How To Write A Short-Curated Trend Newsletter Like A Pro In 5 Easy Steps

No matter how much you read online, you're always missing something.

Important trends. Hidden insights. Industry shifts happening in real time.

That’s because information is scattered across dozens of platforms, buried in noise, and moving faster than ever.

Now, imagine if you could:

• Quickly find trending topics across the internet

• Curate the most relevant insights for your audience

• Save hours of research time

And help your readers do the same.

That’s the power of creating a curated newsletter with AI.

A Curated Newsletter Gives Your Audience What They Can’t Get Elsewhere:

Clarity

As a curator, you don’t just share information—you help your audience see what they would have missed on their own.

The best part?

AI makes this process 10x faster.

Here's My Step-By-Step Process For Finding And Curating Trends For Your Newsletter With AI:

We're going to do this in 5 easy steps.

Step 1: Find Fresh Trends Fast With AI Search

Not all AI tools are great for trend research.

You need an AI that can search the web in real-time.

For example:

• Perplexity AI

• ChatGPT (with web browsing)

• Claude Desktop (with web browsing)

Try them all—you’ll get different results depending on the tool. Even if you're on a free plan without real-time search, you can still uncover valuable insights.

Why not just use Google?

Because AI can synthesize trends, connect dots, and extract insights much faster than manual research. Which means you can curate a newsletter in minutes, not hours.

Let's look at where to focus your attention in Steps 2 and 3.

Step 2: Pick Your Trend Time Horizon

The biggest mistake newsletter writers make is trying to track "everything happening right now."

This creates massive cognitive overhead and leads to surface-level insights.

Instead, you want to:

• Choose a specific timeframe (48 hours, 7 days, or 30 days)

• Stick to that window religiously

• Ignore everything outside that window

This singular focus allows your brain to spot actual patterns instead of random noise.

You don’t want to get bogged down in mounds of research. So, start small.

You can always ask for more.

Step 3: Hunt For Trending Topics

Before you start curating, you need something worth covering.

Instead of guessing, use AI and data-driven tools to surface topics that are actually gaining traction.

Here’s how:

1. Listen for conversations happening on Reddit, TikTok, or X. Simply search your topic and filter by the latest, top, or trending posts. Make note of any themes or sub-topics.

2. Then take the theme you found above and check Google Trends to validate your observations.

For example, when I searched "skincare" on TikTok, I noticed several posts about beef tallow as a moisturizer.

So, I checked Google Trends—and sure enough, searches for “beef tallow skincare” have been rising over the past year.

Now instead of scrolling through endless posts, I fired up AI and started asking:

• "What are people saying about beef tallow in skincare?"

• "Which influencers, brands, or experts are talking about beef tallow skincare?"

• "What skincare trends involving beef tallow have gained traction in the last 7 days?"

This way, instead of spending hours chasing random ideas, AI helps you zero in on trends worth covering—fast.

Once you confirm a trend has momentum, it's time to dig deeper.

Step 4: Research Cross-Platform Sources

Trying to monitor everything is a waste of time.

Instead, focus on the platforms where trends emerge first in your industry.

Ask yourself:

• Where do the early adopters share first?

• Which platforms drive conversations in your space?

• What communities spot trends before they go mainstream?

The narrower your focus, the stronger your signal-to-noise ratio.

Continuing with our beef tallow in skincare example, I’d focus on Instagram since beauty influencers test new ingredients before they go mainstream. I would also check Reddit’s r/SkincareAddiction because it’s a goldmine for unfiltered product reviews and early adopter feedback.

But instead of just skimming posts, I’d refine my AI searches to dig deeper:

• “What are beauty influencers saying about beef tallow skincare on Instagram?”

• “Help me find Reddit discussions about beef tallow skincare from the past 30 days that mention results or side effects.”

See how this works?

Now, let’s take everything you’ve gathered and turn it into a newsletter

Step 5: Package Your Research Into A Newsletter

Most curated newsletters fall into one of two traps:

They either dump raw trends with zero context or try to sound smart by over-analyzing everything. You need a middle ground.

Start with the trend, and add the missing context.

You can avoid both of these problems.

• Connect it to broader patterns

• Show concrete implications

• Explain why it matters now

For example, instead of just writing "Beef tallow is trending in skincare," you would write:

"Searches for 'beef tallow skincare' have surged 300% in the past year, with TikTok driving millions of views on DIY tallow balm recipes. As clean beauty trends shift toward ancestral skincare, expect to see more brands marketing tallow-based moisturizers as a natural alternative to synthetic creams."

This approach turns a basic trend into an actionable insight.

But how do you consistently find, refine, and format trends like this—without spending hours researching?

Use this trend extraction prompt to pull real-time insights into your newsletter in seconds:

To use this prompt, fill in the following variables: