Digital trends can begin life as fads, whether they be products, features, user behaviour or an app – with fads only becoming viable trends when they reach critical mass and prove longevity.
It’s the hardest part of being a marketer in the digital era: picking the digital trends from the fads, sifting what’s relevant, and determining where to invest limited time and resources to deliver long term strategic value.
It doesn’t help that digital trends can begin life as fads, whether they be products, features, user behaviour or an app – with fads only becoming viable trends when they reach critical mass and prove longevity. While there is no magic formula to picking a trend from a fad, there are some important factors to consider to help smart marketers spot the difference.
Here’s how Travis Bernard, Head of Audience Development at TechCrunch, differentiates between trends and fads.
Look at the data
What are the usage stats, how is technology evolving and what is the relationship with other trends? ‘Square, silent video for example, makes sense in light of increasing numbers of social video views, the uptake of live video and mobile usage stats,’ says Travis.
‘Add to this the small percentage of videos watched with sound on and the success of trials with square video sharability and this ticks all the boxes for a trend. It has important implications for digital marketers not just for how videos are created, but also how they are produced and published.’
Is it better than what already exists?
A digital trend won’t be the same as something else, it needs to be significantly better. ‘Live.ly is a good example of a popular app that looks to be turning into a trend among teenagers,’ says Travis.
‘It builds on other trend elements such as user-generated content, live streaming and video sharing, whilst demonstrating potential for other popular functionality to be added like selfie lenses and stickers.’
Timing is everything
Travis says that the timing has to be right for a trend to take off. ‘Virtual reality –VR – is a great example of a technology that won’t completely take off this year, but other things like interactive ads will be a springboard for VR and companies that are playing in the space now will be leading the way,’ he explains.
What does history say?
‘Consider what has worked in the past and why and learn from failures,’ he says. ‘The trend needs to be a good fit for your product and audience and come along at the right time.’
Start experimenting
If you identify a new technology that you think will become a trend, you don’t need to sit back and wait. Travis advises, ‘be flexible and open to new opportunities that are a good fit for your business, and ultimately stay focused on what’s best for your customers.’
Go with your gut
‘Does it feel right, will it clearly add value and does it make sense?’
TechCrunch will be unveiling five important digital trends at the upcoming Interactive Minds Digital Summit event in Brisbane on Wednesday 20 July and Melbourne on Friday 22 July. Find out more about the events here.
Louisa Dahl, Founder and Director, Interactive Minds
