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Planable is the best client-facing social media tool we've ever used and we've used a lot.
As Planable’s SEO lead, I’ve spent years studying visibility: how brands show up, earn authority, and build trust. But visibility has changed. It’s now just as much about how AI sees you as how you rank. It started with a simple question: does our social presence...
Oct 6, 2025
TikTok has its own rhythm, I’ve come to learn. Trends rise, peak, and can feel tired by the end of the week. And after spending years inside that rhythm, I’ve realized that acting on just a handful of trends that align with our goals and moving quickly enough is what matters.
However, spotting them is tricky. For social media managers, the daily scroll is our research. Over time, that research trains our intuition, which becomes a trusted system: spot, save, shape.
That system is what keeps Planable’s TikTok alive and relevant. In this piece, I’ll take you behind the curtain, showing you how I recognize trends with potential, capture them fast, and turn them into content ideas true to our voice.
My goal is simple: by the end, you’ll walk away with a framework you can apply right away. Let’s begin.
Once a trend has passed that initial gut check, my next move is to save it. For me, the signals are pretty clear: if a trend is funny, non-offensive, adaptable to our industry, and picking up momentum fast, then it’s worth considering.
I’ve also noticed that the most effective trends for us aren’t always the ones directly related to social media or marketing. In fact, I usually lean toward broader creative topics, because those are the ones with real viral potential.
Since I handle everything from spotting the trend to filming and posting, having all my inspiration in one place, right there on my phone, is the most efficient way to work.
Here are a couple of recent examples of the type of content this process produces, straight from our feed:
Example #1
Example #2
Saving a video directly within TikTok is my way of officially admitting it to the triage process. For me, the act of saving is the only metadata I need. It signifies that the idea had enough of a spark to warrant a second look, which is also why I treat my saved folder as a a living pipeline of potential.
My only other step in this phase is a quick, practical check to see if the sound is cleared for business accounts. If it is, the trend officially enters my content creation workflow, ready for the final step: shaping it into something of our own.
To give you a peek into the very beginning of the pipeline, here are a couple of trends that are currently sitting in my saved folder, waiting for their turn in the triage process:
Grid of TikTok videos saved by Planable for content inspiration
My saved folder is a bank of potential, but an idea is only as good as its execution. On filming days, which I schedule three to four times a week, I revisit that pipeline. This is where the final, most complex filtering happens. I look at each saved trend through three lenses, and it has to pass through all of them to make it in front of the camera.
1. First, I ask myself, is it still fresh? Timing is everything, and the life cycle of a trend is brutally short. My rule of thumb is to jump on a trend once it’s gained a few thousand uses, but before it blows up into hundreds of thousands. That’s usually the sweet spot for visibility without being late.
2. Next, I consider feasibility. I have to be realistic about what I can execute quickly and well on my own. The goal is to capture the trend’s energy, which means a fast, clean execution wins over a complicated one every time.
3. Finally, and this is the most important filter, I ask myself: Do I have a creative spark for this, rather than just replicate what’s out there? Can I add a layer, a twist, a perspective that makes it feel uniquely ours?
So, how can a fast, reactive workflow like this one fit in with already planned campaigns? It’s simple. Let the trend lead and the campaign follow.
Trends are very specific to the culture of TikTok, so rather than stretching them across channels, we prefer to make them work as hard as possible within the app where they were born.
Once an idea is green-lit, the structure is always simple. I think of it like a creator, not a marketer. That means respecting the platform’s unwritten rules and the audience’s time. For me, that translates into a clear, three-part skeleton for almost every video:
Step 1. It always starts with the opener, which is the most critical piece. I have about two seconds to earn the viewer’s attention, so the hook has to be strong and immediate, usually tying directly into the trending sound or a relatable, punchy line of text on screen. The goal is to drop them straight into the action or the core emotion of the video.
Step 2. Next is the demo or the bit, which is the heart of the post. This is where I adapt the trend with our own unique spin. It’s where the “shaping” from the previous step becomes tangible. It might be a specific pain point for social media managers or a funny take on our industry, but it’s always about adding our perspective, not just copying the format.
Step 3. Finally, there’s the proof or call-to-action, and I use this part sparingly. If it feels natural, I might add a subtle nod to our product, but I’m very careful here. The goal is to create content that feels native to the platform, like it’s coming from a fellow user, and a hard sell can break that trust instantly.
When it comes to filming, I like to record a couple of visual takes and find the most natural flow and energy for the delivery. My focus is always on capturing one strong, definitive version that feels authentic. And before anything goes live, it goes through a quick but essential editing checklist:
These are the small, non-negotiable details that signal quality and respect for the viewer’s experience. Once all of that is in place, the video is ready to go.
After a while, you start to feel the clock that governs TikTok. I’m talking about the internal sense of a trend’s lifecycle. Experience has taught me that there’s a very real, very tight window where a trend is at its most potent:
Our cadence at Planable requires three to four filming occasions a week to produce five or six posts. This is the sweet spot I’ve found between speed and sustainability, a pace that allows us to ride the waves of new trends while having a workflow that’s realistic for a team of one.
Once a video is live, read the room by trusting the earliest signals. In the first few hours, don’t look for virality, but a pulse. Check the basics:
Interaction metrics such as likes and saves tell me if the content was valuable enough for someone to engage with or come back to, which are both powerful early indicators. If a video is picking up a few hundred views and some engagement pretty quickly, I know it has a chance to find its audience.
By the 24-hour mark, the story is usually clear. If a post is performing well, I let it run its course. If it’s flatlined, I’ve learned to simply move on.
Experience has taught us that it’s far more efficient to channel that energy into the next piece of content than to try and rework something that didn’t connect.
The trend might have already passed by the time you iterate. The priority is, and always will be, maintaining a steady rhythm of fresh, timely content that is relevant to your audience.
Just like the ‘DOs’, there are ‘DON’Ts’ when it comes to creating TikTok content. Two major pitfalls can derail even the best creative ideas, so it’s best to build your system around navigating them.
The first thing to watch out for is the temptation to over-polish your content at the expense of timeliness. We’ve all been there: publishing beautifully executed videos on trends that had already peaked.
By the time they’re live, the feed is saturated. You had missed the window of peak relevance, and the content didn’t get the traction it deserved.
The second pitfall is working without a clear framework. Having no rules doesn’t lead to more creativity; it leads to hesitation or slow, drawn-out approval processes.
Simple guardrails are what create the trust needed for an autonomous, high-speed workflow.
My framework is built on a few non-negotiables:
To wrap up, here are three facts I’ve learned from my time in the TikTok trenches:
1. First, start with the action. It’s tempting to build up to a point or a punchline, but TikTok’s culture doesn’t have the patience for a slow setup. I’ve found it’s far more effective to drop the viewer straight into the most relatable or exciting moment. The context can follow, but you have to earn their attention first. That initial hook is everything.
2. Second, always record a throwaway take. My first recording is rarely the one that goes live. I use it as a warm-up to loosen up, get my pacing right, and find the natural flow of the idea on camera. By the second or third take, I’ve usually settled into a delivery that feels comfortable and authentic, and that’s almost always the version that makes the final cut.
3. And finally, don’t over-script it. TikTok rewards authenticity, and I’ve learned that a heavily scripted video can often feel stiff and unnatural. I’ll outline the core idea and the hook, but I’ll let the delivery be spontaneous in the moment. It’s those unscripted, genuine takes that seem to connect the most with the audience.
Ultimately, this is the operating system that works for me. My hope is that it gives you a starting point to build a workflow that lets you move at the speed of culture.
While trends are fleeting, a trusted system is what allows you to catch the next wave, and the one after that. The less time spent over-preparing, the easier it is to catch trends while they’re still fresh. So, use the system wisely. 😄
George – Content Marketing Strategist, storyteller, and self-appointed cringe detector. 7 years in marketing, starting from graphic design to social, campaigns, and content. Writes, shoots, edits – if it’s creative, he’s on it. Knows what’s funny, what’s fresh, and what should never see the light of day. Always up to date, always cooking up something (and trying to hit his protein goal), all while pretending to get 8 hours of sleep.
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