Stuck in a ‘trend’ economy? Here’s how you can break free from it

It’s never felt more impossible to keep up with the trend cycle. Trends feel harder to predict, too fast to respond to, and even harder to get in front of. In many instances, it appears to be all reactive rather than proactive. “Micro-trends” are fleeting and elusive. By the time you read this, the Labubu boom might be over. Don’t know what that is? Exactly.

We’re inundated with trends that are so low-level, so born from “the internet,” that it makes it hard for anyone to zoom out and see the big picture. There’s no time to ask questions like what’s driving this change? What’s the human trend behind the micro-trend? However, there are always ways to distinguish the fleeting happenings of the day from insights that actually matter.

Doing this successfully does require time and effort. A recent MIT study revealed that the use of ChatGPT is atrophying critical thinking skills. This is a bitter (but likely not shocking) pill, but critical thinking is exactly what we need more of. Sure, tools like ChatGPT can help you move quickly, collating info or top-line snapshots, but they can’t replace the time and thinking that you need to unlock relevance.

There are core tenets of trend forecasting that can help us with this. They allow us to sort the relevant and useful from the overblown and noisy. But like I said, they require a little effort. 

Build your bibliography

First, breaking free from your self-perpetuating, algorithmic bubble requires significant work. Some platforms may allow you to reset your algorithm, but there’s no substitute for building your own bibliography. 

If you haven’t already, try to build one that actively takes you away from your typical sources of news and information. Look in places you might not naturally gravitate towards, but show you what’s happening outside your sphere. If you’re a telehealth brand trying to move from transactional to aspirational, look at what’s emerging in high-end hospitality. If you’re a fitness brand looking to help your consumers build habits and stay with you, consider reading about the mechanics of the gaming industry. Look outside of your business to get new points of view.

Say you’re a beauty or a wellness brand right now. It’s easy to think “clean girl” is the key micro-trend influencing the globe, and you should lean in. But if you look around your meeting table and see only slick-haired, twenty-to-thirtysomethings with Rhode lip gloss phone cases, it might just be your surroundings. Businesses have to learn to think forward.

Consider the driving factors

Once you’ve uncovered an insight that feels meaningful, it’s time for some critical evaluation. 

Speed and convenience are everything right now, so it’s easy to slip into the “just get it done” mindset. But when you’re trying to speak to deep human truths, you do need to get it right. That means sitting with things and letting them percolate. A classic trends tool is STEEP factors. These help us remember the drivers of trends. They are social, technological, environmental, economic, or political forces that feed into major movements or attitudinal shifts. 

For example, do you know what a borg (blackout rage gallon) is? A favorite of college students the last several years, they’re gallon jugs filled with alcohol and usually have a fun, borg-centric play on pop culture written on them. The average person looks at this and thinks, “Wow, college kids are drinking more than ever. That’s insane.” A marketer may look at it and think, “Cool, we can sell borg-sized products to young people now.” Cultural strategists and trend forecasters might ask, “Well, what’s in it?” 

If you unpack Gen Z’s borgs, they’re made up of alcohol, water, flavor, and electrolytes. That’s because they’re a generation that grew up firmly steeped in wellness culture. You realize borgs aren’t just about silly names and colorful alcohol, they reflect an attitude of a generation who considers their health differently than those before them.  

Manifestation versus cultural moment

Bear in mind as you uncover new ideas and topics, too, that one example doesn’t make a trend.  

Yes, we can use data from fast-moving content, but we need to assess it thoroughly. That’s when you notice what’s beneath the surface of a seemingly quick-churn micro trend. 

Remember, we’re looking for cultural signposts. That means different, multi-category, multi-industry spanning examples. I wouldn’t call the sustainability movement a trend necessarily, but when it began to explode, we saw its impact everywhere. In fashion, we saw Patagonia encouraging us to buy less. In food, we saw Impossible Foods and Oatly become consumer favorites. Beauty brands began to offer refillable packaging. When you see cross-category adoption, you know something is sticking.

Crafting relevance

Isn’t this the goal of every business leader? To uncover insights that meaningfully shape your business and its future. Some relentlessly chase relevance, jumping on every viral trend, while others strive for resonance and longevity. 

You need to strike a balance between the two, but it’s also important to be intentional in how you pursue the former. To be honest, I struggle to think of an example of a trend that’s established itself as truly resonant in recent years. Something impactful doesn’t get lost in the endless flood of content. Yet, consumers are increasingly looking for something more enduring. 

A definition of “insight” is the capacity to gain an accurate and deep, intuitive understanding of a person or thing. If we’re so overloaded with content, we no longer have that capacity. Those who succeed will be the ones taking the time to uncover the enduring, shaping not just their businesses, but the culture around them.