As a wedding pro in a rapidly evolving industry climate, staying aware of trending terminology is more important than ever. Now, we’d all love to think that couples are googling our business name directly, but we know that’s not the case. They are googling “micro wedding ideas” or “cottagecore wedding dress.”
When it comes to attracting your ideal audience, you have to provide the content and solutions they’re looking for — and that means it’s important to use the terminology they are using to attract the business you are wanting.
THREE REASONS WEDDING PROS NEED TO KNOW TRENDING TOPICS
Before we get into the trending terminology wedding pros need to know, let’s talk about three reasons why you need to know about trending topics — and how they help your business in a very practical way.
Knowing trending topics —
1. Helps you stay on top of what’s new in design and style trends.
2. Helps you learn more about your audience by knowing the terms they are using.
3. Helps you create content using those terms they are looking up. That’s how they find you!
WEDDING TERMINOLOGY THE PROS NEED TO KNOW
Let’s cover a few of the trending topics that couples are using to find inspiration for their wedding day. Some of these are new terms you may not know and others are simply popular ways of describing certain styles.
Cottagecore / Cottagecore Aesthetic
When you search #cottagecore on Instagram you will find whimsical floral patterns, romantic flowy dresses, and prairie-chic designs. Think Anne of Green Gables or Little Women. This is born out of the desire for eco-friendly and sustainable lifestyles as well as a love of simple things or the romance of simpler times.
Prairie Dressing / Prairie Dress
This style is considered the new iteration of boho. It’s been around a few years, but it’s surging in popularity due to the cottagecore/farmcore trend. Previous versions of this were called Prairie Chic.
Grandmillenial / Granny Chic
Grandmillenial was coined by a House Beautiful writer last year and has only grown in popularity. (Check out our comprehensive blog on the grandmilliennial wedding trend.)
What’s old is new again — or at least newly appreciated again with grandmillennial style. It’s a style that celebrates eclectic antiques, floral patterns, bold colors, and unexpected texture blends that marry a millennial’s modern spin with their grandmother’s style. This trend was born on Instagram, where it first gained popularity as millennials took up hobbies like knitting, needlepoint, cross-stitch, and a myriad of other artisan-type lifestyle crafts. Grandmillenial is most commonly associated with interior design and decor elements. Ultimately, this is a style that permeates every part of a person’s life — including their wedding day.
It’s closely related to Cottagecore, but they are different.
COVID Wedding / COVID Couple
This is pretty self-explanatory, but this search term has been and is still trending for this year.
Micro Wedding / Minimony
Okay, this is two different terms, but they go together. COVID has created an entirely new vocabulary for weddings and it starts here.
(Wondering what’s the difference between a micro wedding and a minimony — check out our blog on the topic. )
Heirloom
From wedding decor to jewelry and more, the term heirloom is a hot descriptor term. Today’s couples are looking for things that last and heirloom give a simultaneous feel of longevity as well as luxury.
Sustainable / Ethical or Ethically-Sourced / Eco-Conscious or Eco-Friendly
Sustainability in weddings is more than a trend, but for the sake of this post, this topic is one of the most widely searched wedding terms. There are several related terms, so it’s great to do your research and be sure to know what matters to couples and how they are describing this type of service.
Floral
Aren’t florals always trending? Not like this. As a wedding pro, you’ve already seen this coming, but 2021 is the year of flowers. From dresses to cakes, to crowns, etc., everything is coming up florals. And this isn’t only weddings. The catwalks are full of floral patterns and you can double-down on trending topics with watercolor florals. Consider using this descriptor in all its forms — florals, flowers, blooms, blossom, and so on.
Floral wreaths (for the head), floral wedding dresses, and edible florals are just a few of the specific trending floral terms.
Additional terms related to florals are foam-free (an off-shoot of the sustainable trend) and garden-style.
Dried Flowers
Unlike the general floral term, dried flowers is the moniker of choice for couples searching this incredibly hot wedding trend. While pros might call them dried florals, the general public is searching dried flowers.
(Check out some of the most popular trends in dried flowers here.)
Farm-to-Florist / Floral Farmer
Today’s wedding-planning couples are very interested in responsible sourcing. Using terms like this wherever possible when they apply is a great way to connect authentically with customers who are passionate about this.
Flower Bar
This term has skyrocketed in 2020. This is due to the increase in floral bar businesses launching, but also the popularity of this in weddings as well as general events.
Statement
When creating content, the term statement is trending — and will continue all throughout 2021. Statement gloves (also a hot trend), statement decor, statement florals, statement dresses (or statement shoulders) — it’s everywhere and people are searching for it, so use it where you can.
Fine Art
This is another popular descriptor term. Fine art photography, fine art wedding, etc.
Bold
Like statement, this is another term couples are searching for when it comes to wedding details. Bold florals, bold decor, bold colors — and so on.
AI Aqua
This is the color for 2021 — accepted by most trend forecasting outlets. There are many popular palettes you can expect, but AI Aqua will influence product and interior color palettes which will translate into wedding inspiration.
Bows
Bows are big in wedding fashion and design. More and more couples will be searching for this romantic detailing. Also, adjectives related to feminine details will be popular, so keep that in mind when creating content.
Mood
(Not to be confused with moody.) Mood-based terms and descriptors are trending as consumers are looking to be inspired and encouraged — and comforted. When creating content, use mood-setting terms. Rich, evocative, soothing terms are something consumers are gravitating towards.
Earth-tones, Metallics, and Blushed Colors
While these aren’t “trending terms” by themselves, these are part of trending styles for weddings. This is related to people’s desire to connect with nature and real things. It’s all at once calming and luxurious — without being decadent. Be sure to dive deep into your research and utilize these terms as you describe your work.
WHAT TO DO WITH THE TRENDING TERMINOLOGY YOU’VE LEARNED
Now that you’ve been introduced to this trending terminology, it’s time to take action. Try testing out some hashtags on Instagram and posting content related to these terms. Even better, try a blog post using the term in your title and (appropriately) throughout the post itself. See where that takes you.
The idea is that creating valuable content on a trending topic helps connect you with people looking for the same thing. It’s important to note here that it’s not helpful if you create low-quality or overly keyword-saturated content on a topic just to bring people to your site. In fact, it won’t help at all and could hurt your site’s bounce rate and performance. However, interesting content that connects your work to your ideal client through a popular term is an incredibly effective way to organically reach new people.
This tactic not only helps you attract new people, it also encourages your customers and followers to visit your site multiple times — and keep returning for more good information.
Insider Tip: If content marketing is something you would like more information on, you can reach out to our sister company Brandlink Media for a free consultation.
To read more on what’s trending for 2021, find out 5 Places You’ll See Bold Colors at Weddings in 2021.
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Written by Corrie McGee
Photo Courtesy of Ginger Lilly Tea
