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Viral Creations

Instructor: Jeremy Gutsche
Trend Hunter was created in 2005, before YouTube and Facebook, nevertheless Twitter or Instagram. In the early days of social media and the blogosphere, those who were online felt like pioneers discovering how the Internet could take a message and amplify it to the world.

This module looks to early and recent examples of virality -- some awkwardly simple in today’s pace of change -- to glean lessons on how to ensure your brand truly connects with people.
Workshop Questions:
1. How can you better portray your product as best in class or apart from the pack?
2. What parts of your brand story most resonate with its customers and why?
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Insights by Trend Hunter AI

Occasion Commerce
Beauty brands tie temporary retail moments to parties and social gatherings

What's Happening - Beauty retailers are tying retail to the high-energy moments people already gather for, like parties and festivals, so that shoppers can see products in action and buy them before the excitement fades. These setups naturally support impulse discovery and capture the interests of shoppers when they’re in an exploratory mindset.

Workshop Question - How could your brand design temporary formats that borrow the energy of community spaces without needing a full store buildout?
8.6
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends
Channel Blending
Beauty retail expands across price tiers and digital touchpoints

What's Happening - Beauty sellers are focusing on adjacent categories, broader assortments, and new routes to market, shifting beauty from a specialist purchase into a more integrated retail offer. In this category, mass-oriented retailers are introducing more premium beauty lines to capture shoppers who want higher-end options, and e-commerce is helping beauty brands expand internationally faster, especially when demand is fueled by online visibility and cross-border interest.

Workshop Question - How could your brand bring premium, mainstream, and exclusive offers into one clearer customer journey?
6.3
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends
Playable Beauty
Cosmetics are being launched as collectible sensory experiences

Trend - Beauty brands are borrowing cues from food, romance, horror, and celebrity culture to make launches feel closer to entertainment than standard product merchandising. This turns routine categories like lip care, fragrance, and skincare into themed experiences with stronger shareability.

Limited capsules, seasonal flavors, and throwback packaging show brands designing for collecting and conversation, not just utility. The products themselves often act as low-commitment entry points into a larger aesthetic world.

Workshop Question - How could your brand turn a routine purchase into a themed experience people want to share?
8.5
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends
Participatory Retail
Stores are becoming hands-on learning environments for shoppers

Trend - The brick-and-mortar retail environment is being redesigned around hands-on participation add-ons rather than solely display-led browsing. Stores are organizing workshops, DIY stations, community events, and other types of activations that align with their branding, industry, and product offerings. This shift gives shoppers a reason to physically show up in stores, beyond their need for a purchase.

Workshop Question - How could your brand turn product discovery into a guided activity that helps customers learn, test, or create something for themselves?
7.1
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends
Cosmetic Microbiome
Cosmetics and Personal Care Brands Introduce Skin Microbiome Solutions
Trend - Cosmetics and personal care brands are launching microbiome‑boosting creams, patches and targeted treatments that use fermented ingredients to support skin barrier health. Companies position these products as science‑driven solutions that strengthen resilience and reduce irritation.
Workshop Question - How can your brand create innovative products or services that leverage the power of natural microbiome balance to enhance and protect consumer well-being?
7.8
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends
Frugal Flex
Dupe culture enables luxury style access while spending smart
Trend - Retailers and brands are embracing dupe culture as consumers seek affordable alternatives to luxury across beauty and fashion; driving demand for products that mirror high-end aesthetics, formulations, and design—from makeup to apparel—at more accessible price points.
Workshop Question - How could your brand support consumers in balancing aspiration with value-driven, intentional spending?
7.4
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends
Crime Comedy
Brands launch products with lighthearted spins on true crime stories
Trend - Brands across various industries, such as apparel, accessories, trinkets, and foodservice, are launching products inspired by popular true crime stories. These products offer comedic twists and messaging in order to lighten the mood and help consumers cope with the horror of the situations.
Workshop Question - How can we incorporate dark humor into our brand strategy to transform unsettling themes into lighthearted experiences that resonate with our audience?
6.4
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends
AI Intimacy
Retail brands are using AI to create deeper emotional connections with customers
Trend - Retail companies are deploying AI systems that go beyond transactional interactions to build genuine emotional relationships with customers. These technologies learn individual preferences, remember personal details, and anticipate needs in ways that make customers feel truly understood. AI is being used so every interaction feels like a continuation of an ongoing relationship.
Workshop Question - How could your brand use AI to remember and celebrate the small details that make each customer feel uniquely valued?
7.1
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends
Substack Couture
Fashion brands launch newsletters to build direct relationships with consumers
Trend - Major fashion brands like Tory Burch, The RealReal, and American Eagle are embracing Substack as a marketing channel, creating editorial newsletters that blend product promotion with lifestyle content. As newsletter platforms grow in popularity, more fashion retailers are experimenting with this direct-to-consumer content approach, seeing it as an opportunity to communicate with their audience outside the constraints of social media algorithms.
Workshop Question - How could your brand create newsletter content that provides genuine value to consumers beyond traditional product marketing?
5.9
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends
Trend Campaign
Brands are encouraging consumers to post in campaigns to start widespread trends
Trend - Brands are taking to social media platforms to launch interactive campaigns that encourage users to post unique content to enter. These post-based campaigns are intended to start wider spread trends where consumers boost the reach of the campaign far beyond its original audience.
Workshop Question - How can we leverage interactive and participatory elements in our marketing campaigns to inspire user-generated content that catalyzes new trends on social media?
3.9
Score
Popularity
Activity
Freshness
Patterns
Megatrends