Marketing Trend Deep Dive: People Want Shared Moments
How our desire for connection is creating chaos and FOMO for IRL experiences.
Welcome back, Scanner!
We’re back with another trend deep dive! This week, we’re talking about shared moments and all the wonderful and challenging ways these experiences are shaping our industry. While we’ve been stressing over CapCut’s new terms and conditions, the Louvre has been so overwhelmed with tourists that staff members have gone on strike. And while some of us have been preoccupied by “the infinite workday,” Gen Z has been partying in laundromats and hair salons. It’s safe to say that our relationship with space and connection has changed in foundational ways over the past few years, so let’s explore what that could mean for us as marketers and content creators.
Before you scroll, make sure you’re caught up on what the Shared Moments trend is in our 2025 Trend Report.
Ready? Let’s go.
📅 CURRENT
Top Athletes Are Using This Strategy to Hack the Group Chat
What’s changing?
NBA star Jimmy Butler has partnered up with WhatsApp and OffBall to provide group chat commentary on the UEFA Champions League. Group chat? That perked our ears up. Recently LeBron James did a similar move, making a group chat to react to the NFL Draft – and it wasn’t just for his close friends. LeBron used “The Chat,” a new offering from WhatApp, where athletes can engage with sports fans directly. Butler’s “chat” will be another edition of The Chat, giving him access to OffBall’s 48,000 WhatsApp members. The kicker? Each edition of The Chat is limited to 1,000 people, making it a true closed community (and shared moment).
Why does it matter?
For a lot of people, watching the big screen is closely paired with (also) watching the small screen. It’s something brands have picked up on, with stars like Sabrina Carpenter calling it out in her Netflix holiday special. This shift in fan engagement creates an opportunity for brands to build a deeper connection with viewers. The Chat makes a move away from reviewing reach and impressions alone, to also providing fans with an intimate, exclusive experience that encourages discussion and connection. This signal challenges the idea that “bigger audiences are always better,” instead suggesting that closed communities offer an opportunity for deeper brand loyalty. They’re ensuring that while the game is on, fans are tied to the brand on both screens – genius.
What could happen next?
If more brands take to creating small screen content to accompany their big screen content, what might that look like? Will we see more exclusive, paywalled group chat types of content from athletes, celebrities, and content creators? As opposed to platforms like Broadcast Channels that only allow one-way communication, these WhatsApp-type communities open up a space for dialogue. Could this structure reshape influencer marketing valuations and strategies? Will it lead to elevation of micro and nano-influencers, due to their close ties to their followers? As marketers, will we be encouraged to start “selling conversations” as a conversion metric? We know people are loving the conversational tone of ChatGPT (for some, maybe a bit too much…). How could your brand use the “second screen” to your advantage?
Scan-o-meter: 📅 📅 📅 📅 / 5
😲 SURPRISING
Gen Z Is Killing the Classic Night Out
What’s changing?
Young people are changing what a conventional night out looks like. Before, friend groups would meet up, drink, go to a bar or club, drink some more, and head home super late. Now, Gen Z and young millennials are looking for low-stakes experiences that get them home well before 4am. Coffee shop “raves” that happen early in the morning or afternoon have taken off. Even hair salons have been hosting DJ nights (with no dress code or cover charge, low expectations around drinking, and an early end time). Event planners say the events aren’t meant to compete with clubbing, but rather to offer a “softer” option for people looking less for escapism, and more to “tune in” with their experience.
Why does it matter?
This shift toward “soft clubbing” could be indicative of how younger consumers want to approach social experiences. We know young people have a greater focus on wellness than previous generations and these alternatives to traditional nights out offer a more lowkey, curated experience that is more about intentional consumption. It’s not about full abstinence from drinking and partying, but rather being mindful of moderation. Interestingly, most attendees say they find these events through friends and niche Instagram accounts (like @TellSomebodyPresents with just under 7,000 followers) – which really shows the power of authentic, word-of-mouth marketing. It’s a nod to niche communities, “conscious-socializing,” and shared moments.
What could happen next?
The bottom line is that people still want shared moments together; they just want them in some new ways. Will we continue to see events shift toward the afternoon and early evening to accommodate populations that just don’t want a super late night out? Could this type of time shift help parents and older people get more involved in “nightlife?” Will we start to see typical nightclubs incorporate more “wellness” elements? Or could we see the other extreme, where an anti-wellness movement rises up and nightclubs have more of a resurgence? For brands, will we see more IRL activations pop up in unconventional spaces, like laundromats or car washes? As younger consumers show this desire for curated, intentional experiences over passive consumption, where can brands show up authentically?
Scan-o-meter: 😲😲😲 / 5
🎯 SPECIFIC
The Louvre Has Had It With Tourists
What’s changing?
Our desire for shared experiences often starts online and moves into the real world. Tourism, in particular, has seen huge surges as a result of viral content. The Louvre Museum has been grappling with overcrowding and staff concerns over working conditions, leading them to abruptly close and start an emergency strike. And it’s not just the Louvre. Protests in Italy, Portugal, and Spain have been targeting mass tourism with squirt guns. And we’ve seen local spots become overnight sensations because of TikTok videos. What will happen as our online world increasingly exposes us (in mass) to global hot spots?
Why does it matter?
Online virality of real space causes a bit of a problem. Everyone can be included online, there’s no limit to how many people can watch a TikTok video. But in the real world, physical spaces do. The Louvre’s 8.7 million annual visitors (which, btw, is double its intended capacity) isn’t sustainable. Bakeries with 70+ people lines weren’t the norm even ten years ago. Marketing’s traditional goal of maximizing reach can backfire spectacularly when translated to physical spaces. It becomes a shift from “sharing experiences” to “experiencing content for sharing,” and that’s an unsustainable demand cycle. People aren't just buying croissants or going to a museum, landmark, or natural area, they are buying content creation opportunities. It’s like we’re stuck in a loop where creators and businesses are caught between genuine craftsmanship and “algorithmically optimized” products/interiors/experiences designed for virality.
What could happen next?
We’ve hit a point where mass tourism and over-hyped (“Instagrammable”) experiences aren’t sustainable. So, something needs to change. For in-person experiences, we may see more reservations required, businesses implementing things like “quiet hours” when people can’t post on social media or use their phones, and maybe even non-Instagrammable places becoming more desirable. For marketers, could we see campaigns built more about operational limits and exclusivity to help prevent infrastructure overload? Perhaps content will lose visibility to the public once it hits a certain engagement threshold, or posts would have a “cooling off” period after reaching viral status. As for online, will we see followers starting to dislike content creators that share “hot spots” and expect more off-the-beaten-path suggestions? Let us know what you’d like to see in the comments below!
Scan-o-meter: 🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯/ 5
🔍 TREND REPORT IRL
Updates from our Trend Forecast
We recently shared our second Trend Report with you! As the year goes on, we’ll continue investigating signals that further the conversation around our two forecasts. Here’s what we’re watching this week:
People want to be seen: Pinterest’s first ever co-branded product is with Emma Chamberlain.
People want realness: Marketers are increasingly relying on creators to create brand content that resonates.
People want to play: Deloitte’s US employees can now buy $1,000 of LEGO (and other products) on the company’s dime to “boost well-being.”
Want more trend news? Check out What (Digital) Audiences Want In 2025!
🤔 BEFORE YOU GO
To help keep these signals top-of-mind, we share 1 question to ask yourself (or your team) in each edition. Your question to mull on this week is:
See you next time 👋