From trend to trust: Cultural shifts and the new rules of influence
Editor's note: This article is an automated speech-to-text transcription, edited lightly for clarity. For the full session, please watch the recording.
In a world shaped by economic pressure, AI acceleration and constant cultural noise, audiences are becoming more intentional. During Quirk’s Virtual Sessions – The Changing Consumer on March 25, 2026, representatives TikTok and EyeSee explored what is truly shifting in consumer behavior and why these shifts matter commercially.
Ann Nguyen, global trends senior manager at TikTok, and Milica Kovac, director of global business development at EyeSee presented the findings from TikTok’s TikTok Next 2026 Trend Forecast and simulated feed research conducted by EyeSee. These findings included authenticity over polished narratives, how discovery is driven by curiosity and unexpected detours, and shifting purchasing decision justification.
Session transcript
Joe Rydholm
Hi everybody, and welcome to our session, “From Trend to Trust: Cultural Shifts and the New Rules of Influence.”
I'm Quirk’s Editor, Joe Rydholm. Before we get started, let's quickly go over the ways you can participate today.
You can use a chat tab to interact with other attendees during the session, and you can use a Q&A tab to submit questions for the presenters, and they will answer them offline via email after we're through.
Our session today is presented by EyeSee. Enjoy.
Milica Kovac
Hello, everyone, and welcome. Thank you for joining us for this session and thank you to Quirk’s for hosting us.
My name is Milica. I'm joining you from EyeSee, where we specialize in context advertising research, studying how cultural change drives consumer behavior and brand growth.
Today's conversation is about something we're all navigating, the changing consumer. Not just in terms of demographics or media consumption, but in terms of the mindset; how people discover, how they evaluate and ultimately how they decide.
I'm joined by a fantastic partner from TikTok. I'll let you introduce yourself.
Ann Nguyen
Thanks, Milica.
My name is Ann Nguyen. I lead marketing initiatives here at TikTok's Cultural and Trend Intelligence.
I've worked on our TikTok Next Trend report, which looks at emerging cultural shifts and what they mean for brands and creators. And I'm really excited to talk about this topic with you guys today.
Milica Kovac
So today, we want to explore this shift from multiple angles because culture doesn't change in isolation. It shows up first in how people express themselves, then in how they engage with the content and eventually in how they make decisions.
TikTok has a front flow seat to those cultural signals as they emerge. You will see how those signals translate into what actually performs in the platform.
And through research, we're also able to measure how all of that impacts real behavior, not just on the platform, but beyond the platform as well.
So, let's start where change usually begins and that is at the cultural level.
In your TikTok Next framework, there's a brilliant term that your team introduced that I absolutely love, ‘reality.’ Beyond that wordplay, there's a real shift behind it. I'd love for you to unpack it for us. What exactly is ‘reality’ and what does it reveal about how consumers are changing today?
Ann Nguyen
Absolutely. Reality reflects a shift toward radical realness. It's a movement away from overly polished narratives toward raw, transparent, community-driven conversation.
Audiences are no longer satisfied with curated perfection. They want honesty and understanding. They want behind the scenes. They want to see how things are made, how people actually use products, what works and what doesn't.
But also, why. Why should they care? And if brands are paying attention to what they care about.
And importantly, reality isn't just about vulnerability, it's about building community.
Milica Kovac
So instead of influence being top down, it becomes more distributed and conversational.
Ann Nguyen
Exactly. Influence becomes something that happens within the community, not something imposed on it.
Milica Kovac
Well, what does that mean for brands?
Ann Nguyen
It means brands need to loosen the grip. They need to allow creators to interpret their message in ways that feel native and human. The brands that perform best are the ones that embrace transparency and allow their products to live inside real conversations.
Milica Kovac
That makes sense from an effectiveness perspective as well.
What we've seen in our primary research with users is that a lot of content that feels authentic and unscripted consistently drives stronger engagement and trust. Creators are trusted members of their communities, so when they integrate a product into their real-life, the recommendation feels natural.
Our most recent creators and moments research shows that when creators participate in culturally relevant moments, audiences feel more connected and engaged.
In fact, 70% of consumers say TikTok creators make them feel part of a larger community during those moments. Demonstrating that authenticity combined with timing amplifies influence.
And speaking of realness, the two of us picked some TikTok videos that perfectly illustrate this reality principle, giving our webinar audience a clear sense of brands who really get it.