The VMAs are preparing to kick off this weekend (September 7th), with Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, and other major performers expected to take home awards and make waves on the red carpet.
Though we all like to pretend we’re not interested in major events such as the VMAs, The Met Gala and the Golden Globes, we are all guilty of doom scrolling through the outfits of the night and gossiping about any kick-offs and controversies.
Even if you don’t particularly care about the music industry, the start of September is quite slow, and we all need something to talk about, so the VMAs are set to be a hot topic over the next week, or even longer if we get another Taylor Swift vs. Kanye situation.
At Blaze Media, we strive to stay current with pop culture trends and events. Mainly because we love celebrity gossip, but also because these events present fantastic marketing opportunities for ourselves and our clients.
Many businesses may not have realised it, but the VMAs can be an incredible marketing opportunity. Here are some of the reasons why.
Why the VMAs Matter for UK Businesses
If you own a business that by no means is connected to the magical world of music, you might not be able to see why the VMAs could be relevant to your marketing strategy.
However, it is crucial that you look at the bigger picture and make the most of what major events create: opportunity.
Take it from us, did the Oasis Reunion Tour really relate to our business? No. But did it create an opportunity for newsjacking that substantially increased traffic on the Blaze website? Absolutely.
Some reasons why the VMAs are guaranteed to boost your next digital marketing campaign include:
The VMAs are a Global Stage For Pop Culture
The VMAs aren’t just a U.S. spectacle; they’re a global phenomenon. People worldwide tune in for the live show, and billions of minutes of VMA-related chatter fill every platform, from tweets to TikToks.
It’s not just a one-night affair. Leading up to the big day, buzz builds across major platforms, turning conversations into waves of hype. Get involved and capitalise on the chaos. Your business could be the highlight of someone’s feed (and maybe even their day) because when it comes to the VMAs, everyone’s watching (and talking).
Social Media Goes Into Overdrive
When there’s a big event such as the VMAs, social media is absolutely flooded. We all accept that our usual programming of recipes and cat videos will be replaced by content about the night.
Every single person will be talking about the VMAs and sharing content in the run-up to the event, so just think about the potential for some of this shared content to link back to your business, and how it can connect to your customer base.
Understand the hype now?
Cultural Relevance = Cultural Connection
The best way to see growth in your business is to actually connect with your followers and target audiences. Look at the reputation shift that Aldi managed to achieve. In the past, Aldi had a reputation for cheaper, lower quality food, but that narrative completely shifted when the business started to actively engage in pop culture online.
Now, Aldi is best known for its comedic, cheeky side, which has customers flooding to support the company. Reminding the public that a real person with a genuine personality is behind your business helps you more effectively connect with real, converting customers. It doesn’t matter that your business isn’t in entertainment because you can still ensure it’s involved in the conversation.
In our 2024 review of growing digital marketing trends, we highlighted the power of personality and connecting with pop culture for businesses, but we still aren’t seeing enough businesses make the most of it.
Marketing Opportunities From the VMAs
If this blog is getting you all excited about the prospect of capitalising on the VMAs, but you’re not sure how to go about it, here are just some ways to make the most of marketing opportunities created by the VMAs.
Trend-Driven Content
On the back of every VMAs, we always gain some sort of trend. Be that based on fashion, soundbites from the event or ‘memeable’ situations; there’s always a viral moment.
Last year, the internet exploded over the use of sheer outfits in the event, with brands quick to parody looks or interpret the trend as they saw fit. Even brands worlds apart from this trend took part, seeing the potential for comedy.
As a content marketer, you have to be observant and register trends as they take off after the event, and then be quick to engage with them. Is there funny audio from an interview? Do a staff TikTok. Did someone mention that they had an interesting and controversial food combination? Get making and trying it for your socials.
We understand it might be challenging to keep up, so we always recommend that businesses work with experienced digital marketing agencies, such as Blaze, to ensure they can keep up with trends.
Social Media Engagement
On the back of the VMAs, there are always huge, viral posts and hashtags that become the focus of the internet after the event. If you want to benefit, you have to get involved in the conversation.
This means you should make the most of hashtags, talk about trending topics, and get involved. Even if you want to avoid starting a whole campaign on the back of the event, basing some of your captions on the event or acknowledging the VMAs can make a world of difference.
Brand Storytelling
Sometimes, to be successful in marketing, you have to learn how to make situations all about yourself.
After reading that, some of you are likely recoiling with cringe, while others might be joyously rubbing your hands together (this is an opportunity for all you younger siblings and only children to shine).
You need to be able to connect events to your brand’s online marketing, across all digital platforms. For example, if your brand emphasises environmental sustainability and a celebrity struts the red carpet wearing an entirely recycled outfit, you can praise the outfit and relate it to your brand’s values.
Mastering how to relate a pop-culture event to your business will set you up to make some fantastic, creative campaigns. It’s always difficult trying to come up with fresh content ideas, and so leaning into topical news and events is also a great way to boost your digital marketing efforts.
Product or Service Tie-Ins
If you’re a business offering a service, the VMAs present a golden opportunity to shine. Why not jazz things up by offering a special discounted service in the spirit of the VMAs? It’s a star-studded way to attract attention, show your support for the music scene, and boost your brand, because who doesn’t love a good deal with a splash of red carpet glamour?
If you can find a way to relate the event to your brand, you have a great opportunity to do some fantastic marketing.
Real Ways Your Business Can Benefit
Are you still unsure how to make the VMAs relevant to your business? You’re in the right place. We are a leading marketing agency in Liverpool because we know how to seize every marketing opportunity.
We mean, come on, you must have seen our Taylor Swift campaign, we know what we’re doing.
Here’s how your business can benefit from the VMAs 2025, no matter your industry.
Fashion and Beauty
If your business is in the fashion and beauty industry, you’re in a prime position to really make the most of the upcoming VMAs. Though the awards ceremony is supposed to have a focus on music, there’s no denying that the primary focus of attendees is their outfits and looks for the night.
You can capitalise on the event by running ‘get the VMAs look’ campaigns, or even using your products to recreate some iconic looks from the night.
Food and Drink
What many people don’t realise is that, even in the UK, people get really excited about the VMAs. Many people host watch parties and gather their friends and family for drinks and food as they watch the event unfold.
If you own a food or drink business, this is a prime opportunity to promote it with VMA deals or even a set menu to celebrate the night. You could even make meal combinations based on the favourite foods or drinks of the nominated acts.
Tech and Media
The VMAs will be broadcast worldwide, offering a highly visible platform that attracts millions of viewers across different countries and demographics.
As a business in the tech and media industry, the VMAs present a unique opportunity to showcase your brand’s innovations, engage a diverse audience, and strengthen your global presence.
Leveraging the VMAs can significantly enhance your visibility and reputation across search engines and digital marketing channels, so make sure that you are getting engaged and highlighting how your tech can make the event enjoyable.
Lifestyle and Fitness
If you own a lifestyle or fitness business, you are in a prime position to participate in the VMA celebrations. The VMAs are a night for performances and music celebration, meaning you can recreate some dances and tap into his viral potential.
After every VMAs, some people desperately want to know the choreography of the performances. If your social media marketer can quickly release a video of you demonstrating the performances, you have the potential to attract plenty of new faces.
This is especially true for platforms such as TikTok, which have trends with great marketing potential for connecting users with customers worldwide.
How to Execute Your VMAs Campaigns Effectively
If, after reading all of that, you’re now set on leading your own VMA campaign but want to make sure that you do it properly, you’re in the right place. We know a little something about executing flawless marketing campaigns.
Here are some of our top tips for executing your VMA campaigns effectively.
Get the Timing Right
Timing is absolutely everything when it comes to capitalising on pop culture events. Rolling out your campaign weeks after the event is useless, and you need to make sure you act fast.
Create templates for potential posts, stay alert to trends, and ensure your content is published quickly. Our main tip is not to wait until the event is over; if you see a viral moment happening in real time, seize the opportunity and post about it as quickly as possible.
Make the Most of Creative Assets
If you want to ensure that your campaign stands out, you need to have eye-catching creative assets that you can post on your social media. Make sure they’re eye-catching, snappy, and easily digestible for anyone who is just doom-scrolling and might stumble across your ads.
If you aren’t creatively inclined, you might be panicking about the prospect of creating visuals, but you really don’t have to. If you don’t feel confident taking care of the creatives, you could always work with a social media manager who can create eye-catching, timely visuals for you.
Invest in Paid Ads
To really make the most of the hype around the VMAs, consider investing in paid ads that allow you to shine among a sea of businesses trying to make the most of the event.
Paid social ads provide more than just a visibility boost, they’re more like having a megaphone aimed precisely at the right crowd. This savvy strategy amplifies your visibility and targets those who are actually interested, so your time and money aren’t being wasted on people who would never invest in your business.
Develop a Cross-Platform Strategy
A big mistake that many businesses make is throwing all of their marketing eggs in one basket (usually Instagram). To effectively maximise a campaign’s impact, it is essential to develop a comprehensive, cross-platform strategy that performs well across all channels and devices, ensuring consistent messaging and engagement no matter where your audience encounters it.
Partner With a Marketing Agency to Make the Most of Events
If you want to make the most of the VMAs and other upcoming pop-culture events, we recommend working with a marketing agency. Here are some reasons why.
Trend Monitoring
A skill that often goes overlooked in the world of marketing is trend monitoring. When you’re busy trying to run a successful business, it can be easy to miss all the latest trends and events that are just begging you to make the most of them.
Marketers are literally responsible for immersing themselves in any events that can provide a marketing opportunity. Take this blog, for example. Our content team researched upcoming events and distinguished which events would have a social impact, which is why you’re reading a blog about the VMAs right now.
A good marketer can spot trends and use them to garner traffic, which, if done right, could transform your business’s trajectory.
Creative Execution
Not everyone is a wizz with Canva or has a natural flair for creatives. Poor creatives can have a negative impact and really throw off the aesthetic of your social media platforms.
When you work with a marketing agency, you’re working with a team of creatives with an eye for details that you might miss and can turn even the most boring subject into something eye-catching.
Creativity is the crutch of good marketing, which is why AI won’t be taking over anytime soon. By working with a marketing team, you can reel off any creative ideas you have in your head and watch them turn into real-life, visually striking content that will leave your followers thinking ‘ wow’.
Not only can they create a visually impressive campaign, but they can also turn this reactive content into long-term brand equity that will help you continue to collect followers and potential customers over time.
Campaign Strategy
Working with a marketing agency relieves the pressure of having to plan, premeditate, and engage in trends to develop effective marketing campaigns because they do all of that for you.
Marketing agencies don’t just develop short-term strategies with little reward; they develop strategies that will benefit your business in the long run, sustainably connecting your business with the right audience.
Make The Most of Every Pop Culture Event With Blaze Media
With our tips, we recommend that you develop a marketing campaign around the VMAs and see how it benefits your business. Pop-culture events present many marketing opportunities that could see a fantastic return for your business, so knowing how to make the most of them can make a world of difference.
Are you unsure how to go about it, or want the help of an expert marketing agency? Contact our team today.
