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What does ‘keeping up with marketing trends' actually mean?
When I ran a survey last year to help shape a marketing book (yes, that’s happening – slowly… very slowly, but we’ll get there), I asked business owners to tell me what they struggle with most when it comes to marketing their business.
The biggest challenge?
Keeping up with marketing trends.
68.18% of respondents ticked that box.
So if you’ve ever felt like you’re behind or missing something because you don’t know the latest trend, you’re not alone. And you’re definitely not failing at marketing. But it did get me thinking… what does keeping up with marketing trends even mean?
Because it’s one of those phrases that gets thrown around a lot. So, let’s have a look.
What is a marketing trend?
A marketing trend is just something that’s getting traction or being adopted by lots of people or businesses in the marketing space. It might be a new platform, a new way of using an existing one, a shift in how people behave online, or something more techy like an algorithm update.
Sometimes trends are small. Like more people using closed captions on videos. Other times they’re big. Like moving from still images to short-form video for social media.
Either way, marketing trends are changes in behaviour, tools, or strategies that can affect how you attract or connect with your ideal clients.
However, just because it’s a trend, doesn’t mean it’s for you.
Trends vs fads
Trends vs fads. What’s the difference.
Well… a trend is usually based on real changes in how people act or what they expect. It sticks around for a while (sometimes permanently). A fad is short-lived and often just noise.
A trend would be people searching for short videos like Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, etc.
A fad, on the other hand, is everyone jumping on one very specific meme or sound for a week.
You don’t need to chase every fad. Actually, I’d argue most business owners shouldn’t. It’s exhausting and usually not worth it.
And going viral? It doesn’t guarantee anything. Especially if it’s not aligned with your offer or your ideal clients.
A video might rack up thousands (even millions) of views, but if no one clicks, enquires, or buys, what’s the point? Success isn’t about how many eyeballs you get. It’s about attracting the right people who actually want what you’re selling.
You don’t have to know everything
One of the biggest myths I see is this idea that you need to know all the trends to be good at marketing.
Nope.
You need to know what matters for your business and your ideal clients. That’s it.
If your ideal clients are watching YouTube how-to videos, then yes, it’s worth understanding how to show up there.
If they’re on TikTok, then understand what they’re looking for and build your strategy around that. But if your ideal clients aren’t on TikTok, then you don’t need to be either.
Keeping up with marketing trends is not about being trendy. It’s about being aware of what’s changing, so you can make smart decisions that help your marketing work better.
Staying focused (without the FOMO)
The world of digital marketing moves quickly, but not everything changes overnight.
Most things evolve over time. So if you feel like you're constantly playing catch-up, you’re probably putting pressure on yourself to know everything, all at once.
Instead of trying to keep up with it all, focus on:
- What you actually need to know
- Where your ideal clients are
- What fits with your strategy
- What helps you achieve your business goals
That’s what keeping up really looks like.
Up next: choosing what’s worth your time
Now that we’ve unpacked what marketing trends actually are, the next blog will help you figure out which ones are worth paying attention to and which ones to ignore.
Spoiler alert: it’s easier than you think when you know what to look for (and what to ignore).
If you’re over trying to keep up with all the marketing noise and just want someone to help you make sense of it, get in touch. This is exactly the stuff I help my clients with, so you can stop guessing and start getting results.
