Legacy Brands Are Capitalizing on Viral Trends: How Your Startup Could as Well

Photo: ChatGPT (2026)

Here’s something that most marketing professionals probably would never admit, especially in today’s marketing climate; there is no blueprint to making a piece of content go viral. If there were, every brand with an enormous marketing budget would have their content consistently go viral. 

The truth of the matter is that content that catches fire and goes viral is a lot closer to unexplained phenomena—than something that could be explained in a how-to guide (however, there are 3 things that all viral content have in common. Which you could find here.)

Nevertheless, just because there isn’t an absolute way to assure that your content goes viral, doesn’t mean that your brand can’t capitalize off of content created by others that has gone viral. Especially recent viral content that has influenced trends. 

Why it’s wise for legacy brands to ride the viral trends wave

Whether it’s QSR brands like: McDonald’s, Taco Bell, and KFC, who have all recently added dirty sodas to their respective menus after Gen Z helped make the dirty soda trend go viral. Or brands like: Baskin-Robbins, IHOP, and Shake Shack—which included Dubai chocolate items to their respective menus following the recent Dubai chocolate craze.

Legacy brands are now incorporating viral trends into their marketing strategies for two primary reasons: 

1. It helps their brand appeal to Gen Z consumers.

2. Viral trends are simply another term for popular trends. And what brand doesn’t what to be associated with popularity? 

Perhaps what makes embracing viral trends so advantageous for legacy brands is that it conveys to consumers that their respective brands are hip and cognizant of what their audience is interested in at the moment. Which goes a long way; especially with younger consumers.

Ways your audience could also utilize viral trends to its advantage 

Incorporating viral trends into your marketing strategy isn’t a tactic that is only reserved for long-standing, famous, and well-established companies. Startups like yours could also utilize the power of viral trends to its advantage as well. 

Here are a few tactics that you could add to your marketing arsenal to help your brand appeal to Gen Z consumers even more: 

• Add recent viral trend products/items to your startup’s inventory. 

• Feature viral trends in your startup’s advertising. 

• Include viral trends in your content marketing and social media posts.

If utilized properly and tastefully, incorporating viral trends in your marketing materials could be a very effective way to grab your audience’s attention and help them build a closer bond with your brand.

And if you’d like further help creating a cool viral trend-focused marketing campaign that is sure to connect with your target customers—contact us today and schedule a complimentary client consultation!