Trendjacking
What Is It and What Does It Mean For Your Brand
By: Ingrid Schifer

Welcome to 2024, where marketing trends are as dynamic as ever! In this series, we’ll be exploring the top trends shaping the industry and how you can leverage them for your business or non-profit. Our first focus: Trendjacking

Trendjacking is the art of tapping into ongoing conversations, events, or memes to capture your audience’s attention. It’s more than just jumping on the latest trend; it’s about infusing your brand with relatable and timely content, often laced with humour, to leave a lasting impression.

It acts as your secret weapon to cut through the noise online. By aligning your brand with trending content, you not only boost visibility but also extend your reach beyond your usual audience, typically building strong rapport along the way.

Every brand has a unique personality and trendjacking brings it to the forefront. Whether it’s humour, wit, or a distinctive perspective, infusing your content with personality fosters a sense of relatability and builds a connection with your audience.

The important aspect of utlizing trendjacking is to be quick. Timing is everything and being swift is non-negotiable. The online landscape moves at lightning speed, and seizing the right moment is crucial. When you spot a trend aligning with your brand, act promptly. The faster you respond, the more impactful your engagement will be.

Navigating the Trendjacking Landscape

While the benefits of trendjacking are significant, it’s crucial to navigate this strategy with caution and authenticity. Ensure the trends you choose align with your brand’s values and target audience. Trendjacking is about adding value to the conversation, not just hopping on the latest bandwagon. “The intent is to make your brand more visible in the digital space by taking advantage of news-worthy events to propel your digital reach.” says Tom Goh, with Equinet Academy.

The biggest trendjacking event in 2019 perhaps was the #10yearschallenge triggered by Facebook asking its users to post a photo of themselves from 10 years ago and one from today with the caption “How did aging affect you?”

5.2 million responses and numerous brands jumped onto the trend in 2 months

Use With Caution: Trendjacking, while certainly a trend that is sure to grow exponentially over this year, can often take a dismal turn when it comes to societal commentary and this is an off-ramp that is not recommended. While we all have our personal opinions, thoughts and contributions to offer, these are best suited for personal accounts. In the world of business, few are the ones that can actively participate or comment on divisive topics in public discourse and ultimately not feel a negative impact on their relationships with consumers, customers and their broader target audience. 

It’s important to remember that trendjacking is not just a marketing tactic; it’s really more of an art form. It’s about navigating online conversations, capturing attention with humour, showcasing the unique personality tones that defines your brand, all the while being super quick on the draw. Some might say it’s best to leave it to the experts but the key to success with this, is being able to spot a trend that is compatible with how you want your brand to be interpreted online. So if you are confident in your ability to do so, have at it!

Resources:

Check out memegenerator.com   – here you can create free memes, explore what memes are trending, understand more about the meme sub-culture.

Additional Reading:  https://www.equinetacademy.com/trendjacking-in-content-marketing/ 

Stay tuned for the next edition, where we’ll explore the second trend shaping the marketing landscape of 2024.