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Free 2024 Industry Trend Reports & Analysis

by Josh Howarth
July 10, 2024

This is our collection of free industry trend reports crafted by expert analysts.

Each in-depth report focuses on emerging market trends that show promising long-term growth potential and contains a detailed analysis of how they will impact the industry in the coming years.

In each report, you'll find:

  • High-quality market data and metrics
  • Detailed trend analysis and market insights
  • Real examples of each trend in action
  • Competitive insights like brands leading the new trends

Here the free industry trend reports, and below, we’ll give you an overview of what you can expect to learn inside each one:

Beauty Industry Trend Report

The beauty industry is rapidly changing as the line between makeup and skincare merge. However, there are still plenty of ways for innovative brands to step up and meet demand gaps.

Here are just a few of the trends this report covers that you can take advantage of:

  • Hyper-personalization: Learn why consumers want more personalized beauty care and see how brands like No7, Ulta Beauty, and Schwan Cosmetics are adjusting their offerings to meet this demand.
  • At-home beauty treatments: Learn how the pandemic and the rise of social media tutorials has shifted consumer demand to focus on DIY products (and which DIY beauty products are trending).
  • Clean beauty: Data shows women want clean, sustainable beauty products. This report discusses how women research their beauty purchases and what they’re looking for in a clean product.

Travel Industry Trend Report

The travel industry is booming. However, the way consumers want to travel has changed dramatically.

Here are a few key emerging trends that travel professionals need to know about:

  • Local travel experiences: Travelers want more authentic experiences, and this report discusses a handful of brands that have struck gold with this trend.
  • Travel tech adoption: Learn about the specific technology that consumers are embracing to make travel easier and see examples of how leading brands are baking tech into their products and services.
  • Blending work and leisure: More professionals are traveling and working simultaneously. This means travelers have new demands, so this report discusses what those demands are and provides examples of brands successfully catering to them.

Construction Industry Trend Report

Construction is one of the largest global industries, yet it has historically been one of the slowest industries to adopt new technologies.

In this research report, you'll learn how this is changing as leading construction brands adopt game-changing technology.

Here are a few trends this report analyzes:

  • The virtual construction market: Learn how the virtual construction market is improving construction companies' efficiency. Specifically, this report discusses the role of virtual design and construction (VDC) software and building information modeling (BIM) technologies.
  • Green building: Learn why companies are seeking construction companies that can implement environmentally sustainable designs.
  • Drone technology: Construction companies are using drones to measure stockpiles, significantly reduce construction worker injuries, and more.

Pet Industry Trend Report

The pet industry has more than doubled in the past decade (largely thanks to the introduction of new technologies and products that improve the quality of pets' lives). However, the space still has plenty of room for upward growth. 

Three trends this market report analyzes are:

  • Pet supplements: Pet owners want to give their pets the best care possible, and many companies have risen to meet that demand by offering supplements like dog vitamins, cat fish oil, and dog probiotics.
  • Pet insurance: Vet bills are expensive, and this report covers a few insurance companies that are solving this problem with great financial success.
  • Pet food niches: Pet owners are looking for healthier pet food options, and this report discusses several new categories of pet foods.

Auto Industry Trend Report

The auto industry has historically been slow to adopt new technologies and trends, but it's just now starting to catch up with other more innovative industries (for example, EVs and autonomous driving).

Here are a few trends auto professionals will learn about in this report:

  • Cars are more connected: The auto industry has been relatively stagnant in technology adoption, but the data in this report shows that change is coming. Learn about exactly what tech is dominating the auto industry.
  • Online car purchases: Brands offering buyer-friendly online experiences have a distinct competitive advantage over those focusing primarily on in-person sales. The data in this report shows how to adapt to this shift.
  • Luxury cars are in high demand: Data in this report shows consumers are happy to pay for luxury cars and reveals the brands benefiting from this trend.

Fitness Industry Trend Report

This industry trend report covers everything from new exercise equipment trends to in-demand nutrition products.

Three of the trends this report covers include:

  • Wearable tech: Wearables (like the Apple Watch and Oura Ring) continue to see consistent adoption growth.
  • HIIT and weight training popularity: These two forms of exercise have risen in popularity over the past several years and this report covers the products and services that consumers want to go along with their workouts.
  • Recovery equipment: As new science emerges around the importance of recovery, fitness enthusiasts want products and services that optimize their recovery. This report covers a few of the recovery products in highest demand.

Event Industry Trend Report

The pandemic shook the event industry to its core, and it will probably never look the same again. This report covers the new trends born in the aftermath of the pandemic and how you can leverage them to make your events more profitable.

Here are three of the trends this report covers:

  • Shifting from content to experience: Virtual events during the pandemic made people realize that relationships and entertainment are key aspects of a great event experience. This report shows how the most successful brands are innovating to meet this demand.
  • Data collection: Event planners are becoming increasingly sophisticated at measuring event experience satisfaction. Learn how they do it and the real-time data tools they're using.
  • PR and branding tools: This report shows strong evidence that there may be a stronger ROI in free events than paid events.

Toy Industry Trend Report

Gen Z and millennial parents are very conscious about their toy investments, and toy makers need to adjust to these shifts in consumer demand to stay relevant.

A few of the toy trends discussed in this report include:

  • Increased focus on sustainability: Most toys are plastic, and new data shows that environmentally-friendly toy manufacturers are seeing above-average market growth. This report covers the brands leading this trend and how larger brands are attempting to adapt.
  • Subscription services: This report introduces you to the "Netflix of Toys" and how toy subscription companies work.
  • Educational toys: Parents want their children to learn while they play, and this report uncovers a few emerging brands that are thriving thanks to their educational-themed toys.

Transportation Industry Trend Report

This report on the transportation industry trends covers various sectors, including logistics, rail, trucking, infrastructure, and passenger vehicles.

Here are a few of the noteworthy trends discussed:

  • Last-mile delivery efficiency: This report shows that last-mile delivery amounts to over half of the total shipping costs. Learn how brands are working to reduce this expense.
  • Active transportation: As traffic increases, more and more people are walking and biking to commute. Here's how cities are adjusting to accommodate this trend.
  • Transportation efficiency tech: This report shows that people aren't just relying on Google Maps to get from point A to point B. Learn about the tech consumers and trucking professionals are using to improve efficiency.

Credit Card Industry Trend Report

This credit card trend report shows how brands are focusing on consumer protection and efficiency.

It also provides insights into how financial services can adopt a more consumer-focused approach to your products/services.

Here are a few specific topics this report covers:

  • Contactless payment: This report covers data from MasterCard and a few other studies proving the popularity of contactless payment. You'll also learn about the other brands that are strong alternatives to Apple Pay.
  • BNPL: The new buy-now-play-later solutions have grown exponentially over the past few years. Here's how it's impacting the credit card landscape.
  • Data protection concerns: Customers are increasingly wary of data privacy, and a few new startups are solving this problem. Here's what these thriving startups are doing.

Airline Industry Trend Report

The aerospace industry is constantly evolving thanks to rapid technological innovations.

Here are just a few trends that will shape the next decade of aviation:

  • Sustainability solutions: Consumers and global organizations are pressuring airlines to find more sustainable fuel alternatives. This report covers some promising solutions that brands have developed and newer startups taking a piece of the pie.
  • Autonomous aircraft: Many of the top aircraft manufacturers are now releasing autonomous solutions to meet the demand of cargo transporters. It also provides interesting data that shows how close this idea is to becoming a reality.
  • Predictive maintenance: Most flight delays are caused by maintenance issues, and these delays are costing the airline industry about $10 billion annually. So here's how companies are solving this problem and the emerging technologies to watch.

Restaurant Industry Trend Report

Many of the strategies born during the pandemic appear to be long-term trends.

This report covers some of the trends that stuck, including:

  • The future of online food delivery: This became a popular trend during the pandemic, and our recent industry research shows it's still growing. So in this report, you'll find an overview of the competitive landscape, revenue metrics, consumer demand statistics, and M&A activity.
  • Ghost kitchens: This term was only introduced a few years ago, but you'll see in this trend report that it's showing strong compounding growth. Learn about the key competitors with the biggest market share and how these companies are evolving.
  • Food automation: Robots are becoming increasingly common in restaurants, and you'll recognize a few of the brand name chains inside this report. It also dives into the various aspects of the restaurant operations that robots are currently automating and data-driven predictions for the future.

Dental Industry Trend Report

In this dental industry report, you'll learn about the latest technologies that thriving dentist practices are implementing and how they're adapting their overall business to provide a better customer experience.

  • 3D Printing: The idea of 3D printing has been around for some time, but this trend report shows that it's only just now starting to become a mainstream practice. This trend report details the dental 3D printing market value by product type and other key metrics.
  • Subscription based coverage: Rising healthcare costs are a key reason why people don't go to the dentist regularly, so a new trend we cover in this report is the rise of subscription-based coverage. You'll learn which companies are thriving thanks to this trend and how it makes dental care more affordable for consumers and profitable for dentists.
  • Laser dentistry: There are always new emerging technologies, but it can be difficult to tell which ones are actively being adopted versus those that aren't very practical in a real-world setting. Laser dentistry appears to be one of the more promising technologies and this report covers why it's so popular and how it creates a better patient experience.

Podcast Industry Trend Report

In this report we cover 12 of the biggest changes happening in the world of podcasting. 

  • Video podcasts become the norm: Podcasting is quickly shifting from audio-first to video-first.
  • More podcasts ads: Podcasts are becoming a mainstream advertising channel for large and small brands alike. Which is likely due to the fact that nearly half of all podcast listeners have purchased something they learned about from a podcast. 
  • Live podcasting: Hosts and listeners alike are gravitating towards live podcasting events (including in-person events). 

CPG Industry Trend Report

The CPG industry is one of the fastest-changing spaces out there. 

  • Challenger brands: Thanks largely to faster R&D options and new ways of meeting market demand (like TikTok), smaller CPG brands are seeing huge traction in markets like supplements and beauty. 
  • Increased DTC focus: More and more consumers are buying their CPG products online. Either as one-off purchases or as part of a subscription. 
  • Multi-channel marketing: CPG brands are realizing that TV and radio ads aren't working as well as they used to. So they're investing in influencer marketing, podcast ads and other forms of omnichannel marketing. 

Discover More Industry Trends Now

The reports above aid your market research process by providing detailed industry analysis of your market sector. However, if you want to discover other under-the-radar trends, Exploding Topics has an entire database of over 1 million emerging industry trends.

Just search for your industry by category (fitness, pets, beauty, etc.) and it will provide a list of brands, products, and industry keywords that are currently trending.

You can use the free Trends Database now, or upgrade to Exploding Topics Pro and unlock premium trends and other advanced trend research features.