Trendjacking and real-time marketing: the new weapon brands are betting on📈📱

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Over the past few months, the internet has been on fire over a handful of viral images. On one side, a marriage proposal filmed atop the Empire State Building in New York, remixed endlessly by internet users. On the other, a photo of Lionel Messi bathing a young Lamine Yamal during a charity photo shoot, which resurfaced 19 years after it was taken. These images aren’t just entertainment anymore — they’ve become real communication tools for businesses. In Cameroon and beyond, brands are borrowing these moments to promote their products, build closeness with their audience, and boost visibility. Behind these often-humorous posts sits a genuine marketing strategy, one where speed and digital fluency have become essential.

Viral images: the brands’ new playground 🎯

For a long time, companies favored institutional communication. Posts were carefully planned, visuals put products front and center, and the tone stayed formal. Social media changed all that. On Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X, users pay more attention to content that entertains, surprises, or taps into what’s happening right now. To stay visible in oversaturated feeds, companies have had to start speaking the internet’s language.

Some images outgrow their original context entirely and become genuine cultural touchpoints. One of the most striking recent examples is a photo of a marriage proposal staged atop the Empire State Building. Within hours, the romantic scene had taken over social media. The two protagonists’ expressions inspired thousands of humorous edits. Companies around the world quickly adapted the image into their own campaigns, tying it to their products or services.

Another example: the photo, taken in 2007, of Lionel Messi bathing baby Lamine Yamal during a charity calendar shoot. Forgotten for years, it went viral again once the young Spanish player emerged as one of football’s brightest prospects. Media outlets, sports brands, and companies picked up the photo to talk about legacy, mentorship, and success. Both examples show how an image can get a second life — sometimes nearly two decades after it was taken — and become a powerful communication tool.

A competitive edge 🚀

In Cameroon as elsewhere, businesses are watching these global phenomena closely. When an image floods Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, or X, some local brands move fast to put out their own take and ride the wave. In social media, speed matters almost as much as creativity. An image that goes viral in the morning can already be repurposed by several companies before the day is out. Waiting even a few days is often enough to lose the moment entirely.

« Trends can live for less than forty-eight hours. If a company is slow to react, the audience has already moved on. Digital communication today plays out in real time, and you have to make the most of it, » says Stéphane, a community manager at a communications agency.

This ability to adapt lets brands expand their organic reach and join the conversation naturally, at the moment it’s happening.

Building closeness with consumers 🫱🏾‍🫲🏾

Beyond the buzz, viral images make companies feel more approachable. Users are more likely to feel that a brand understands their world, shares their cultural references, and follows the same trends they do.

In Douala, Mireille, a student, explains why she engages more with this kind of content.

« When a company picks up a meme everyone already knows, I stop to look. I might even share the post, whereas I rarely share a regular ad, » she says.

In an environment where users are constantly being pitched to, that closeness becomes a real competitive edge. Rather than building a brand-new advertising concept from scratch, brands prefer to plug into a reference the public already knows. The message lands in seconds, which drives more engagement and shares.

Why are companies so hooked on memes ?🤔

Marketing specialists now call this « real-time marketing » or « trendjacking » — leaning on an already-popular trend to grab public attention fast. By the time an image goes viral, it already carries strong visibility and a real reservoir of goodwill among users.

For companies, tapping into that content means gaining reach without funding an expensive ad campaign. Social platforms’ algorithms reward posts that quickly generate reactions, comments, and shares.

« A familiar image cuts down the time it takes someone to understand a post. People recognize the reference instantly and focus straight on the brand’s message. That’s what explains this strategy’s success, » says Carole Ndzié, a digital communications consultant.

In Cameroon, this approach is increasingly visible among telecom operators, restaurants, delivery platforms, banks, fashion brands, and young startups looking to connect with an audience that’s highly active on social media.

Creativity that can’t be improvised 🎨

That said, using a viral image doesn’t guarantee success. Users are quick to spot posts that feel forced or disconnected from a brand’s actual personality. For Arnaud, a digital strategy consultant, it all comes down to relevance.

« It’s not enough to just reuse a popular image. The link to the product or service has to feel natural. If the humor comes across as forced, the backlash comes fast, » he explains.

The real challenge is adapting to a trend without losing the company’s identity. This new form of communication also raises real questions. Some photos belong to professionals or agencies who never authorized their commercial use. Other images feature people who became famous involuntarily — their photo circulates worldwide without their consent for promotional use.

Companies also need to steer clear of repurposing content tied to tragedies, disasters, or sensitive events. A clumsy attempt at riding a trend can spark backlash fast and do lasting damage to a brand’s reputation. In an environment where reactions spread within minutes, the line between a successful campaign and a controversy can be razor-thin.

When the buzz becomes a strategy 📈

Viral images have become one of the most valuable currencies in the attention economy. They let companies boost visibility, spark conversations, and humanize their communication — often without the budget of a major ad campaign. But this shift also points to a deeper change in the rules of marketing. Brands no longer set the trends; they’re learning to spot them, understand them, and jump in before they vanish from the feed.

In a world where a single photo can circle the globe in hours and resurface years later thanks to social media, campaign success no longer hinges only on budget or creativity. It also depends on the ability to listen to the internet, speak its language, and show up at the right moment. The power to create trends now belongs first to users. Companies, for their part, have no choice but to learn to keep pace with the web.

We want to hear from you!
Are brands right to tap into memes and viral images for marketing, or do you think some trends should stay out of advertising entirely ?