How to Jump on a Trend Without Losing Your Brand Voice
Jumping on a trend can be one of the quickest and most effective ways to get your brand in front of new eyes, boost engagement, and show your relevance in this fast-past digital world.
Trends go viral for a reason – they are captivating, intriguing, and invite participation. However, it is critical to only join trends that feel authentic to your brand and align with your company’s voice and values.
This brings us to a key question: How can brands leverage trending moments in a way that stays true to who they are so they don't lose their brand voice and identity?
Let us tell you how we do it!
1. Start With a Clear Understanding of Your Brand Voice
Before chasing the latest trend, you need to have a solid understanding of your brand voice. Are you playful and comical? Professional and enlightening? Bold and edgy? Your brand voice is the personality you use to communicate with your target audience-and consistency is what makes it memorable.
Here are three important questions to ask yourself before you partake in a trend:
What are three adjectives that describe our brand voice?
If our brand were a person, how would they speak?
What would we never say or do?
When you know these answers, you can filter every trend through this lens and decide if (and how) it fits.
Quick Tip: Stick to trends that match your brand voice. However, if it's a trend that you are eager to join, don’t be afraid to alter it in ways that fit your brand’s personality and values.
2. Don’t Chase Every Trend—Be Strategic
Trends come and go very fast, but that doesn't mean you have to hop on every single one. Truthfully, jumping from one trend to another can confuse your audience and blur your message.
Our team often talks about if the trend we are thinking about joining in on aligns with who we are. There have been numerous times where we decide not to do a trend even if it is very popular. The reason for this is because we have a strong understanding of our voice and the type of message we want to get across to our target audience. Since we’re a brand that uses humor and wit, we wouldn't join a trend that feels too serious or out of character.
This is the criteria we use to evaluate whether a trend:
Aligns with our brand values
Resonates with our audience
Feels authentic to our content style
Can be executed quickly and effectively
Quick Tip: Just because a trend is viral doesn’t mean it’s valuable for you. If the trend doesn't pass the “would we naturally say/do this?” test, skip it. There will always be another one.
3. Put Your Own Spin on It
From our experience, the best way to stay true to yourself when engaging with a trend is making it your own.
There have been numerous times where we have altered a trend to encompass our brand's voice. For example, we have come across trends that we have loved but have just been too serious for us. In times like that we take the trend framework—whether it’s a viral audio clip, a meme format, or a hashtag—and add our brand’s unique voice, perspective, and aesthetic. This ensures the content feels original while still participating in the broader conversation.
Ways to customize a trend:
Add your brand colors or font
Use the trend to highlight your product or mission
Turn the trend into a humorous take that your audience will relate to
Create a carousel or caption that ties the trend back to your core message
Quick Tip: Trends are like outfits-don’t copy them off the rack. Tailor them to fit your brand’s style.
4. Move Fast, But Don’t Rush
Timing is most definitely key when it comes to trends. You don’t want to be late to the trend party, but you also don’t want to post something that's sloppy or unoriginal, just to be first. It is important to create a flexible content workflow that allows your team to move quickly when relevant trends pop up-so you can act fast but also create quality content.
At Burnt Waffle Marketing, we create an effective workflow by giving everyone unique responsibilities. For example, as the marketing intern, I am the one responsible for researching trends and updating the spreadsheet as quickly as possible so my supervisor can create timely and relevant content. This separation of responsibilities allows us to act on trends while they’re still relevant and gaining traction.
Tips for quick-turn trend content:
Set up weekly trend reviews during your social meetings
Use a shared spreadsheet to drop trend ideas
Assign a person on your team to keep a daily eye on TikTok, Instagram Reels, or whatever social media platform you use
Quick Tip: It’s better to miss a trend than to post one that’s confusing or off-message.
5. Use Trends as a Bridge, Not a Crutch
At the end of the day, trends are a tool—not a strategy.
Yes, trends can help boost your visibility and engagment. But long-term growth and brand loyalty come from consistent, valuable content that your audience can trust.
We like to go about trends as an occasional ingredient in our content mix, it’s not the main course. It is important to use them to spark interest, start conversation, or show your brand's playful side, but it’s the content that reflects your core values that keeps your audience coming back.
Ask yourself:
After someone sees this trend post, will they know what our brand is about?
Are we using this trend to build connections OR just to go viral?
Quick Tip: When trends are used thoughtfully, they can complement your brand, not compromise it.
Final Thoughts: Stay Rooted While Staying Relevant
Jumping on trends can be exciting, and incredibly effective, but only when done with intention. The reality is that your brand voice is what sets you apart from your competitors. If everyone copies the same trend without tailoring it to their unique voices, there’s no reason for someone to choose your content over someone else’s.
So instead of rushing to hop on the latest trend, ask: Does this sound like us? Does this serve our audience?
When the answer is yes, go for it and watch your content flourish!
Need help finding your brand voice or choosing the right trends to follow? At Burnt Waffle Marketing, we can help you create trending content that aligns with your mission and values.
Thank you for reading this week's blog! Stay tuned for the next one, and feel free to reach out if you want to learn more.
