Trending Topics

What we now know as 'Trending Topics' have always been a means of gauging what subjects or discussions are generating a lot of attention among the users of a given social media platform. But with the advent of algorithms that determine not just which topics are popular but are also pegged to, say, a user's location; the language they prefer to read in; or even what their 'interests' are, the phenomenon known as 'Trending Topics' has morphed into something much richer and, for companies, potentially much more lucrative. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms often have dedicated spaces where they highlight what their users, as a collective, seem to be interested in at any given moment.

Companies with a vested interest in both becoming and remaining relevant to the discussions taking place on these platforms often try to 'put a finger on the pulse' of what else their users are interested in—a direct response to the now apparent visual that 'Discussion + Attention = Potential Dollars.