BY FIONA MTrendiness is tricky. If your at-
tempt at following a trend fails,
you could end up in a “cringiest
videos” compilation put together
by some dude with Windows
Movie Maker. If it goes right...
Stardom! Fame! Enough sub-
scribers to get you into YouTube
Rewind, even if you aren’t Will
Smith! Let us guide you to the oth-
er end of the tightrope, like your
own personal Nik Wallenda — the
record-breaking tightrope walker
I learned about while procrastinat-
ing writing this article — but for
trends on YouTube.“BUT I’M NOT A SELL OUT”
Why should you create content
based around a trend? To begin
with, you’ll be making content
that people are already inter-
ested in. Topics trend for a reason
— they’re engaging, relevant and
entertaining. The potential to at-
tract a new audience is definitely
part of the appeal in following a
trend. It’s also, let’s be honest, usu-
ally pretty dang easy. Trends are
simple to follow by design and can
be executed in a small time frame
with minimal resources. This al-
lows you to create more content
for your channel, which appeases
the Almighty Algorithm.IN THE WORDS OF RU,
“DON’T F*CK IT UP”
Following trends has its appeal, but as with anything
online, there’s the potential to do it wrong. Let’s not
forget that time Alfie Deyes did the “£1 A Day Chal-
lenge,” a trend designed to raise awareness about
rising poverty levels in the UK, only for the YouTuber
to complain about not being able to eat the endless
free frozen yogurt his celebrity status had given him.
No shame in being thirsty for views, but don’t be
so thirsty that you drink tap water from your £1.7M
home and complain about it online. When following
a trend, be sure to understand the roots, the culture
and what you’re doing. Failure to do this will result in
cringe-worthy content at best and having to upload a
video insisting you’re not a Tory at worst.
When a channel is built entirely on trends, it becomes
clear that the YouTuber is making content for views,BUSINESS
BUSINESS
How To Follow Video Trends The Right Way
Tackling trends on YouTube isn’t easy. It’s a balancing act, a tightrope walk, another metaphor for
balancing between two things. Here’s how to get it right.