Oppo Smart Studies: us, digital and normality

How can we understand the post-Covid "new normality" if not studying the profound repercussions it is having on people and society, also and above all in terms of the relationship with the digital world? In fact, Oppo intends to deepen precisely this aspect with its "Smart Studies", which is completely central to the understanding of the world to come: the pandemic has forced the entry of the digital dimension into our sphere of perception of reality, imposing us for the first time to think not in terms of a virtual / real dichotomy, but in the perspective of a continuum between material and immaterial as sides of the same coin.

Oppo Smart Studies: in search of meaning

Oppo Smart Studies are therefore an observatory of great importance: entrusted to the sociologist Francesco Morace, President of the Future Concept Lab, the project was created to try to fully understand how we are changing, how the surrounding world is changing and, above all, how they are changing. ndo the relationships between the different entities that regulate everyday life, the markets and the relationship with personal technological devices.

The metamorphosis that took place in the recent period has transformed the relationship with the entire system of consumption, trade and services, determining the evolution of values ​​and social paradigms and making the existence of experiences emerge clearly which cannot be bought as health, conviviality, seriousness, reputation and reliability. The change has also changed people's involvement in consumption, with a decisive shift towards product ethics and the search for experiences of excellence. The affirmation of digital during the pandemic did not cause a growing isolation of social subjects and consumers, but on the contrary, it activated a progressive rapprochement between people, redefining the very rules of proximity that also becomes technological. It is through the new value of digital proximity that authenticity, the truth of the processes and sustainability are strengthened and legitimized: digital devices allow you to touch the benefits and applications of these values ​​first-hand.

La research develops in four directions:

Living with value Virtuous reality Extrapolating the sense The chains of trust

Living with value

The current consumer feels the growing need to live 360-degree sensory experiences that are able to guarantee maximum satisfaction in the shortest possible time. We are therefore moving from the product economy to the service economy. [...] The smartphone thus becomes a privileged means of organizing one's existence and accessing a vast variety of services and experiences, while at the same time representing a tool for interactive creativity and continuous revision.

The evolution of consumers, even before the evolution of products, has led to an evolution in consumption that today leads us to give less value to the object itself and much value to the experiences that the object allows. The value of a smartphone, therefore, today lies in the sum of the value of the individual experiences enabled. In this dynamic lies the strong drive towards new subscription models that allow you to enjoy experiences based on your wishes, your needs and with maximum freedom of choice.

Virtuous reality

A trend that finds its maximum expression in a place with such an intimate connotation as the home. Place of choice and, with the onset of Covid-19, also a refuge to be equipped and customized more and more. In this regard, in Italy, 25% of people say that, in 2021 compared to 2019, they will frequent more friends in their own home, moreover, 36% of Italians will not be able to give up having a

access internet in your home and 39% to the garden, outlining the image of a house open to others, connected and ever greener.

The house therefore becomes on the one hand an introspective place, in which to take refuge to enrich oneself themselves and their daily life, and from the other place to welcome friends to offer themselves and all that they have managed to bring into their home environment. A very strong return to the past, which returns to give value to the good of the home as a place of the soul. But this return to the past can only be experienced in the name of a strong leap towards the future: the home will be welcoming if smart, if adaptive, if really able to offer those experiences that are intended to be part of the time spent in the family and with friends. Technology will enter the home as an integral and natural part, as a structural element, as a dominant necessity: "A scenario of absolute synergy between human touch and technology, where the interconnection between natural and artificial is sophisticated and limitless. The Virtuous Reality trend affects people between the ages of 25 and 40 to a greater extent ". 25-40 years, the age in which life projects take shape and one's future is shaped starting from the place where one imagines it.

Extrapolating the meaning

C ' it was a time when the worst threat to our psyche was lack of time. We were told this continuously until 2019: there is never time to do everything. That was the consequence of a bulimic engulfment of activity in the 24 hours that nature makes available to us every day and for many this will be a deleterious perseverance even in the post-Covid phase. For many, soon, the multiplication of smartphone notifications will be the main constraint that will keep us anchored to apps, situations, discussions and activities that break the concentration and natural flow of the day.

The new normal will therefore suggest a a new and further dimension in the relationship with technology, something that goes beyond the struggle against the scarcity of time: the extraction of meaning, the ability to dig into meaning, the search for essence. This means the desire for a more direct and natural relationship with things and people, a process in which technology becomes an invisible vehicle for contact. It is the definitive maturation of the interfaces, which in an ideological vision should be mere transparency and through. The medium travels towards a further refinement, in which the distortion becomes less and the message more alive:

The possibility of producing original contents lived in terms of emotional experience as well as cultural enrichment, where knowledge and cognitive process are implemented by technology. Finally, the desire to relive objects, events or characters from the past can be fully realized thanks to smartness and its ability to renew unique occasions and constantly update one's performances.

The use of traditional mediums will therefore change. ? Not immediately, but it will be the beginning of a change that will mature in times compatible with the generational change, with the driving force of innovation and with the revolutionary capacity of digital to shape the way in which we communicate information and emotions.

On the one hand, the intention to reduce or eliminate live activities in 2021 due to the health emergency, from cinema (-34%) to live entertainment (-31%), from discos (-29%) to theater (-25%) to museums (-24%). On the other hand, the continuous improvement and greater accessibility of technologies such as VR, AR, sensors and the advent of 5G, which are implementing their performance more and more every day. Furthermore, the lockdown has speeded up the digitization process of Italian society, involving all areas of daily life.

The chains of trust

In a context in which stronger relationships are imposed. close between companies and consumers, and in a market in which the subscription logic cements relationships far beyond the logic of the product, the real value lies in the brand and its ability to build solid chains of trust. The value load that brands have to bear must therefore thoroughly investigate the identity of the brand itself, to understand how to cultivate wealth that is embodied in one's way of being in the world, even before in the specifications of a product.

The affirmation of the collaborative economy (or civil economy) has now taken on countless expressions, starting with the decision of more and more people to share their goods, services, transport or other. Within this context, the distinction between producer and consumer tends to change, if not disappear, we act together for a better result and trust in the other becomes a fundamental asset fueled by credibility. People change for the better if they have the time to understand, reflecting themselves in the activities of others, if they therefore create chains of trust. In this regard, new technologies and Open Innovation can contribute to the production of social value.

The role of the smartphone

The smartphone will increasingly be the channel through which everyone we will have access to digital connections with people, companies, work, free time, content and so on. The display becomes an unprecedented space-time gap which for the first time will also take on a depth.

So Paolo Stella, creative director, writer and ambassador of OPPO SmartStudies:

Today more than smartphone never plays a decisive role in people's daily lives, and this trend will continue to grow more and more in the world of the new normal. Technology, in fact, allows us to redesign all experiences, from private to professional ones, perfectly tailored for us and will accompany and support us in this period of great change by continuing to innovate and evolve to reflect more our needs every day. .

In light of this, we asked Francesco Morace directly: will we come out better? Once the Covid parenthesis is over, and we are all suddenly projected onto the new normal, will we really be an improved entity compared to what we were before this long shock? According to Morace, this is not the case, or at least the answer certainly cannot be exhausted in a "yes" or a "no": "We will come out more aware of what can be done with a smartphone, especially in those generations that looked with detachment the children or grandchildren who were "inside" this reality. Digital has helped us in a moment of difficulty and this has emerged strongly especially in those generations who did not put their trust in the tool. This does not mean, however, that we will necessarily be better: situations like the one experienced in this year radicalize both good and evil, but at least we are generally more aware of what digital can offer us ".

The contents of Oppo Smart Studies, research on which Oppo will clearly build its market developments, will be made available both via podcast (here the first episode) and on a dedicated website (in the publication phase).