Very Demure, Very Mindful, Very Cringey

Download our new report, the 2025 Influencer Marketing Guide, for more insights into social media marketing.

Brands on social channels are juggling many responsibilities, but the one of utmost importance is staying relevant and engaged with followers. A way many brands choose to do this is by participating in internet trends and slang, and their followers have taken notice. About one-third of U.S. social media users have seen brands hop on internet trends in the last month, and a whopping 71% of Gen Zers (aged 13-27) say the same. 

But in order to execute this well, and not come across as “how do you do, fellow kids,” brands must walk a tightrope, particularly when it comes to timing. By the time a new post is signed off on by the powers that be, a trend has likely run its course, and that’s not very demure or mindful. When social media managers are empowered to react quickly and show up in the comments of trending posts or stitch a TikTok trend, it can strike the right chord with the audience and help the brand seem relevant. Unfortunately for marketers, consumers have mixed reactions to brands participating in internet trends: What’s cool to millennials is often cringe to Gen Zers. 

Millennials are mostly happy to see brands play along, but other generations have stronger negative reactions

For brands dipping a toe into incorporating social media trends into their marcoms, knowing your audience is key. Brands with a strong millennial following have an audience that is friendly to trends. Gen Zers are more mercurial, so social media managers optimizing for Gen Z culture are playing on an expert level where nuance and tone are everything.

Baby boomers and Gen Xers primarily just don’t care about brands’ social media activity at all, but when they do spot it, baby boomers especially are likely to have a negative reaction. 

Whats cool for millennials is cringe for Gen Zers

Gen Zers and millennials rarely agree, but similar shares of each generation think brands joining in on social trends is funny. Millennials are more likely to say it's cool (+6 percentage points), while Gen Zers say it’s cringey (+14 percentage points). Gen Zers are also more likely to say that brands seem like they didn’t understand the trend (how embarrassing!), or that the effort seems inauthentic, which is the opposite of what any social media manager hopes to achieve. 

Internet trends move quickly, and few respondents described brands as “timely” when they participate. Requiring levels of approval for posts that result in days of delays mean social media managers will be fighting a losing battle. Millennial-heavy audiences do offer brands a bit more time to observe a trend before jumping in, as millennials often take a little longer to catch on to Gen Z-driven trends. The platform also matters — viral TikTok videos take a while to catch the same attention on Instagram Reels, for example. 

Influencers want brands to be more online (but they’re alone in that sentiment)

When asked if brands should use internet slang and trends more, less, or about as much as they do now, more people said less (35%) than said more (12%). The lone exception came from self-identified influencers, nearly half of whom (48%) said brands should participate in trends more. Influencers spend so much of their time online observing and participating in internet culture, so they’re more cognizant than most about the benefits of being relevant online, and how much room there is for brands to jump into the fray. 

Social media managers (ahem, not interns) have a tough job: keeping up with trends and knowing when to jump in or stay out of a conversation requires making quick judgment calls, and they have to be empowered to make those decisions before the trend passes and participating makes the brand look passé. Knowing your audience and the nuances of internet culture are crucial.