Ever feel like you are always second to a conversation? I am all too familiar with the feeling of walking into work and everyone’s buzzing about the latest breaking news, yet it somehow managed to escape my radar.

How do they all manage to independently be getting the same information? They are likely good trendspotters. Trendspotting is all about being in the know of the latest stories and fads.

However, it can be difficult because you have to know where to look for new stories. Trendspotting is beneficial because being on top of news can provide unique newsjacking angles for your clients. Inserting them in the conversation early is key so that they won’t be repeating what someone else has said. So how does everyone know what is being talked about? Here are my three favorite trendspotting tools to keep you and your clients in the know.

1. Twitter

This might sound obvious but Twitter is the hub of fast breaking news. With likes and retweets a single threads ability to go viral makes it the first stop in seeing what everyone is discussing.

There are two parts to Twitter that aid in trendspotting. First, is the “what’s happening” tab. Here the latest tweets are categorized by story for you to easily view. As you scroll through make sure you are looking for tweets on both sides of a story to get the whole picture.

Next, I recommend following other people in your industry. This can take a while to know who to follow so as a rule of thumb I follow anyone I come across while doing work. This makes sure that I am getting information from a wide variety of people.

2. Newsletters

A lot of publications have daily news letters filled with new stories. Newsletters can be tailored to only cover specific content, which allows you to go deeper in a certain area of interest. For example, I subscribe to The Washington Post’s Acts Of Faith newsletter to keep up with the latest religious news since that is relevant to some of our clients. Twitter or the general news might not cover some of those topics since not everyone is interested in them. Newsletters help you stay up to date on stories in niche areas.    

3. Influencers

It would be a monstrous task to try and discover trends all on your own, so look to those who have built a career off doing the latest and greatest thing. Influencers exist in every industry and often start discussing trends before the news picks the story up. If you want to know what everyone in the personal finance industry is talking about, listen to Mad Money with Jim Cramer. For local fashion or food, hop on Instagram and find influencers in your area. With a little digging it is easy to find who’s who of any field.

Trendspotting can seem overwhelming but it can easily be integrated into your daily routine. Following influencers on your personal account lets you see them every time you are on social media and Twitter and email notifications can tell you when a big story is being discussed. It’s important in this industry to be on top of news so set some time aside every day and get trendspotting!