“96 degrees in the shade, Real hot, In the shade, 96 degrees in the shade, Real hot (oh, yes), In the shade.” With apologies to Third World, who would have thought Blighty could be so sticky?
Yep, fresh back from the “Great DM Dream Team Summer Getaway” tour of the Med, we’re straight into another heatwave. Still, we’ve already cracked open our individual Duty Free allowance of 18 litres of wine, 42 litres of beer and 9 litres of bubbly and that is certainly helping.
Now, I would be the first to admit that I have taken my eye off the ball in terms of marketing over the past few weeks; so much CHEESE, so little time, but you might – or might not for that matter – be pleased to know I am back on it.
And, luckily, help is at hand from those lovely folk at social media agency Sprout Social who have pulled together a list of this year’s top summer trends, according to what is generating the most buzz online.
So, hold on to your hats and buckle up for the ride of your life…
Straight in at numero uno is the “Shark Chill Pill”, the compact, 3-in-1 personal cooling device that combines a 10-speed high-speed fan, an ultra-fine dry-touch water mister, and a cryo-inspired “InstaChill” metal cooling plate designed to drop skin temperature on contact.
According to Social Sprout: “Shark successfully expanded the reach of its Chill Pill fan beyond its traditional homeowner audience by tapping into Gen Z through a social-first influencer strategy.
“Partnering with creators including Isobel Lorna, whose 777k followers are predominantly Gen Z (55% aged 18–24), the brand placed the product directly in front of a younger, trend-led audience while aligning with cultural moments such as Wimbledon, as well as ongoing UK heatwaves. The campaign has generated strong visibility, with 114 articles mentioning Shark’s Chill Pill since April 1, and 1.4 million impressions being generated online.” So there.
In second spot we have “Dua by AB”. Following her Italian wedding dominating the cultural conversation, Dua Lupa’s beauty partnership with Augustinus Bader has taken off as people race to recreate her polished, glowing summer look.
Over to Social Sprout: “With someone of Dua Lipa’s stature, you’d expect a product launch to perform well. But Augustinus Bader took a risk by creating a dedicated Instagram account to launch its collaboration with the pop star, rather than leveraging her existing audience of 88.5 million followers.
“The brand recognised that targeted content and engagement matters more than follower count, and that a standalone page would give genuine beauty fans a more tailored experience and deeper connection with the brand.
“And the targeted approach paid off, with followers doubling (from 50k to 133k) from January to July, showing the power of summer when it comes to driving real life social engagement, and subsequent spending. This was supported with over 60 articles mentioning the brand since April 1, according to NewsWhip and resulted in over 1.9 million impressions across social media, of which 100% were positive.” Impressive.
And rounding off the top three we have “Hailey Bieber x Mango”, of course. The collaboration has fuelled huge interest thanks to its offering of elevated summer basics and the “quiet luxury” aesthetic she has successfully trademarked, allowing customers to buy into a piece of her otherwise out-of-reach style.
According to Sprout Social insights, YouTube and Instagram are the most popular platforms among Gen Z, reinforcing the brand’s social-first strategy of partnering with a figure like Hailey Bieber to engage directly with a younger audience. The campaign generated 1.92 million online impressions and achieved 80% positive sentiment, highlighting that understanding where your audience spends time is often just as important as the content itself. Was it ever thus?
So, there you have it…Can I get back to my 18 litres of wine, 42 litres of beer and 9 litres of bubbly now?
Have a good one!
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