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Generative AI is everywhere now. You see it in content, campaigns, customer experiences, and even internal workflows. It promises speed, scale, and efficiency, but there’s a harder question sitting underneath all that progress; Do your audiences actually trust it?

Trust in the Age of AI: What Consumers Really Think About AI Generated Content

Today, PR teams aren’t just tracking media coverage and share of voice. They’re also measuring how their brand shows up in AI-generated answers, search summaries, and large language models (LLMs). This new LLM visibility layer is quickly becoming a critical part of PR performance.

15 Must-Have PR KPIs and How to Track Them

See how one platform can power every decision across PR, communications, and marketing.

The Meltwater Blog

Blog Topics: Generative Engine Optimization, Media Intelligence, Media Relations, Social Listening, Consumer Intelligence, Influencer Marketing

Find out how you can leverage Facebook to boost your brand's online presence and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

Facebook Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage Instagram to boost your brand's visual appeal and gain a competitive edge. Explore our category page today!

Instagram Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage LinkedIN to grow your professional network and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

LinkedIn Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage TikTok to elevate your brand with creative content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

TikTok Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage X / Twitter to engage your audience effectively and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

X / Twitter Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage YouTube to create engaging video content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

YouTube Blog | Meltwater

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is transforming how brands show up in AI-powered search. Explore insights, strategies, and best practices to help your content rank and resonate across conversational engines like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot.

Explore insights and strategies for Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) to help your brand stay visible and discoverable in AI-powered search.

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) Blog Collection | Meltwater

Every day billions of conversations take place on social media: tweets, posts, comments, blogs, reviews, podcasts, and much more.
Learn how to use social listening to make sense of all of that data.

On our social listening category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around social listening and social media monitoring. Read more.

Social Listening Blogs | Category

Business Reputation Management: What does it take to add reputation management to your marketing strategy? More importantly, how do you keep your reputation sparkly and shiny? Here’s your all-access guide to online reputation management for the long term.

On our reputation management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around business reputation management. Read more.

Reputation Management Blogs | Category

From your brand's logo to your website, your social media presence to your customer support—these elements combined are what constitutes a brand in the minds of customers. But, there are thousands of other businesses that have a logo, website, social media presence, and website. So, how can you position your business on the market and make it stand out from the competition?
The key to success is branding & brand management!

On our brand management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around brand management. Build your strategy and reach your goals!

Brand Management Blogs | Category

Competitive intelligence and the act of collecting competitive data can be seen as growth drivers for a company. Our guide will help you understand the concept of competitive intelligence (CI) by answering questions such as: What is the definition of competitive intelligence? How is competitive intelligence useful to organizations? What is the goal of competitive intelligence? And more.

On our competitive intelligence category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around competitive intelligence. Learn how to stay ahead.

Competitive Intelligence Blogs | Category

Let’s dive into the customer journey framework and how to optimize the process by creating a customer journey map and using metrics that matter when analyzing the customer journey.

On our customer journey category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Customer Journey Blogs | Category

What Is Data Analytics? [Beginner’s Guide 2023]
How can I grow my business? 
How do customers interact with my newly launched product?
How do I increase the productivity of my employees?
How do I know if my marketing efforts are working?
We have just two words for you...Data analytics!

On our data analytics category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around AI and data analytics. Technical and still easy to understand.

AI & Data Analytics Blogs | Category

Public relations and media relations can add impact to any marketing strategy. It’s an opportunity for brands to grow their reach beyond traditional sales messages. PR helps to shape the image you want people to have of your brand.
So, what is PR and how do you use it? This guide shows you everything you need to know to build a strong public relations foundation.

On our public relations (PR) category page, you find all our blogs covering public relations and communications topics. Step up your PR game.

Public Relations (PR) Blogs | Category

We all know exactly what the roles of sales or accounting are in a company, right? We might even have a slight idea of what the IT guys are doing.
But there is another business discipline, that plays a crucial role in organizations, even more so during the pandemic – internal communications!
But what exactly do we mean by that, what purpose does it serve and what steps can you take to ensure you and your employees will communicate effectively?

On our internal communications category page, you find all our blogs about internal comms topics. Learn about the intranet, internal newsletters, and more.

Internal Communications Blogs | Category

As the internet has taken root in more areas of our lives — everything from entertainment to shopping to paying bills and more — traditional marketing is becoming less impactful. As any marketer knows, you need to focus on where your audience is if you want to reach them. Since the average person spends about seven hours a day online, it’s no surprise that content has maintained its hold on marketers.

Here's a closer look at what content marketing is and why it matters more than ever in our digital-first economy.

On our content marketing category page, you find blogs about content marketing topics. Learn about strategies, KPIs, tips, and more. Make your content king!

Content Marketing Blogs | Category

The rise of the influencer marketing space – today a $10 billion industry, growing 50% per year – is one of the clearest examples of how social media is transforming traditional marketing. These days having a business website, presence on social, PR coverage, and your own content isn’t enough to compete.
We'll dive into the intricacies of influencer marketing to help ensure that you're equipped with the insights needed to be successful in this space.

On our influencer marketing category page, you find blogs about influencer marketing topics. Build your strategy, find influencers, and measure results.

Influencer Marketing Blogs | Category

Have you just launched a new product or service that you want to get the word out about? Maybe you want to share with consumers why it is awesome and how it is so much better than the one your competitors offer.

Well, then, there is one thing you can't do without...Marketing!

On our marketing category page, you find blogs about marketing topics. Learn about all the different angles and types of marketing and improve your results.

Marketing Blogs | Category

In this guide, we want to give you a peek into the definition of social media management, the daily schedule of a social media manager, social media platforms to promote your business, and the do’s & don’ts of social media management.
Are you ready to begin the journey of becoming a social media superstar?

On our social media management category page, you find blogs about social media management topics. Build and manage your online community.

Social Media Management Blogs | Category

Building a following and using social media platforms to reach a wider audience requires a well-planned social media marketing strategy. In this guide, we’ll be looking at why social media marketing is so essential and how you can make it work for your business.

On our social media marketing category page, you find blogs about social media marketing topics. Learn how to get the highest paid social ROI!

Social Media Marketing Blogs | Category

In the fast-evolving realm of digital marketing and public relations, utilizing the right tools is crucial for success. Our interdisciplinary category showcases all the pertinent tools for digital marketing & PR. These tools help in enhancing your online presence and effectively reaching target groups, whether through reputation management, influencer marketing, or social media management.

On our digital marketing and PR tools category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Digital Marketing & PR Tools Blogs | Category

It’s no secret that employees are the backbone of every organization’s success. But what you might not realize is just how powerful that backbone can be. When it comes to recruiting candidates, growing your brand on social media, or creating your dream company culture, look no further than your employee advocates.

Here’s a closer look at the role of employee advocacy and why it matters.

How Does Employee Advocacy on Social Media Work?

Tips For a Successful Employee Advocacy Program on Social Media

Let’s start with a definition: What is employee advocacy, exactly?

We think of employee advocacy as the intentional practice of turning your employees into word-of-mouth advocates for your brand on social media. It’s the strategy behind encouraging your employees to actively promote you as an employer.

Your employees have a unique perspective on your company. They see how you perform day in and day out. They interact directly with your customers. They know who the company is on the inside and can help add credibility to the corporate image that's project to the public.

Best of all, any employee can become an advocate for your brand. Social media has given everyone a place to share their voice. Using platforms like LinkedIn, every employee has the potential to become a social media influencer for your company.

What does an employee advocacy program include?

Empowering the company by sharing its messages, values, visions, and company news with others on social media and "IRL"

Sharing positive experiences in the workplace with non-employees

Serving as a product or brand expert by answering questions, creating, and sharing content on multiple social channels

Promoting company social media content to grow its reach

Recommending the brand’s services or products to others

Embodying the company’s best interests by following all internal communication guidelines 

When done consistently and well, employee advocacy can help you grow your brand awareness and reputation faster and more effectively than relying on your marketing alone.

For starters, it requires a lower budget as you are reallocating existing resources. Instead of spending money on new or outsourced content creation, your employees are sharing some of the load.

Studies have shown that employee advocacy can 10x your brand’s reach, boosting brand buzz and increasing your company’s bottom line.

It also increases your credibility amongst your workforce's connections and makes them more likely to try out your services or products. Their recommendations are coming from real people, not brands or paid advertisements.

An employee advocacy program is also a great way to keep your employees up to date on the latest happenings in your industry. They can gain valuable insights while interacting with potential customers and prospects they might not have had before. Help them experience your company from new perspectives to create better experiences for the customers with whom they interact.

Like your company, your employees are probably active on at least one social media network.

Statista reveals that more than 82% of U.S. adults have at least one social account. This not only means having an account, but also whole social networks of friends, family, and followers who view and engage with their posts.

While you can promote employee advocacy on any social media network, many brands opt to double down on LinkedIn. That’s because LinkedIn is inherently designed for networking and brand building.

Tip: Learn how to turn your employees into LinkedIn content superstars!

As the professional’s network, it’s a place where professionals meet in their official capacities. It’s not a place for family vacation photos. It’s designed to promote brands and companies, create thought leadership, and share value and insights across a range of topics.

Because of this, LinkedIn is a place where professionals are most likely to pay attention to what your employees have to say.

When crafting a social media employee advocacy program, it’s important to help employees see the value in advocating for your brand. They need to learn what to post, when and where to post it, and why they’re posting it. They should understand their role in your overall employee advocacy social media goals.x

Motivating your employees can empower them and help them feel excited to advocate for you via social posts. Offer incentives and spur a little healthy competition.

Some employee advocacy platforms have leader boards that give points for every share and provide useful analytics based on shares. This will induce competition while still keeping it professional, and it will also give you insights into which employee or post is performing better. You can give incentives to the top competitors as you please.

Set realistic, short-term goals for your social advocacy program. These goals have to be measurable. The idea is to see if you are reaching your goals or if you have to tweak your program to make it better. If goals aren’t being reached, investigate what the problem is and improve accordingly.

It is important to ensure your employees understand what they can and cannot share as representatives of your business. Careless posting and commenting can cost your business by driving customers away. As your employees start posting, look for examples of good (and bad) posts that can help you create an employee advocacy playbook to use for future posts. Document your social media policy in writing so advocates can refer back to it.

<div style="background-color: #c4f4f4; padding: 20px;">Tip: <a href="https://www.meltwater.com/en/resources/employee-social-media-playbook">Download our free social media guideline template</a> or read our blog to <a href="https://www.meltwater.com/en/blog/training-employees-to-use-social-media-top-10-guidelines-for-social-media-participation">learn more about the most important employee guidelines</a> and start working on your employee advocacy today!</div>

Getting support from the employer starts at the top. Make sure your C-suite leadership understands the value of an employee advocacy plan. The C-suite can (and should) become advocates too, and can help to amplify employees as they create and share company-branded content. They might even feel inspired to become thought leaders on social media and contribute to the employee advocacy strategy. 

In the early stages, a day-to-day check-in is fine as you're establishing boundaries. But don’t micromanage everything they post, as this can be very demotivating. Once the rules and guidelines are set, check in once a month to see what they’re posting but don’t constantly obsess over it.

Employee advocacy programs as well as employee ambassador programs sound great in theory. But what do they look like in action? Get inspired with a few employee advocacy examples we’ve seen from other brands:

Salesforce is a category leader when it comes to business CRM software.

It’s also a top-notch place to work, according to its employees. As of 2021, the company had enrolled nearly 11,000 employees in its social media ambassador program.

Salesforce CEO Mark Benioff emailed his sales team to start using social media to spread the word and make connections. He wanted employees to try to recruit sales performers and even put together a few ready-made posts for them. In return, employees would earn a referral bonus.

These efforts yielded some impressive results: 

Not just a social media example, but Chick-Fil-A's “Little Stories” allows employees to share stories from their frontlines.

The commercial series focuses on different Chick-Fil-A employees sitting on a couch with a customer they’ve connected with. Together, they share a heartwarming story that proves the brand is about more than just chicken.

These stories encourage employees to go above and beyond every day and encourage employees to share these little moments and reinforce the brand’s image.

With more than 100K employees around the world, there’s no one better to tell Google’s story than its own eyes and hands. Google aims to differentiate itself as being the best option for everything it has to offer. This means choosing the best candidates to join its ranks, so Google turns to its employees to help with the recruiting.

Google’s user-generated @LifeatGoogle page is dedicated to employees who want to share their stories. It’s authentic and completely run by employees. It’s intel from the inside that job seekers can put to work and even use to connect with current employees.

Another gold standard in employee engagement, Adobe’s Social Shift program emphasizes training its team members on the role, benefits, and how to’s of employee advocacy.

The company-wide program has close to 900 brand ambassadors and attributes its success to helping employees see value for themselves in participating.

The company encourages employees to become ambassadors by sharing their employee work-life stories, using Adobe products, or participating in their social impact efforts.

Since social selling and sharing content is not a part of everyone’s job description, they will need all the help they can get. That’s why we recommend investing in employee engagement advocacy platforms.

Investing in a proper platform like Ambassify, DrumUp or Linkedin Elevate makes sharing less time-consuming for employees of all departments.

An employee advocacy tool is another thing that can help you out. Content marketing tools are great for employee advocacy programs as they give easy access to shareable content for social media.

Another tool to help you amplify your brand’s message is this guide, How to Build A Serious Social Media Program. In it, you’ll find tips and tricks from a veteran PR and social media expert who built successful media programs on both small and large budgets.

Also, remember to make employee advocacy a team sport, as playing as a team will also give both your workforce and the organization an opportunity to bond better.

At Meltwater, we help you capitalize on the content your employees create with holistic social media monitoring, social management, and media intelligence. Track brand mentions, posts, click-through rates, and engagements across the web, including social media channels where you don’t have a company presence. See top-performing content at a glance and how it’s helping your brand image. Identify your best internal influencers and share how they’re making a real difference.

What Is Employee Advocacy and Why Is It Important?

In our latest consumer insights report, we analyzed what streaming viewers around the world have to say about their favorite programs, platforms, and features. Our analysis found that the topic of watch experience was mentioned and engaged with far more than others like pricing, ads, account sharing, and content. Across a wide range of communities and interests, technical qualities are now a crucial consideration for streaming subscribers and viewers. To learn more, we used our social listening solution to dive into the streaming UX conversation with a focus on livestreaming programs.
Check out our full analysis of the trends shaping the industry in our Consumer Insights: Video Streaming Market report. 

What are social media users saying about streaming UX in 2025?

Mentions of streaming with UX keywords like lag, glitch, crash, and more from January 1 to May 26, 2025. 

So far in 2025 (from January 1 to May 26), mentions of website issues like lag in the general streaming conversation on social media are down about 55% period over period (PoP, i.e. compared to the same time period prior). And interestingly, the biggest day for this conversation on February 9, 2025 was a surge of praise for Tubi’s airing of the Super Bowl. The most engaged post of the day came from X where a user noted that the livestream wasn’t lagging, generating about 31,300 replies, reposts, quotes, likes, and bookmarks. Another highly engaged post came from Reddit, where a user noted that they were pleasantly surprised at how smooth the stream was, inspiring 220 replies from streaming enthusiasts that generally agreed.

Compare the positivity of this conversation spike to the biggest streaming UX talking point of the past year, the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson livestream bout on Netflix. As we analyze in our streaming report, the November 15, 2024 event generated the highest volume of negative social media conversation about streaming platforms by far as users complained about technical glitches.

Mentions of streaming across all channels split by sentiment from April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025.

While the above spike in negative mentions is enough to make any marketer start sweating, the more recent spike in praise about Tubi’s Super Bowl stream should come as some encouragement. Streaming audiences’ increased sensitivity to technical qualities, UX issues and watch experience doesn’t mean they are automatically primed for negativity. Rather, it shows that, especially during livestream events, everything going smoothly does make an impression, contributing to brand differentiation. 

How are streaming platform live shows performing on social media?

Over the past year, we’ve seen more streamers wading into the live program waters, particularly in sports. To learn more about live programming’s impact on social media buzz, we took a closer look at two popular, live wrestling shows that have made the leap to streaming platforms, WWE Raw and AEW Collision.

WWE Raw, one of the US’s longest running, weekly TV shows, made a historic shift from linear TV to streaming when it premiered on Netflix on January 6, 2025, airing live on the streaming giant ever since. 

Mentions of WWE Raw on social media from January 1 to May 26, 2025.

Our analysis found that mentions of WWE Raw have increased by 39% PoP so far in 2025. Meanwhile, engagement increased by 35% PoP, suggesting that the jump to Netflix helped boost the show and franchise’s online visibility.

Mentions of WWE Raw and technical issues on social media from January 1 to May 26, 2025.

The show’s only significant day for social media mentions of technical issues was February 3, 2025 as users complained about video and audio interruptions. 

WWE Raw competitor AEW Collision has aired on TNT since 2023, but since January 4 this year it has also been simulcast live weekly on HBO Max.

Mentions of AEW Collision on social media from January 1 to May 26, 2025.

Our social listening analysis found that social media discussion of AEW Collision has increased by about 24% PoP so far this year. At the same time, reach increased by 42% PoP while engagement increased by 15% PoP, suggesting that its partial move to HBO Max was hugely beneficial from a social media discussion standpoint. 

Mentions of AEW Collision and technical issues on social media from January 1 to May 26, 2025.

Like WWE Raw, AEW Collision has only had one significant instance of social media buzz about technical issues so far this year. On May 17, the show was forced to end 30 minutes early due to complications with the broadcast. Some of the most engaged posts came from AEW President Tony Khan, who took to X to communicate with fans directly about the issue.

Unlike the WWE Raw spike in UX complaints, which occurred on February 3 and subsided by the 5th, the AEW Collision lasted for about four days, petering out by May 21. 

Mentions of the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson Netflix fight and technical issues on social media from November 1, 2024 to May 26, 2025.

However, AEW Collision’s four-day spike in complaints is still smaller and shorter than the one that occurred for the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight, which lasted for about a week from November 15 to 23, 2024.  

Track and respond in real-time. Technical glitches happen, but having the right response can spell the difference between a one-day issue and a week-long crisis. Afterward, use social intelligence benchmarking to dive deeper into which messaging works best for your audience — sometimes real-time updates from HQ are the best tools for containing online negativity. 

Amplify your wins. More and more streaming viewers have become UX connoisseurs on the lookout for great watch experiences. Don’t just focus on crisis comms, use seamless technical performance and positive user experiences as a differentiating bragging point. 

Highlight shared moments. The numbers show that live programs on streaming have the potential to drive big visibility and engagement. Join in on the discourse by positioning programs, especially live ones, as shared, community-building experiences.

Enjoyed this teaser? Check out the full report for must-know marketing takeaways and strategies for the video streaming industry. 

How Streaming UX is Driving Social Media Buzz in 2025

From political discourse to public perception, GE2025 shows why social intelligence is now essential for strategic decision making.

Singapore’s 2025 General Election marked more than a political milestone - it was a turning point in how digital platforms shaped public sentiment and engagement in real time. While the outcome was decisive with the People’s Action Party (PAP) securing 87 out of 97 seats, the journey to the polls was anything but straightforward.

Beyond the media headlines, millions of online interactions offered a window into the nation’s evolving digital psyche - a space where opinions are shared as quickly as they’re formed, and where the line between influence and information continues to blur. 

Through Meltwater’s social intelligence platform data, several defining moments emerged from GE2025’s digital landscape. These insights revealed not only how narratives were shaped, but empower organisations - from brands to public institutions - to adapt in real-time to audience sentiment, and make data informed decisions in a fast moving environment.

The Digital Footprint of Physical Campaigns

Campaign rallies and walkabouts may still be physical events, but their reach is now amplified far beyond any single constituency. What once resonated with local audiences is now broadcast, dissected, and reframed across social platforms - extending influence in unexpected ways. 

In the week leading up to rallies, walkabouts and nomination day (16-22 April 2025), Meltwater’s analysis found that the People’s Action Party (PAP) largely dominated the Share of Voice across Search Queries, Engagement and Reach. More than two-thirds of election-related posts remained neutral in sentiment during this period. 

The following week, as campaigning intensified, a Workers’ Party rally in mid-April led to increased traction across the same metrics. This clearly indicates that events are no longer one-off moments; they serve as powerful catalysts for ongoing digital narratives, with a prolonged and profound effect on the community.

With the right social listening tools, organisations can track the ripple effects of both online and offline, adjusting messaging, spotting trends, and sustaining engagement.

TikTok Turned Doom Scrolling Into a Civic Classroom

TikTok’s influence during GE2025 went far beyond viral entertainment. It became a civic classroom for younger voters. Creators simplified complex policy issues - from cost of living measures, to housing and healthcare reforms, into short, digestible content, creators that were relatable and shareable. 

Hashtags like #GE2025 and #peoplesactionparty collectively amassed 140 million views, underscoring the platform’s role in election literacy. For many first-time voters, TikTok wasn’t just where they learned  - it was where they formed opinions.

This shift from top-down messaging to decentralised, peer-driven storytelling highlights a powerful truth: attention is earned, not guaranteed. In this environment, organisations must go beyond scheduled posts to understand formats that resonate, topics that are gaining traction, and how to join conversations with authenticity and impact. 

By decoding engagement patterns, Meltwater provides data-backed insights that enable decision-makers to stay relevant in a world where narratives move at the speed of the scroll.

In GE2025, hashtags acted not only as rallying cries but also as real-time barometers of public opinion. Between 23-29 April 2025, Meltwater observed the Workers’ Party gaining ground in digital engagement across issues such as education, healthcare, and taxation - areas that surfaced repeatedly in online conversations.

These insights served as proxies for voter sentiment, offering a layer of understanding that traditional polling often misses. Hashtag trends revealed which topics were gaining emotional traction and which narratives were declining - a valuable asset for policymakers, brand strategists, and communication professionals alike. 

With social intelligence, these seemingly scattered conversations become structure signals that help organisations read between the lines, detect shifts in perception, and act before the narrative is set. As the saying goes - ‘trust takes years to build, and seconds to break’, making social intelligence like this an invaluable tool for reputation management. 

GE2025 revealed a fundamental shift in influence. It is no longer held solely by institutions, but co-authored by communities, scaled by creators, and amplified exponentially through various platforms. 

This is where Meltwater’s strength lies, not as a passive data provider, but as a strategic solutions provider that helps organisations make sense of complex, fast-moving conversations. Whether it’s understanding the dynamics behind a trending topic, or preparing for reputational risks that haven’t yet made headlines, social intelligence is key to identifying these trends. 

As Singapore’s digital engagement continues to evolve, so too must the strategies of those hoping to remain influential. As the lines blurred between traditional campaigning and digital content, platforms like TikTok, X, and Instagram became central to influence, education, and mobilisation. Conversations extended far beyond physical rallies and newsrooms in GE2025, being replayed and reshaped across the web. The election made one thing clear: social media doesn’t just reflect sentiment, it drives it. 

Success in the digital age requires listening with intent, responding with clarity, and acting with foresight - not just having the loudest voice.

Beyond the Ballot: What Singapore’s Digital Pulse Revealed During GE2025

Wondering what that ugly-cute creature is dangling from the handbags of stylish passersby? Intrigued by the lines forming outside of Pop Mart stores all over the world? Those mischievous-looking plush toys-turned-fashion accessories are Labubus! And they are a global phenomenon — think Beanie Babies for the smartphone generations. We used our social listening solution to understand just how big the Labubu trend is, where it’s headed, and what marketers can learn from the craze. 

Labubu is a line of plush toys based on characters originally created in 2015 by Hong Kong artist Kaising Lung. The elf-like creatures, including Zimomo, Tycoco, and the eponymous Labubu, come from Lung’s children’s book series The Monsters. In 2019, he partnered with Chinese retailer Pop Mart to create and exclusively sell the plush dolls, planting the seeds of the next global toy sensation. Pop Mart introduced keychain versions of Labubus in 2023, which leveraged the growing bag charm trend and boosted the brand’s popularity. And like so many things these days, the current mania around Labubus is directly tied to Lisa of Blackpink. In April 2024, she posted a picture of her hugging a Labubu doll. It and other photos of her sporting Labubu accessories supercharged the toy’s visibility and global demand. After having swept Asia, Labubu-mania firmly took hold in North America and Europe by the end of 2024. Today, it is arguably the biggest consumer trend in the world. 

Teen Vogue on Instagram: "LABUBU IS MY BABYYYY

Watch #WhiteLotus stars #BLACKPINK's Lisa and Tayme Thapthimthong share their firsts with Teen Vogue at the link in bio 👀"

The toys, sold in “blind boxes” that conceal which version you are getting, have an enticing element of surprise to their buying experience (akin to Pokémon trading card packs, another current toy craze). That quality — along with the exclusivity, customizability, nostalgia, and community engagement — have helped fuel Labubu obsession.  

Mentions of Labubu across all channels from January 1 to May 20, 2025.

From January 1 to May 20, 2025, there were about 876,000 mentions of Labubu across traditional and social media channels, including digital news, broadcast television, X, Reddit, Sina Weibo, Douyin, Pinterest, YouTube, Bluesky, and more. 

The first significant spike of this year was on April 24, caused by the launch of the Labubu “Big into Energy” collection at Pop Mart. However, the biggest spike of 2025 so far was on May 13, when the collection was restocked. Labubu discussion has been going strong along with public pressure and demand, which has led to Pop Mart UK stores temporarily pausing sales. 

Still, mentions in this first part of 2025 are about 11% lower compared to mentions in the same time period (139 days) prior. 

Mentions of Labubu across all channels from May 19, 2024 to May 20, 2025.

This decline in overall volume is due to a 33x spike in mentions that occurred last year, on September 18, 2024, when social media discussion suddenly took off thanks in large part to two viral posts on X. Mentions also spiked 13x higher than average on November 22, 2024, following the launch of Thai jewelry brand RAVIPA’s Labubu Baby collection, a collaboration with The Monsters. 

However, this slight decline in 2025, doesn’t mean that the Labubu trend is over. Not by far! 

Reach and engagement of Labubu mentions across all channels from January 1 to May 20, 2025.

In 2025, mentions of Labubu are still trending upward. Plus, from January 1 to May 20, 2025, reach was up 76% and engagement was up 137% compared to the same time period (139 days) prior. 

Collectively, these stats indicate that the Labubu craze has reached a new level of hype this year. 

Sentiment of Labubu mentions across all channels from January 1 to May 20, 2025.

To the skeptics out there wondering, Do people really love Labubu, our sentiment analysis says yes. The overwhelming majority of non-neutral traditional and social media mentions from January 1 to May 20, 2025, were positive.

Are Labubu dolls more ugly than cute or more cute than ugly?

Mentions of Labubu and keywords "ugly" and "cute" across all channels from January 1 to May 20, 2025.

Labubu dolls are often referred to as ugly-cute, but which quality shines brighter? You heard it here first: The word “cute” is mentioned more often than “ugly” alongside mentions of Labubu. From January 1 to May 20, 2025, there were about 19,800 mentions of “cute” in discussions of Labubu, compared to about 4,000 mentions of “ugly.”

Who are some of the top Labubu influencers?

Some of the most engaged Labubu content this year has come from influencers around the world serving a wide range of audience interests. For example, video game and toy influencer Lana Rae’s Labubu unboxing YouTube short from February drew 1.2 million views in about three months. Meanwhile, travel influencer Baochi Travel’s March YouTube video about customizing a Labubu at a store in Spain drew over five million views in just two and a half months.

Over on Instagram, nonagenarian influencer chef Guadalupe Fiñana is a noted Labubu fan. One of her unboxing videos from February, in which seeing her new oversized Labubu doll brings her to tears, has nearly 700,000 likes. Tagging Pop Mart’s global and Spanish accounts, it generated about $880,400 in Estimated Media Value (EMV).

Guadalupe Fiñana on Instagram: "90 años y con la ilusión de una niña 🥹❤️ Thank you so much @popmart ✨ Gracias @popmartespana 🫶🏻 #abuela #labubu #zimomo #popmart #popmartspain #unboxing"

And perhaps most surprisingly, celebrity tattoo artist @crybabyhunter has emerged as a leading Labubu influencer (yes, he tattoos people as well as the dolls themselves). One post from February tagging Pop Mart’s US account, in which he shows off his extensive Labubu collection, has more than 1.2 million likes and generated about $1.5 million EMV.

There are infinite lessons to be learned from the Labubu trend, but here are a few that marketers should keep an eye on:

Toys are HUGE across multiple age groups. Labubu’s popularity among adults and kids alike aligns with the nostalgia-kidult trend we’re seeing across consumer goods sectors. From Labubu to Pokémon to Squishmallows, nostalgic items that let shoppers tap into the carefree spirit of childhood are booming, and they’re not going anywhere.

Viral trends connect communities. From tattoo artists to grandmotherly chefs, the wide range of audiences Labubu is resonating with shows just how important it is for marketers across sectors to stay tapped into viral moments and the narrative landscape around them. You may think your brand doesn’t have any connection to the latest big thing, but closer analysis can reveal opportunities for new partnerships and activations. Using social listening is key for detecting trends early and understanding how, and if, to join in.

Scarcity and surprise are attractive. Limited availability and uncertainty transform shopping from an isolated non-event into a communal experience. Limited collections, gamified buying, and one-time events get viewers off of infinite scroll and into line for the latest drops.

What Marketers Can Learn from the Labubu Craze

If you read the first line and thought “ah the 4Ps of marketing”, then you probably already know a thing or two about the marketing mix. And if you really know this model, you’ll know there are three more: People, Process, and Physical Evidence. But if all this is new, you're probably wondering: What even is the marketing mix? You're in the right place! This blog will help answer that question so you can become a stronger marketer.

Before we answer that question, let’s go back to basics and understand where the term "marketing" came from. 

The foundation of marketing is putting the right product in the right place, at the right price, at the right time. Simple right? The hard part is doing it well. 

Marketing is all-encompassing. It has a presence in all stages of the business cycle: market research, analysis, product development, distribution methods, sales, and customer feedback. And marketers use campaigns to execute this journey.  

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