TikTok Trends vs. Brand Marketing: Inside Social/Influencer strategies that break through the noise.

We’ve seen culture marketing & trendjacking activations surge this year. They’re arguably the hottest social/influencer marketing movement (besides “AI” ofcourse). But in an increasingly noisy environment with pretty much all brands catching on to the same open secret, how can brands truly breakthrough in the current attention economy?

With a media impact value (MIV) estimated at $74 million and a 30% YoY sales increase, the first Calvin Klein x Jeremy White campaign tapped into a number of the usual success ingredients; yet its MIV came out way ahead of other campaigns of similar caliber according to Launchmetrics. Was it the talent that made the difference or Calvin Klein’s track record of viral thirst trap campaigns or something else? As noted by an industry insider, “For every time [a brand] gets it right, 20 [others] get it wrong, and they’re all using the same formula”.

 

Campaign engineering matters.

Jeremy White’s role in Hulu’s hit show (“The Bear”) and subsequent Golden Globes nomination drove cultural relevance. The timing of the campaign and the multi-channel approach (social media, OOH and a vogue feature) were chef’s kiss! But it wasn’t just about the collection of tactics but the engineering of those elements, anchored true to the brand, that made a difference.

Basically, ‘make conversation’ not ads. The Cannes Lions award-winning Michael Cera x CeraVe campaign drove conversation through a conspiracy theory and went beyond tactics to unleash entertainment & #TikTokLore. Keep in mind the buzzing new TV series (Secret Lives of Mormon Wives) was inspired by #MomTok and #Tradwife TikTok stories.

Stand out by creating a ‘brand world’ consumers want to be a part of.

First it was personified brand mascots. Now, consumers want the whole nine yards – B2C brands that are themselves personified in alignment with the audience’s chosen identity. According to a survey by Sprout Social, When consumers feel connected to brands, more than half (57%) will increase their spending with that brand and 76% will buy from them over a competitor. 36% are seeking communities they can belong to [which must resonate with their ideologies and areas of fandom]. As a nod to this, Fashion Nova recently announced its plans for a social club and Tarte Cosmetics gave up influencer trips for community trips. Missguided uses its Instagram broadcast channel to foster a sense of belonging while reinforcing consumer ideologies (e.g.: the Gymshark takeover on Missguided’s broadcast channel).

Dr. Marcus Collins (award-winning marketer, professor & culture expert) refers to this as brands having a POV of the world and taking that POV to “market”. Liquid Death does this very well – why else would fans bid over $68,000 on a casket turned cooler and auctioned by Yeti x Liquid Death?

Brand worlds don’t have to be drama-themed. They need to resonate with target audience ideologies and bring that “tell me you’re brand X without telling me you’re brand X” energy.

In a culture campaign sea of sameness, brand marketing is still needed to stand out. Through a series of first-in-class activations, ELF Cosmetics has won over hearts and wallets by creating a brand world that keeps on giving. It recently dropped an album (Get Ready With Music) on the wings of a music & personality charged Brat Summer.

Fan co-creation is not a nice-to-have.

Brand worlds with room for fan co-creation will further drive attention by giving consumers something to talk about. According to a YouTube Culture & Trends report, fandoms are participating directly in creating media that other fans want to watch via tributes, remixes, of brand content, etc. “It pays dividends later”. NBCUniversal leaned into this for its highly successful 2024 Olympics awareness strategy. The event was dubbed “TikTok Olympics” thanks to viral behind-the-scenes content plus subsequent (and ROI-driving) riffs (like #UmbrellaGirl). The recently launched “NFL 4 The Fans Live” also adopted this strategy with 50 influencers creating content from the sidelines during opening week.

 

Looking forward.

Industry icon and BBDO India’s Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, Josy Paul, said it best! “Creativity is brand sensitivity in a world where no one is listening”. Responding to TikTok/ micro trends is critical as it can lead to a spike in brand search volume, UGC and not to mention the coveted “sold out/viral TikTok product” status in the short run. However, a culture informed brand world strategy is critical to break through the noise.

Standing out in 2025 will necessitate a shift – from differentiated brands to distinct brands. From thumb stopping content to mind grabbing content. “Know your customer” (what they’re thinking, feeling and doing) has never been more critical. Brands that get this right will relish love & loyalty from consumers (like the multiple “marry me” comments from Duolingo fans to the brand and Marc Jacobs’ “I’m so sold- just bought this” purchase receipt comments).