How do you decide which industry trends are worth embracing?

[tranguyen]

Happy Wednesday, everyone!

With Instagram, TikTok, and other social media platforms, trends can take off in an instant — whether it’s the rise of small plates and shareable dishes, the shift from cozy daytime cafés to buzzing nighttime wine bars, or the growing focus on sustainability.

That got us thinking:

How do you decide which industry trends are worth embracing?

How do you strike the balance between staying true to your brand while adapting to new trends? Is there a point where catering to customers meets gently guiding them toward what they truly need, and staying within your niche?

We’d love to hear your thoughts! Let’s chat below. 👇✨

[HC_Charlie]

That's a great question @tranguyen and I think it's especially relevant for smaller businesses, because I think they are nimble enough to turn trends into sales more quickly. A larger corporation may have longer production and design timelines and corporate approvals, and by the time they have a new idea or product to market, that particular trend may already moved along. For a smaller business, if you can move quickly and take advantage of ANY trends, you may find success this way. I would personally find it exhausting to chase after trends and move so quickly.

I have to say my business/brand pretty much stays away from any hot current trend (fad) or whatever it may be called. A lot is probably some deeply rooted self preference here, as I personally lean toward more classic designs, fixtures, furniture, decor. When I see most new items like clothes and cars, one of my first thoughts are if  "that's going to look dated really quick!" LOL. I am NOT an early adopter of anything (especially tech...you won't find me standing in line when the next iPhone is released), and my car is over 20 years old...mostly out of necessity and finances; if I had a bigger budget I may feel more free to explore new trends, both personally and in my business.

Now with that being said....if something that at was time was "dated" or trendy, and it comes back into fashion, then for me that's a good thing and means it has some staying power. In those cases I may leverage those when I come up with new product designs. But cyclical trends usually take many decades to come back in style, so any trends I follow would probably be something like something from the 1970s or 80s coming back into fashion.

[Eris]

Keeping to your own personal identity can feel more genuine and be more fullfilling, that's what my artist friends say about painting for themselves vs. the public eye. I believe this is applicable here as well. 

Follow the trends that most fit your brand identity and morals, if my brand is humourous and personable I'd focus on those trends and guide the clients in by linking it back to the company, subtly or more directly depends on the audience response. 

Not that I'm any authority, but that's my opinion.

[indianathomas]

We are in the juice, smoothie, and bowl industry.  We follow industry trends by visiting different trends throughout the country.  If something looks interesting we will use Google Ads Planner to find how the item is trending.  

[guext65]

I did try all of those social media apps. I posted my products on my account one of the day. I don't think I got people to visit my website. But I did get many scam as digital marketing promotion people.

I still don't know how or what ways are working for me. Because it seen like people are afraid to click website link these days. 

[HandiBoyz]

i don't really follow trends. Whatever the product or service is, it has to be in my industry and part of my business focus before I will give it any attention.  Then it has to fit our business.  What problem does it solve for the customer? What is the value of the solution to the customer, low or high? How does it add value to our business? What is the cost for to the business?  To keep my answer simple, it has to be a fit or we are not interested.

[JessPoynter]

OoooOoooOoo!!! 
What a question!!! 

How do I decide which industry trends are worth embracing? 
In a word: research

Being in the hair (care & growth) business, there are a LOT of trends...balayage, ombre, teasy-lights, babylights, lived-in color, gray coverage, color balancing, bonding agents, bond-builders, etc. You know what all of those are: techniques. You could literally incorporate all of those into one service. On the hair growth side of the industry, trends get a lot more dangerous. Nutrafol. Hims. Hers. Rogaine. Nioxxin. Vegamor. All dangerous trends, in my opinion, because they're selling a hunch without actually going into the detail. 

So! After I do the research on the trend, then I look at how that plays into my whole brand vision. If it aligns, I will adopt a version of it (if it's technique, etc.) or I will look at referencing it in marketing content I generate across media platforms. 

Ultimately, trends don't typically change my whole business structure or model. In my business, trends can sometimes influence content messaging. 

[BrianaJo]

We're fine with jumping on some trends as long as it resonates with our mission. If it's outside of our branding, or our mission then we don't do it. Then if it would cost us more than we'll get out of it, or if it doesn't resonate with our local community, then we don't do it. It has to align, and flow easy so it stays genuine and sincere.