Trends have a rhythm.
They rise fast, peak, and fade the moment they become too common. What starts as a cultural hype sign soon turns into background noise once the crowd joins in. Then, trendsetters move on.
And where do these individuals go? Well, they look for the next spark while the late adopters are still celebrating what’s already losing its edge. The cycle keeps turning because novelty is finite and attention is short-spanned. And the faster cultural communication is getting, the faster this wheel turns.
So marketers, take note of this sacred mantra: not every trend deserves your budget. Jumping on every micro-wave only dilutes meaning and makes it flavorless. Not worth of your dime and resources. The Dubai-style chocolate moment, the Labubus craze, or whichever visual, social media trend takes over next, only dilutes meaning and lessens the value of your brand identity.
Real strategy means knowing when not to follow along. A trend without cultural purpose is just mass-design decoration.
The smart kind of move is to recognize which ones fit your story and which ones don’t. And even more so, which ones can actually be ackward attempts to get attention, from audiences that -get this- might already be there to begin with!
Only you do not yet know how to reach them properly and thoroughly.
Invest in people who can read culture pulse and identification and are passionate about it.
Timing matters, but context, audience and cultural brand relevance matters far more. Especially if you are in the innovative or premium brands business, where consumers tend to identify as unique individuals in the "trendsetter" end of the curve.
