As a media partner of Le Web conference that was held last December in Paris, TheMediaShaker had the chance to interview several expert speakers who worked closely on topics such as streaming platforms, new technologies, data, etc. Among these experts, TheMediaShaker featured Brian Solis, who is a renowned digital anthropologist and the Principal Analyst at Altimeter Group. Over the course of a very interesting and rich conversation, Brian Solis covered a wide range of topics, from Big Data to the decline of albums sales, as well as the tricky transition towards a mobile-first economy. Here is a summary of the full length interview that you can watch by clicking on the video below.

Everybody is talking about digital transformation these days; what exactly is digital transformation? “Digital transformation, as I define it, is the evolution (or revolution) of business philosophy, processes, models and systems to compete in a digital economy,” explains Brian Solis. Sounds pretty straightforward, doesn’t it? Yet, as Brian Solis suggests, some companies “…are investing in all of these new technologies without understanding the culture and the nuances and the relationship that the user has within those communities or how they use those devices.”

According to Brian Solis, these companies do not necessarily think about changing their work ecosystem to adapt to new technologies but instead try to include new technologies within the existing framework. He used the example of mobile formats to prove this point; “What I do see is that companies are taking a mobile-first approach to simply adapt its current business model and products for a mobile device. And that’s not okay.” As aforementioned, such companies need to bear in mind that their audience, their future clients will be part of the so-called Generation Z, the generation that grew up in a mobile-first economy and that intuitively flicks and swishes on mobile devices. It is absolutely crucial, Brian Solis stresses, for companies to know their customers and especially to understand how they react to and integrate new technologies in their daily habits.

The year 2015 is going to be a year of innovation and technological advancement, especially in the health sectors: “I think we are going to start to open up new possibilities for connected devices to not just track what we do but help us live more improved lifestyles.” Connected objects will thus be the big trend and innovation of 2015. But Brian Solis could not resist pitching in a personal wish of his as a 2015 digital trend prediction: “I would love it if 2015 was the year where we start making great music and buying those albums again and supporting our artists…”