Trending is the term used to describe topics, hashtags or videos that are popular on a social media platform at a given time. They can be related to current events, news stories or pop culture, or they can be viral content that quickly gains traction and a large audience.

While there are many factors that can influence whether or not something becomes a trend, some of the most common include:

Increasing Visibility

Trends are prominently displayed on a platform’s feeds, which can lead to increased visibility and exposure for brands, influencers or individuals looking to gain more attention. This can also help raise awareness about an issue or event, which could lead to more engagement and support from the community.

Increased Engagement

Trending topics often generate a lot of engagement, which can lead to more discussion and debate, or it can encourage people to take action on a particular topic or issue. This can be especially beneficial for organizations or businesses that want to increase their visibility, as trending content can help them reach new audiences that might not have otherwise discovered them.

Boosting Traffic

Trends can have a big impact on the amount of traffic that a website or business receives. When a video or topic is trending, it’s likely to appear in search results for related keywords, which can lead to more visitors and potentially more sales. This is why it’s important for businesses and influencers to be aware of the trends that are happening in their industry so that they can capitalize on them.

Creating More Relevant Content

The trends that show up on YouTube’s “Trending” tab aren’t always the same for everyone. Stephen Alyousfi, who runs the YouTube channel Coffee Break, has found that some creators have to hit a higher view threshold to appear in the section than others. He scraped data from YouTube’s Trending page over a year and a half to find that channels like fitness gurus Fitness Blender and Smoothie King have to hit 500,000 views or more before they appear in the trending list. Meanwhile, other channels that are considered news-based, such as ESPN, only have to hit 400,000 views.

Investing in a Trend

For investors, understanding how trends work can help them make informed decisions about which stocks to buy or sell. Trend trading strategies use a variety of technical indicators, including moving averages, momentum indicators and trendlines. They also combine these signals with the price action of a financial instrument to predict future prices and potential profits. For example, one type of trend trading strategy uses a simple moving average to enter long positions when a stock is above its moving average and short positions when it’s below it. Another type of strategy uses a trendline to identify potential support levels where a trader can place a stop-loss. Trend trading is an effective tool for investors who want to maximize their returns while minimizing risk.