Breaking down “It’s Corn”: I can’t imagine a more beautiful thing

If you’ve spent any time online recently, you’ve probably heard a lot about corn. According to a recently trending TikTok song, it’s a “big lump with knobs”. A new TikTok sound, titled “Corn but it becomes a song and unites world” spawned over 607,000 videos at the time of publication, and that number is only growing. As the song says, “it has the juice”.

I can tell you all about it

On August 4th, a YouTube account called Recess Therapy posted a video. The host, Julian Shapiro-Barnum, interviewed a kid about his favorite food at the fair–corn. Corn fans across the internet fell in love with the child’s enthusiasm and a meme was born.

It wasn’t long before the internet’s favorite songwriter, Schmoyoho, was inspired by the video. If you don’t recognize the name, you’ll definitely recognize his work. His songified news stories and viral videos were the soundtrack to the 2010s. Schmoyoho is behind another viral moment of pure joy, the Double Rainbow song.

Something about the happiness of the kid and the nostalgia of the autotune resonates with the masses. It didn’t take long for other creators to hop on the corn trend, showing off their favorite things or skills to the corn-themed backdrop.

When I tried it with marketing, everything changed

Marketers are jumping on the corn wagon. Like any trend, marketers are using it to speak to their audiences and show they’re in on the joke. Let’s dive into how marketers are making the most of this trend.

Leaning into the absurdity

Some social teams are making videos that comment on how seemingly-random the corn phenomenon is. IU Volleyball staged a photoshoot with ears of corn, while the Florida Gators mimicked a collective running soundtrack in their stadium.

Putting product at the forefront

While connecting with audiences is a huge part of marketing, you can’t forget about your product completely. To keep the focus on their offerings, Scrub Daddy chose to cover a giant version of their sponge in corn kernels and Spindrift showed off a very special corn-flavored sparkling water.

Featuring a very special guest

Trends are especially easy to capitalize on when they directly tie in with your product. South Dakota, home of the Corn Palace, went big by inviting the famous elementary school student to visit the attraction, garnering 5.5 million views and over a million likes as of publication. Chipotle took a similar approach, having him order a bowl entirely made up of corn.

It has the juice

Staying on top of trends is key for any social media manager and this is no exception. Jumping on a bandwagon in a creative way can have huge impacts on reach. Social media’s fast pace makes it the perfect place to act quickly and make the most of the moment.

Looking to learn about more social media trends? Check out the 2022 Sprout Social Index™, where we break down all things social media.