As the seasons are changing, so are marketing trends! With the holidays right around the corner, we’re rounding up some of the hottest trends coming out this Fall and into the holiday season. From influencer marketing, advertising, and social media content, these trends will be important for your upcoming campaigns.
UGC: Craving Authenticity
User-generated content, also known as UGC or consumer-generated content, is original, brand-specific content created by customers and published on social media channels. UGC comes in many forms, including images, videos, reviews, a testimonial, or even a podcast. It can also be implemented into a brand’s email, landing pages on their website, and checkout pages.
Why is it important?
It is used across all stages of the consumers’ journey to help retain engagement and increase conversions. It’s authentic and allows consumers to feel connected to the brand or service the content is speaking about. Consumers who view UGC are 2.4 times more likely to make a purchase than any other content consumed that is made directly from the brand!
Consumers crave authenticity, and with that, UGC is an opportunity for brands to engage with their audiences in a different way. However, consumers have been selective with the brands they purchase from. Gen Z knows when content is authentic or not – in fact, 60% of marketers share the agreement that authenticity and quality are equally important to the success of a brand’s content.
Brands are taking the opportunity to implement UGC into their social media strategies to engage users to shop for the Fall season. When looking through Pottery Barn’s Instagram feed, they do a great job in utilizing their community content. Consumers are more likely to make a purchase because they can see what the products look like in other people’s homes, rather than staged in a photoshoot setting.
Images from Pottery Barn’s Instagram showcasing their new Fall products in a few of their communities’ homes.
Abercrombie is another brand that has been utilizing UGC on its website and social media during the launch of their new Fall collection. While scrolling through their feed, they showcase a variety of reels and images from their online community. This type of content makes it easy to see how people style clothes and the new collections and trends for the season.
Images from Abercrombie’s Instagram showcasing their community wearing pieces from their Fall collection.
Seasonal Content: Pass The Pumpkin Cold Brew
Consumers love seasonal content. There’s nothing better than scrolling through TikTok and seeing your favorite creators decorate their homes for Fall, try the newest drink, or layer up with the newest Fall fashion. 62% of TikTok users who made a Halloween purchase said they were inspired and got new ideas from TikTok.
Many creators have been tapping into what consumers are looking for in the new season – inspiration to reset into the new month and get into new routines. Outlined below are a few pieces of seasonal content that are taking people’s FYP by storm.
What’s On My Fall Wish List
“What’s on my Fall Wish List” TikTok videos are ALL the rage. People are inspired to make new purchases by watching creators share what they’re in the market for and what others should be too – content ranges from a collection of home decor, fashion, and beauty. Creating these types of videos has driven urgency in purchasing the products in time for the new season. A few examples include:
Fall Wish List items from the creator, @taleasophia
Fall Wish List items from the creator, @alyssah0warrdd
DIY
Creators have also been sharing how to create “dupes” for popular products, such as Gus the Ghost from Pottery Barn, showing how to make the ghost pillow yourself for as low as $15 (while the one from Pottery Barn is over $80!) Other creators have also been putting a spin on how to make your own fun, seasonal pillows. See some examples at the links below!
DIY Ghost Pillows from creators on TikTok
DIY Gus Ghost Pillow from Tori Mohn Flips
DIY Ghost Pillow Under $10 from All Style Life
Pumpkin Reviews
Fan-favorite influencer Brooke Vestrand, has over 2.2M likes an engagement rate of 5%, and 134K followers on TikTok; she takes everyone’s FYP over with her “pumpkin reviews.” She shares fall products with her community that vary from new food, fashion, and products, rating each product on a scale of 1 to 5 pumpkins. Each year, her audience looks forward to her reviews and will comment on her videos asking her to try the next new fall “it” product.
Her reviews have excited her audience and created a sense of urgency for the fall season. Additionally, her reviews have allowed her to partner with brands like Dunkin and Febreze when it comes time to market their fall products.
Pumpkin is Back at Dunkin!
Pumpkin Review: Sweet Loren’s Pumpkin Spice Cookies
Many brands have teased their seasonal collections, which has allowed a spike in consumers shopping early for the Fall. In fact, on Pinterest, seasonal content drives 10x higher engagement and 22% higher online sales.
Consumers and creators often find themselves gravitating toward one another when sharing different types of content on TikTok.The platform has proven itself to be a search engine when looking for the next “it” product or trend. For example, consumers have gone to TikTok to search for a new product, ask for advice, or find a new place to visit, rather than searching on Google. This has allowed people to find authentic reviews on products.
In-Store Shopping Content: Homegoods Edition
In-store shopping content has been on the rise. People love to watch this type of content and see what home decor or fashion finds other creators shop for. In fact, the hashtag #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt has over 70.2 billion views!
This season, many creators have shown themselves walking through Target, TJMaxx, or Homegoods, picking up the latest fall finds. This has allowed others to forego the “fear of missing out” and visit the store themselves to make a purchase. Below are a few examples of recent content on TikTok.
Creators shopping at Target and Homegoods for Fall Decor
Fall Decor Shopping with Me at Homegoods
Fall Shopping with Me at Target
When creators show the act of putting the product in their cart, purchasing their favorite Starbucks coffee, and showing the decor in their own home afterward, it drives others to shop for products, so they don’t miss out on purchasing the next trending item.
FALL’ing for Influencer Content
Partnering with influencers for your brand is effective. Why? There’s trust. Influencer content removes the barriers of traditional advertising from branded content. Users can be introduced to your brand from a trusted source on an authentic platform.
It’s important to find influencers that resonate with your target audience while also bringing new faces over to your brand page. If the influencer already uses your product, even better. It allows for their partnership with you to be even more honest and authentic.
Abercrombie x Kathleen Post
Abercrombie has partnered with fashion influencer Kathleen Post on a new Fall collection. Kathleen is a content creator with over 400K followers, sharing daily style, hair tips, home decor and more.
On their Instagram, they have featured her in posts featuring the new pieces as well as partnering with her on a giveaway. The giveaway is a great tactic for implementing Kathleen’s favorite pieces for Abercrombie’s community to wear. On Kathleen’s channel, she includes her unique code and collection link for Abercrombie. This shows trust and an authentic partnership with the brand.
Influencer Kathleen Post wearing her new collection items from Abercrombie
A new season sparks creativity for creators and brands to try something different with their content. If you’re looking for ways to advance your social media strategy, content, or influencer campaigns, reach out! We’d love to chat.
About the Author
Jen Mahoney is an Account Executive on the Digital + Content team where she works on all things influencer marketing, social media content creation, copywriting, and more. Connect with her on LinkedIn!