TRENDING: 2011 CRINGE, FACEBOOK EVENTS & ‘I NEVER SEE YOU AT THE CLUB’
We're chronically online so you don't have to be! Welcome to NOW TRENDING, a weekly snapshot of the trending moments across social that we think you should be across.
EMBRACE THE 2011 CRINGE
Creator Kyle Gordon has reignited the internet’s collective cringe over millennial burger shops, sparking a wave of nostalgic, satirical takes on 2011-era culture—think Buzzfeed lingo, early meme aesthetics, and over-the-top branding if they existed now.
HOW CAN BRANDS USE THIS?
Post like it’s 2011 for a week e.g this post —using vintage Instagram filters, boomerangs, and quirky captions
Embrace millennial clichés in a self-aware way (e.g., exaggerated "Live, Laugh, Love" energy)
Creating parody content with talent acting out peak millennial-core behaviour while integrating your product.
2. FACEBOOK EVENTS
A Facebook event for blowing away Cyclone Alfred went viral, with people humorously "doing their bit" to stop the storm. This sparked a wave of similar events for minor inconveniences, proving how simple, relatable humour resonates online, similarly to this example.
HOW CAN BRANDS USE THIS?
Create carousel posts featuring ridiculous, on-brand events (e.g."BYO barbecue to the park to eat barbecue shapes") and use this concept of making an event as a running gag, turning small moments into shareable content. This also helps encourage audience participation, letting followers create their own events tied to your brand.
3. I NEVER SEE YOU AT THE CLUB?
The format of this trend is a single shot with text on screen of someone responding to the question “I never see you at the club?” with a quip back highlighting their alternative, niche hobby like knitting or going to a niche event like jousting. This is a trend that speaks to growing up (for our Gen Z/millennial audiences) and we’re noticing the more niche the situation is, the better the performance.
HOW CAN BRANDS USE THIS?
Popular clothing brand Ganni used this trend to promote their new store, but you could lean into niche even further, to make it hyper-specific to a particular interest that your ideal viewers/users have e.g. “well I never see you eating an entire box of shapes down Smith St?” or “well I never see you in the chip aisle dissecting salt and vinegar flavours?”
