How to Stay on Top of Trends for Campaign Inspiration

It’s essential that your content is newsworthy and worth a journalist’s time in order to have a successful link building campaign. Although it can be a challenge to stay up-to-date on the newest trends in this ever-changing social media and news landscape, there are so many ways you can use your daily media consumption to the benefit of your clients. 

Related Content:

• Digital PR Services
• Content Marketing Agency
• Content Creation Services

Here are some things our digital PR agency keeps in mind when browsing social media or media outlets to help strengthen your campaign ideas: 

1. Consume with purpose

In this industry, never underestimate the importance of seeking content from a variety of outlets on a daily basis — Even the ones you don’t necessarily enjoy. Look at consuming media as less of a time killer and more as a part of your daily job expectation. Set aside time everyday to browse your favorite sites and take notes.

2. Browse when you’re hitting a roadblock 

Reading Reddit, watching TikToks, or scrolling through Twitter are all research methods vital to a successful brainstorming session. Follow accounts or tags that are relevant to your clients’ industries. If you’ve hit a creative roadblock, spend some time reading content that’s trending that week across all platforms. What can you contribute to the bigger picture? Ask yourself how you can use trending topics to build a great campaign for a client.

3. Don’t be left behind

In order to stay relevant and build links, you need to be on top of viral trends as they come — And avoid being late to the game. People’s attention spans are shorter than ever, and they’re moving on to the next big thing quickly. Always research if your campaign idea has been done before and if it was covered by big publications recently. You don’t want to create old news.

4. Jot down ideas as they come to you

If you see content that’s captivating or if you have an interesting question, jot it down quickly on your phone to present to your team in your next brainstorming session. You should always be seeking campaign ideas as you go about your day, even off the clock. Are you on a date and wondering who should foot the bill? Maybe that’s a topic worth exploring. Inspiration is everywhere. 

These are examples of some ideas I jot down throughout the week:

Once you adapt your mindset to scroll with purpose, you’ll have a better understanding on what platforms produce the best content inspiration for your specific needs.

Here’s How I Use Media Platforms for Campaign Inspiration: 

TIKTOK

If you think TikTok isn’t your cup of tea, think again. As painful as it might be to scroll the app targeted for Gen Zs, it’s provided me with an abundance of quality ideas geared toward a younger demographic. Because of the variety of content that’s constantly posted on the app, there’s unlimited inspiration in real time. If you need to brainstorm around home topics, seek out relevant hashtags like #homedecor or #interiordesign to see what’s trending. There are plenty of communities to explore like real estate, LGBTQ+, finance, or entrepreneurship. I like to spend 30 minutes to an hour scrolling through TikTok daily to stay on top of viral content.

REDDIT

I get a lot of news from Reddit, but I also look at what folks are saying in the comments of newsworthy articles. Read conversations and observe what people are discussing and what they are curious about. Are they upset at something Joe Rogan said, or are people calling for more public parks in their city? How can you incorporate these discussions into a survey or data campaign? You can also look at subreddits like r/DataIsBeautiful or r/News for current campaign inspiration as well. Although Twitter is a good source for news-related discussion, I find Reddit produces more well-articulated comments and has less trolling overall. 

DREAM PUBLICATION SITES

So you want to be in Business Insider? Or maybe you dream of being posted one day in the New York Times? Look at these publications you admire every day and observe the content being covered. View the sites they’re linking to, find the source of the content, and study newsworthy topics in that industry. Look through articles written by a specific journalist on your media list, too, and brainstorm new content these publications might be interested in featuring as a guest post. Ask yourself, what piece of content can I create that would fit on this site or for this journalist? 

PODCASTS

In any given podcast, you’ll find hours of thoroughly discussed topics, thought-provoking conversations, and listeners asking hosts for advice over an array of subjects. Use your favorite shows to your advantage, they’re a great source of relevant material! Here’s an example: One of my favorite podcasts, Girls Gotta Eat, did a recent episode on sharing finances in relationships, and some of their talking points became survey inspiration for a campaign. How can your favorite podcasts inspire your own creative content? 

Creative ruts are a part of the content development process, but there are plenty of ways to find inspiration you can bring to your future brainstorming sessions and meetings with clients. Next time you’re struggling to find ideas, look at these tips to help create your next successful link building campaign. Good luck!