Since watching Frontline’s Persuaders episode, I’ve been intrigued by cool hunters. Those are people employed by large companies to predict the next big thing.

Yesterday at McKay’s, I stumbled up on The Trendmaster’s Guide by Robyn Waters. Apparently Robyn Waters is the person responsible for turning Target into Tarzhay.

It’s a good resource to get the creative juices flowing. If you work in politics, marketing or PR, I highly recommend it. It’s an A to Z guide on how to predict trends and capitalize on them. At only 113 pages, it’s fast read.

What’s a trendmaster?

A trend tracker looks at the signs to help his or her business stay up to the minute. A Trendmaster, however, uses the trend information to determine where that minute is going. Trendmasters start out by observing the trend, but then they translate that trend information into a direction that makes sense for their companies and their customers.

My favorite piece of advice:

Trend tracking isn’t about hunting for the one right answer; it’s about revealing a multitude of possibilities and then finding a way to get others excited about those possibilities. You have to fight mediocrity with possibilities that inspire passion.