The second most important reminder this spring

As Renāte Vītola, Client Service Manager at Olsen+Partners, emphasizes: “Audiences are tired of digital noise and the overload of advertising. Brands need to find niche channels and new ways to reach customers in a meaningful and personal way.” 

1. DEMAND FOR POSITIVITY

Spring and the geopolitical situation are driving increased demand for positive news, uplifting stories, and socially responsible initiatives focused on positive change—while not forgetting to support those in need.

It is important to consider that during periods of geopolitical tension, audiences often become polarized in their media consumption: some increase their consumption of news and social media content, while others deliberately reduce exposure to negative information, creating a form of media escapism.

The emergence of solutions journalism

Solutions journalism is a relatively new branch of investigative journalism globally, and early examples are now appearing in Latvia. Instead of only highlighting problems, it presents an analytical and multifaceted view of possible solutions at national, global, and individual levels.

This approach is a direct response from media organizations to audiences avoiding negative news.

In Latvia, solutions journalism most often appears through brand–media information partnerships, discussions, and the promotion of positive examples.

It is also worth considering solutions journalism at the strategic media relations level.

Digital communities

To escape information overload, internet users increasingly turn to niche information channels and digital communities—for example:

• Reddit channels
• Facebook groups
• WhatsApp groups centered around specific interests

Location-based communities are particularly active, as are communities for new mothers and hobby groups such as fishing communities, outdoor activity groups, book communities, and others.

For brands, creating a new digital community around themselves is not easy. Brands must represent clear values and avoid overt product or service promotion. Instead, they should provide a platform for networking and interaction.

In the early stages, the most effective approach is often to join existing communities, contributing useful content or organizing collaborative activities.

COMMUNICATION TIPS 

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY INITIATIVES
Communicate positive actions positively. Public demand is increasing for companies to contribute to public health, education, and community development.

WELLBEING IN FOCUS
After winter, discussions around mental health and wellbeing are gaining renewed relevance—both in workplaces and in individual lifestyles.

PATRIOTISM
A patriotic spring: the Olympics have ended, but May 4 (Latvian Independence Restoration Day) and the Ice Hockey World Championship are approaching. In times of geopolitical uncertainty, positive and unifying messages are especially meaningful.

POSITIVE AND INSPIRING EXAMPLES
Human stories remain highly relevant and allow companies to showcase employees and the outcomes of corporate social responsibility initiatives. User-generated content can also be valuable here.

2. THE END OF STORYTELLING?

Storytelling has been the dominant paradigm in communication over the past decade, but trends evolve.

It would be incorrect to say storytelling is losing relevance, but content creators and brands are increasingly focused on building their own “worlds.”

This means constructing a recognizable universe through visual and narrative elements (tropes). The idea comes partly from meme culture: memes are only funny if the audience understands the context.

World-building relies on symbols that gain meaning within a specific community, even if outsiders do not fully understand them.

Examples of world-building

• Red Bull is a pioneer, associating its brand with adrenaline-driven sports and adventure.
• Old Spice uses absurdist marketing to create a hyper-masculine brand universe.
• Taylor Swift is famous for hidden references and “easter eggs”, demonstrating that fans are eager to decode symbols in every piece of content she releases.
• Louis Vuitton, in its campaign with Zendaya, created a visual style that gains meaning only when multiple campaign visuals are viewed together.

Serialization

Brands and creators also build their worlds through serialized content, where each new piece develops themes and visual motifs from previous content, building intrigue.

Brand mascots are making a comeback, sometimes replaced by AI avatars. Serialized content created by actors is also gaining traction, particularly in fragmented vertical video formats.

Brands are encouraged to take inspiration from successful examples.

WORLD-BUILDING FOR BRANDS

SYMBOLIC VISUAL REFERENCES
Choose visual symbols that align with the brand and resonate with the audience, and integrate them into social media communication.
For example, place a distinctive object in the background of every video—each time positioned slightly differently.

BRAND LEXICON
It is now important to define not only the brand’s communication style but also its distinct vocabulary that differentiates it from competitors. Campaigns benefit from strong punchline slogans.

CHARACTERS TO FOLLOW
In February, audiences followed the story of a macaque named Punch, but people are equally willing to follow relatable employees or creators who inspire or emotionally engage them.

However, it is not enough for the same employee to appear in TikTok videos twice a month. Content should include recurring references, phrases, or a human-centered narrative goal that audiences can follow.

3. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TRENDS: EU AI PACT, GEO, DARK DATA, SCHEMA MARKUP

A brief overview of the most prominent AI buzzwords right now.

EU AI Pact

The EU AI Pact is a European Commission initiative promoting responsible AI use.

For the communication industry, important requirements relate to labeling AI-generated content:

• Minimum requirements include clearly indicating AI-generated content in captions.
• Brands may also add visual labels in images or videos. This is not yet mandatory but demonstrates transparency and responsibility.
• Several social media platforms—Meta, TikTok, YouTube, and X—offer automated labels for AI-generated content.

GEO

If SEO optimizes content for search engines, GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) focuses on AI-powered search systems.

Content should therefore be structured, trustworthy, and understandable for AI systems that generate answers to users’ questions.

Brands in Latvia have already begun integrating GEO into their marketing strategies.

Schema markup

Schema markup is structured data added to website code that helps search engines and AI systems better understand content.

Benefits include:

• Improved search visibility
• Appearance in rich results
• Inclusion in AI-generated answers

Implementation options include:

• CMS plugins for WordPress
• Schema markup generator tools
• JSON-LD code

Performance can be evaluated with tools such as Google Rich Results Test.

Dark data

Dark data refers to information companies collect but rarely use—for example, customer interaction data.

AI can analyze this data and transform it into business insights, predictions, and automated processes.

ADAPTING COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES

If not done already, now is the time to adapt communication strategies for the AI era:

• Refine SEO and GEO strategies
• Include GEO-supporting keywords in media materials
• Conduct qualitative backlink analysis and create a Wikipedia page to improve AI readability
• Update websites to include schema markup
• Develop a dark data strategy and start with gradual experimentation
• Regularly test visibility and performance

4. LONG-FORM CONTENT BACK IN FASHION 

Digital communication trends regularly swing between short-form and long-form content.

Currently, social media usage is becoming increasingly fragmented, which is balancing the dominance of vertical short-form videos with long-form alternatives such as:

• email newsletters
• blogs
• longer captions on Instagram posts

LinkedIn newsletters

The LinkedIn newsletter format is gaining popularity in Latvia. Users can subscribe to in-depth articles without following the page itself, and they receive notifications when new issues are published.

Brands—especially in B2B communication—can use this format to publish industry insights, advice, and integrated media content.

Microblogging

Although independent blogging platforms have largely disappeared in the Latvian market over the past decade, longer social media posts resembling short blogs are performing well on Facebook and Instagram among adult audiences.

Globally, Substack — a paid independent publishing platform combining elements of X and Tumblr—is gaining popularity. It has not yet gained traction in Latvia but is worth monitoring.

Value-added video content

Long-form video is also growing on Facebook and YouTube in brand communication.

While the Latvian YouTube audience is not ideal for highly specialized original content, videos that can be adapted across multiple brand channels perform well even with relatively low posting frequency.

Long-form videos must focus on customer needs rather than advertising, such as:

• tutorials
• podcast-style conversations

There is also room for entertainment: inspired by YouTuber MrBeast’s “Beast Games,” brands are beginning to produce 15–20-minute TV-style content.

COMMUNICATION TIPS

ADVICE ARTICLES
Media communication should include advisory articles addressing broader customer problems, not only specific products or services. This diversifies media exposure and builds trust.

VIDEO PODCASTS AND LIVE STREAMS
Podcast popularity remains strong, with video conversations currently the most popular format. Latvian audiences are also becoming accustomed to segmented live streams featuring experts and audience Q&A sessions. Advance promotion is essential.

HOW-TO AND PROCESS VIDEOS
Product tutorials and explanatory videos are among the most consumed content on YouTube. Longer videos showing production processes are also popular.

5. CURRENT TIKTOK TRENDS 

At the beginning of March, TikTok trends are playful. Challenges are making a comeback, and AI-generated elements are increasingly integrated into everyday filmed content.

TikTok remains one of the main platforms where people seek a sense of belonging to digital communities, often expressed through user-generated videos.

I ASKED THE UNIVERSE FOR A SIGN

A popular trend among creators and brands where the universe seemingly confirms someone’s wish.

Brands often use AI tools to make the “signs” look realistic, obvious, and humorous.

Suggested audio: “Heaven.”

I WILL JUST PUT SOMETHING ON WHILE I…

A trend showing what content people consume while doing something else.

Brands can adapt it by showing distraction scenarios—for example:

• “I’ll just browse the online shop for a minute while waiting…”
• “I’ll just grab a small snack while cooking dinner…”

The result usually reveals a humorous or slightly unproductive outcome.

This trend is expected to peak around March 16, influenced by the Oscars ceremony.

THE 10 GAME

A challenge companies can film with colleagues.

Participants count to ten while gradually replacing numbers with specific words or phrases.

Brands can use this to reveal:

• promo codes
• discounts
• hidden brand messages

TEXT REVEAL IN VIDEO

Increasingly used to capture attention through combinations of text and video that simulate interactivity—dragging text, pushing frames, jumping elements.

The key rule: text should appear gradually, preferably with a humorous tone.