It’s difficult these days to predict what consumers want and how they will act. However, early trend spotting allows brands to go ahead of curves, and competitors also predict consumer appetite before they begin feeding. And by jumping early into cultural change, you can create meaningful and lasting connections with your audience.
The good news is that Trendspotting doesn’t have to be a mysterious gamble. There is science in this art. Also, Beth Horn, UK Managing Director at Pinterest, is based on implementing the right strategies, cultures and processes so that they can “lean and respond with predictability.”
For example, Will, the global head of Tribe’s partnership, talks about three Rs when he agrees internally to this process. “Resources, reaction times, relevances, relevances” are the basis for a robust structure that allows brands to move with agility when exploiting trends.
They were talking with industry leaders John Lewis & Partners, Malibu Rum and Golborne at Pinterest Roundtable held at Drum Lab. Experts agree that early trend spotting promotes marketing agility and adaptability, giving brands a competitive advantage that shapes the future. So how can marketers refine their trend spotting strategies and structures for strategic decisions that will help them stay ahead of the game?
Uses a wide range of data
Tuning-in marketers use trusted data sources, such as insights from internal teams, social listening, or data platforms, to support trend stories. “We need multiple data sources that convey the same thing, whether internal or external,” says John Lewis and partner Imogen Belli, head of social.
This need for a wide range of data lenses has led Pinterest to evolve its trendy spotting methods. The platform’s annual Pinterest combines its “not yet trending” report with search behavior and “curation” signals such as visual search and pin storage to reveal deeper consumer intent and engagement further down the funnel.
This is a combination of both visual and search data that Pinterest calls the “magic formula,” and is an approach that works for creating long-term strategies. “They’re supported by their annual insights, so it’s easy to use that as a brand,” Fisher says.
Create a headspace for TrendSpotting
Early trend spotting is a feature of teams with space, autonomy, and “time for the week thinking about these things,” explaining how John Lewis built a layer of “planned reactivity” in their annual content calendar and marketing strategy. that. ”
When the right person is given that headspace, early trend spotting isn’t just about identifying: It’s about understanding how it aligns with your brand, its audience, and its long-term goals.
For Laur Convery, senior brand manager at Malibu Rum, this means using the pleasant brand value of a drink as a compass for early trend engagement. This approach involved jumping into the recent social media trends for the latest unusual flavor combinations.
Disassemble it and make it your own
Marketers need to separate trends and oust more understanding and long-term applicability from them. Sydney Stanbach, the global insights and trending lead on Pinterest, reflects consumer behavior, so dismantling trends is powerful for brands.
And its versatility can provide unexpected opportunities. Even if a trend doesn’t seem to be immediately related to a brand, breaking it down and analyzing the components reveals how to align both the brand’s identity and the audience’s preferences.
Sarah Kay, event planner, co-founder and director of Golborne, said: “When we’re trying to bring trends into the event environment (as Pinterest predicts the trends in 2024 for bow stacking), we think it won’t reveal what it can do.
Ultimately, consumer preferences evolve at a fierce speed, leveraging data, creating space for creativity, and maintaining flexibility allows marketers to be relevant, resonant and ready for the next thing.
Want to explore the rest of the “Tomorrow’s Trends” series? Read Parts 1 and 2 now. To create a campaign that will highlight your brand next year, check out Pinterest predicts 2025.
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