Five key trends for brands in 2024

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INTRODUCTION

Every year tons of trend reports are released into the world. Yet come on, let’s be honest,  who has the time to read them all? That’s why this year Rachel Higgins of Because of Marketing & I did all the hard work for you. We read as many as we could get our hands on. Below is just one of five key trends to give you a taste. The full report can be found downloaded below.

BTW if you haven’t already I highly recommend you sign up to Rachel’s newsletter HERE. One of the best sources on the internet for the latest & greatest campaigns.

Ok, let’s dive in…

EMBRACE THE ABSURD

When it comes to the world of creativity we are very much living through the best and worst of times. On the one hand, we have more creative tools at our disposal. On the other hand, the world of creativity feels more bland than ever. 

We are faced with an almost endless array of spin-offs, sequels, and reimaginings of established IPs. The number of sequels, spin-offs or remakes has increased by over 400% since 1981. At the same time, the ‘MrBeasifaciton’ of YouTube has created an almost endless stream of copycat content. Here, an army of creators increasingly chooses to serve the algorithm over creating original ideas. This has led to our streams being filled with ‘identity kit’ content. A world where jump cuts & fast edits are the new norm. 

This content death spiral goes way beyond YouTube, however. The ‘MrBeasifaciton’ of content is now taking over the likes of TikTok & LinkedIn too. Where each platform sees creator copying creator and the same ‘popular’ content is recycled over and over again. In short, whilst we have the best ever creative tools at our disposal, an increasing focus on efficiency is leading to some of the most generic & ‘worst’ content around.

HOW SHOULD BRANDS RESPOND?

Whilst it can be tempting for brands to follow an efficiency mindset we urge them not too. Because in a world where audiences are increasingly trying of movie sequels and the MrBeasificaiton of content, it pays to be absurdly different.  What do we mean by absurd? Simply be experimental & embrace those weird ideas others are too afraid to. Because in a world where content increasingly becomes predictable & bland, being absurd can prove hugely effective.

In short…
In a bland world, brands should embrace the absurd.

How might they do this? Well here are three practical examples below…

#1 BE ABSURD IN YOUR CATEGORY
In just three years Liquid Death has x30 its revenue from $3M to $103M. A key factor to their success has been their absurd approach to the bottled water category.  They look to steal drinkers from the alcohol category rather than talk to existing bottled water consumers. They focus on festivals rather than sports. And their content is bold & daring, compared to the sea of sameness often found in the bottled water category.  Brands can learn from Liquid Death and look to break through by being more absurd in their category.

#2 ABSURD THE ALGROTHM
At a time when everyone is trying to ‘Beastify’ their content, Hilton Hotels did the complete opposite.. They turned their backs on short-form content and jump cuts and did something totally absurd on TikTok. Their #Hiltonforthestay campaign, featuring Paris Hilton, was absurdly long at ten minutes. It worked because of a famous celeb and for being wonderfully different on a social platform that too often looks the same. Brands can learn from this and look for ways of being absurdly different when it comes to playing the algorithm game. 

#3 MAKE NO SENSE
One of the breakout tactics for 2023 was the CGI stunt. Jacquemus started it all with the absurdly brilliant ‘Handbags’ stunt. Why does it work? Well in the era of doom scrolling & boring content, making no sense can really cut through. Giant handbags driving through the city are so surreal and unexpected that instantly stop the scroll and get shared. Brands can learn from this that are so strange they stop people in their tracks.

You can download the full report here.

BTW to all of you who have signed up for the STRATLABS course. The first of six modules will be going live this Sunday afternoon. We spent months writing and filming. Excited to share it with you.

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Expect big thinking & small typ0s because i'm #MadeByDyslexia 

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Will Poskett

Co-Founder Defiant