Creative Stock Item Opportunities: September–October 2023
- Kristin Brodie
- September 15, 2023
- read
Do you have creative block? Not sure what content you should create next? Well, hopefully this article can serve as the antidote!
We’ve analyzed our Elements search data to find out what customers are looking for right now that they can’t get enough of. The themes in this list represent huge opportunities for creative stock authors, as there is existing demand and not enough supply in our catalog.
This month, customers are looking for creative stock assets to represent America’s fastest-growing sport, the upcoming spooky season, romantic melodies, and more! Can you help us meet their needs?
Quick links
Pickleball
Did you know that pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in America? Us neither!
That is, until we did some research into why Elements customers were suddenly searching for pickleball-related content at unprecedented rates! Turns out, pickleball is kind of a big dill! (pickle pun intended)
According to The 2023 Sports & Fitness Industry Association’s (SFIA) Topline Participation Report, “Pickleball participation almost doubled in 2022, increasing by 85.7% year-over-year and by an astonishing 158.6% over three years.”
As well as taking the US by storm, pickleball is gaining popularity all over the world.
The next few months contain some significant global pickleball competitions which may also be driving demand. In fact, from September 19 to September 24, 2023, in Bali, Indonesia, the 2023 World Pickleball Championship will take place. The tournament has a whopping $20,000 USD in prize money!
If you’re looking for inspiration on how to shoot compelling and commercially-successful sports content, check out our Sports curated collection to see some top-notch examples!
Suggested tags
- Pickleball
- Racket / Racquet
- Tennis court
- Paddle
Halloween
As mentioned in our recent Seasonal Trend Alert, Halloween is coming up on 31 October and we’re already seeing a spike in related searches.
There’s plenty of different angles you can take with Halloween content. Will you choose to go down the scary path? Focus on the kid-friendly stuff? Maybe a mix of both!
Whatever you choose, make sure you get all your Halloween content submitted ASAP so that it has time to pass review and hit the (virtual) shelves while customers are getting ready for spooky season!
More Seasonal Events
Halloween isn’t the only event coming up that customers want content for!
Discover more with our Seasonal Trend Alert.
Want more inspiration? Check out our relevant curated collections—like Halloween, spooky season, zombies and pumpkins—for examples of Halloween content our review team likes best!
Suggested tags for your Halloween content
- Halloween
- Spooky
- Jack-o-lantern
- Trick-or-Treat
Cyber security
Cyber security is a popular theme in searches for creative stock—particularly photos and video.
One possibly reason for this is the increasing awareness of the threat of cyberattacks and data breaches. This is true for individuals as well as businesses and even governments.
Cyber security is also an abstract concept that can be hard to visualize. That’s why creative stock assets that help conceptualize these topics are so helpful.
By offering creative stock that showcases data protection, encryption, hacking prevention, and online safety, companies can help their customers communicate this complex topic in an engaging way.
Suggested tags
- Cyber security
- Encryption
- Malware
- Phishing
- Privacy
- Data
For inspiration, check out our curated collection of stock footage related to hackers. You can also check out of some of the items that content specialist Mark Brodhuber has nominated as some of his favorite cyber security related items (below).
Wedding songs
If you’re a keen observer of our Item Opportunities articles, you might have noticed that this one was featured in our July/August Item Opportunities article!
It’s here again because we’re still seeing plenty of demand for music that fits this description. That’s likely because we’re still in the prime window for weddings in the northern hemisphere.
According to some sources, almost half of weddings in the US take place between September and November, with up to 20% in October alone.
Video creators and audio producers are looking for wedding songs to use in content like wedding videos, love story videos, or romantic TV shows or movies.
Additionally, they may use these songs & sounds in advertisements for bridal fashion, jewelry, or wedding planners.
Wedding music can cover a very wide range of genres, moods, and tempos. The vast majority of songs being downloaded when seeking ‘wedding music’ are usually melodic and uplifting.
We suggest you use instruments like piano, strings, and acoustic guitar to create an elegant and romantic ambiance. Orchestral arrangements and chamber music can add grandeur, while acoustic folk or indie styles offer a down-to-earth feel.
Choose slower tempos, harmonies that convey warmth, and music that builds and fades to match the emotional highs and lows of the day.
Mark Brodhuber Content Specialist, Envato
Suggested tags for your wedding music:
- Wedding
- Wedding music
- Ceremony
- Romantic
- Celebrations
- Love
Need more inspiration? Check out our curated collections for weddings, wedding inspiration, and bachelorette parties to get you in the romantic mood.
You can also listen to Wedding Song by PhilLarson (below) for a great example of the kind of wedding music Elements customers love.
LUTs
A LUT, or Look Up Table, is a mathematical formula or set of instructions used to map one set of colors to another.
LUTs are commonly used to apply specific color grading or color correction effects to videos and photos. They can also be used to give creative projects a certain mood or aesthetic.
Technical LUTs can be created to emulate specific film stocks or visually match footage that was produced with different cameras or under different conditions.
Customers are searching the Elements catalog for LUTs because they’re a versatile item that enhances all of their content. They also help creators save time by avoiding having to manually adjust color grading.
With just a few clicks, LUTs can transform the mood, color grading, and overall look of any media, allowing creators to achieve stunning and professional results.
Mark Brodhuber Content Specialist, Envato
Their ease of use, compatibility with various software applications, and the availability of a vast array of LUTs in online communities contribute to their widespread adoption and appreciation among creative professionals.
