How incredible would it be to know which trends are going to boom before they go viral! Imagine the unprecedented power you can wield to shape the YouTube industry according to your advantage.
Trends are the silver lining to identifying opportunities ahead of the crowd, creating viral content, and owning the digital space. The most successful YouTubers navigate are experts at unravelling underlying trends to disrupt content as we know it.
We are going to teach you the fundamentals of spotting a trend, applying it to your YouTube channel and taking it to the next level of virality.
1. Explore how trends can highlight problems
Analyse trending videos around the topic you’re looking to cover. Browse through the comment section and find out what viewers are saying, from the positives to negatives. Some viewers may call out problems in the video and outline how the video can be improved in the comment section.
2. Look out for chain reactions
One trend can spark another trend. Always try to unravel the hidden layer beneath a trend to see how you can improve it. When Simply Nailogical initiated the “100+ coats of nail paint challenge”, other YouTubers used it as a launchpad to create their own version of the challenge. The trend kicked off to become the infamous “100 layer challenge” where YouTubers transcended from just experimenting with nailpoint to everything from toilet paper to duct tape.
3. Rebel against the norm
Look for everyday trends that people follow as the status quo. If you come across a popular theory that everyone agrees with but you see it from a different perspective, don’t be afraid to stand up for what you believe in. Question the truth.
4. Look outside YouTube
Often, the most viral trends on YouTube stem from external trends. Track changing triggers and shifts in the environment around you. Shifts are macro-level changes that address the big picture, like climate change and globalization that take decades to play out. Whereas triggers are timely and immediate trend influencers like economic shocks, pandemic threats and controversial events. Balance both these triggers and shifts to create content that’s relevant and bound to make an impact.
5. Draw powerful insights from businesses
Rather than focusing all your attention on understanding what viewers want, try understanding how disruptive startups and global giants in your niche are innovating their businesses with an aim to satisfy their customers. This will help you identify behavioural patterns in your target audience and pave the way towards creating next-gen content for the future.
6. Spot underlying human needs
Fundamental human needs play a massive role in shaping trends. One of the main reasons movies and shows reuse the same themes and plots over and over again is because they WORK. These stories tap into basic human needs like achieving social-status, self-realisation, pursuit of love and happy endings. Go through your favourite shows and analyse why you love them, how they make you feel, what emotions they elicit and build your content to fulfil these fundamental basic needs.
7. Foresight what your viewers want next
The key to spotting trends is to anticipate what viewers really want and tailor meaningful content according to these trends. When you see a gap in the YouTube market, you can either crib or you can see it as an opportunity to create content that fills in the gap. For instance, if you’re searching for a tutorial on “How to find the best life insurance policy in 2020” and you can’t seem to find content around this topic, seize this opportunity to recreate this topic yourself.
Trend spotting is one of the most exciting spaces to explore in 2020. And early trend spotting can deliver groundbreaking value for your YouTube channel. You can either keep up with trends, or you can create them. It’s your choice!
Interested in getting your YouTube channel seen by a huge audience? Get started here: www.flintzy.com