparel.

On September 27th, Germany is electing its new Federal Parliament. We vote future!
So we have already chosen the best five digital business Micro-Trends of the month. There is for example the British weekly magazine “The Economist” which is now offering its readers a single copy purchase. Moreover we present an automatic kiosk from the fast food chain “Jack in the Box” and the new business contest on Twitter, which gives entrepreneurs the chance to win by tweeting the best business idea.

COUPON SEARCH WITH KRYSTAL

The American fast food chain Krystal launched a week-long marketing campaign which placed a link to a coupon online every day for the latest drink on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Flickr. The link was only online for thirty to sixty minutes and, when found, could be shared with anyone. To find this link within the allotted time, the four participating social media platforms regularly revealed various clues on when and where the link would be published.

“THE ECONOMIST IN SINGLE COPY SUBSCRIPTION

The weekly magazine “The Economist” is now offering its readers the chance to make a single copy purchase that will be delivered to their front door. These single copies can be ordered by e-mail or SMS, while plans are also underway to make this service available via Twitter and Facebook. The magazine costs exactly the same as from the kiosk and is delivered the following day. In this way, “The Economist” combines the benefits of a delivery service with those of a spontaneous purchase at the kiosk.

HOME SHOPPING ON THE IPHONE VIEW

The US home shopping provider HSN has now made 24-hour shopping possible for iPhone and iTouch owners. The application can be downloaded free of charge by members from the HSN website and unveils the first associated “3 Screen Experience” live video. Over 35,000 products can be accessed with the application. These can also be purchased on-the-go using the mobile device. This service also offers a so-called “Shake2Shop” feature which displays random product recommendations when you shake the phone.

FAST FOOD FROM AUTOMATED KIOSKS

The fast food chain “Jack in the Box” has introduced an automated kiosk to one of its branches in Washington Bellevue at which food can be both ordered and paid for. The automated kiosk displays all available menus, dishes and drinks over a user-friendly screen. It also informs customers during the ordering process about special offers, products on offer and discounts. Customer can conveniently pay by credit card and then pick up their food directly from the counter.

BUSINESS IDEA IN 140 CHARACTERS

The head of Virgin, Sir Richard Branson, is looking for brilliant business ideas via Twitter and is accepting the so-called “microPITCH”, comprising just 140 characters. The entrepreneur with the best idea will win a training session, among other prizes, to help transform the tweet into a fully developed business plan. As an alternative to the shortened online version, participants can send in a more detailed outline of their business idea costing a fee of $60.