How do some people seem to know about the next big thing way ahead of everyone else? Because they know how to recognize early signs of change. They also know which trend spotting tools to use.
What is a trend, and why should you be spotting them?
A trend is a general tendency or direction in which something’s going to move, develop, or change. It’s defined by a shift in mentality or behavior that then influences a significant number of people.
It’s important to be on the lookout for the newest trends on https://zenserp.com/trends-data-api/ so you can plan more effectively for the future and introduce more successful initiatives to your business. By focusing on what will happen next, you can make more informed decisions in less time, saving a lot of energy and money in the long run.
Anticipate change
I frequently remind coaching clients that the only constant is change. Believe it. Assume that change is coming and look for it. Change can be either social — as in the rise of socially responsible business — or technological, as exemplified by the growth of mobile commerce.
Sometimes change can be both. Social media is a great example of that.
Don’t forget the cyclical, up-and-down, back-and-forth nature of business while you are looking. Change doesn’t have to be permanent to provide a viable opportunity for business creation and growth.
For example, when the real estate crisis hit in 2008, construction activity shrank, and many people were forced to make do with what they had. But trend-spotting entrepreneurs were able to adjust their plans depending on the market.
In another example, savvy interior designers marketed their services to those who wanted something new but couldn’t find or afford a new home.
See it coming
The basic tools of the trend tracker are seeing, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. In other words, every sense that can be used to get information about the world should be employed in looking for upcoming changes. Start by reading and watching everything you can.
That should include general interest news outlets, trade publications, blogs, government reports and casual conversations overheard in elevators. Be especially alert for problems people are talking about.
Trend spotting tools… your sources
Just as it took multiple sources—bloggers, Facebook, word of mouth—to realize that the time is ripe to visit Colombia, spotting a trend in other industries is much the same.
As you put together a list of blogs, news sites, social media channels, and other sources, here are some tips to help you hone in and filter extraneous content:
Follow trustworthy thought leaders
When selecting your sources for news and information, find reputable resources you can trust. These are people who are experts in their field, brands whose information you find to be reliable and valuable.
I follow some marketing bloggers who have been in the business for years. Most of them I’ve found through other people I follow or trust. When their blogs are too gimmicky or inauthentic, I stop reading. Be selective and filter out the noise.
Look outside your industry
In addition to watching what’s going on in your niche, it often pays to expand your horizons. Our world is so interconnected; true trends pop up everywhere. Keeping an eye on developments in other fields can sometimes be key in predicting changes closer to home.
Once you’ve started a list of potential sources and brands you want to follow, it’s time to optimize your trend-spotting with a few tools. Consider using trend-tracking tools to help you zero-in on trends that are worth investigating further.
You won’t be the only entrepreneur looking for business ideas on these platforms, but you can use them to dig deeper to validate hunches.
Trend spotting tools … Google News and Alerts
This first point is two tools. Google News allows you to create a stream of news stories for a specific keyword, person, or brand while Google Alerts will notify you every time that keyword is mentioned on the web.
Google News
To harness the Google News tool, follow these simple steps:
Go tohttp://news.google.com
Click the black down arrow on the right side of the search bar to pull up Advanced Search options
Enter a search term you want to track
If relevant, include where in the article you want to search for the term, a date range, and any specific periodical sources or locations.
Your search will pull up recent news stories related to the search term
For further filtering options, click the “Search tools” button to adjust your news source (Blogs or All News), time frame, and whether relevance or date should sort the results.
You can keep track of these alerts in your feed. To do this, copy and paste the URL from your search to add it as another content source. That way, whenever a new article with your search terms is published, you’ll see it in your Feedly reading list.
For detailed instructions on how to set up Google News sources directly in Feedly Pro, check out this tutorial.
Google Alerts
To use Google Alerts, do the following:
Go tohttp://www.google.com/alerts
Enter a search term
Click on the “Show options” dropdown
Specify any restrictions you want on type of sources, language, region, and some
With Google Alerts, you can opt to get immediate notifications. Alternatively, you can add the stream of alerts to an RSS reader, like Feedly, and check in on your own time.
To do this, where it says “Deliver to,” select “RSS feed.” Then click the “Create alert” button. Next, click on the RSS feed icon to view the feed URL for your Google Alert. Copy this URL (it will start with http://www.google.com/alerts/feeds…) and paste it into your search bar in Feedly. Press enter, and you’ll be able to add the feed to your reading list.
Twitter lists
For minute-by-minute trends, Twitter may be the best source of breaking news. Although Twitter can be a noisy world, with Twitter Lists, you have the power to filter the input down to what matters to you.
Create lists for Twitter accounts of people or brands who share your interests, or who are thought leaders and influencers in your field. That way you can stay on top of their updates without the feed getting cluttered by irrelevant tweets.
To create a Twitter list, follow these steps:
Click on your profile image in the header (once you’re logged in to Twitter)
Click on “Lists” from the dropdown that appears (alternatively, you can type in http://twitter.com/yourusername/lists to get to the same page)
Here you should see any lists you’ve already created or subscribed to
Click the “Create new list” button
Type in a name, description of the list, and select whether it should be public or private
To add Twitter accounts to the list, go to each user’s profile page
On the user’s profile page, click the gear icon and select “Add or remove from ”
From the pop-up box, check the box for the list you want their tweets to show up in
Repeat the last three steps for each Twitter account you want on your list
Feedly
For your own, hand-picked blogs and websites, you can use Feedly to quickly and easily curate a reading list. Here are a few tips for getting your Feedly primed for trendspotting:
Use the search bar on the top right or the Add Content button to find and subscribe to new feeds by pasting in an URL.
Use theChrome extension or a Feedly bookmarklet to add feeds to your reading list from any web page.
Type a topic (example: social media) into the Feedly search bar to look up suggested sites from other Feedly users
With Feedly Pro, you can use the Power Search, including hashtags (example: #socialmedia) to help you find specific stories related to that topic.
Notice the popularity rating of the articles coming through your feed to see which ideas are getting more traction
To discover new sources, you may not have known about; you can check out theShared Collections from other users who have recommended similar content