---
name: yt-trend
description: >-
  Plan what to post against the calendar - seasonal demand, recurring
  events in the niche, and the right mix of timely bets and evergreen
  library. Use for "what should I post this month", "seasonal content",
  "what's trending", "content calendar by season", or timing a video to a
  moment.
---

# yt-trend

Read the [shared operating guide](../yt/references/operating-guide.md) for profile lookup, helper paths,
capability limits, and cross-skill routing before using this workflow.

Some videos earn for a week and some earn for years, and posting the wrong kind at the wrong time is
how a good idea dies early. This times the calendar: which weeks reward a timely bet, and when to bank
evergreen instead.

It does not have a live trends feed. It reasons from the niche's known calendar and pairs with
[$yt-viral](../yt-viral/SKILL.md), which reads what is actually spiking right now. Use both: this plans the shape of the
year, $yt-viral confirms the week.

## Before you plan

1. Use the available voice profile or creator context (see the operating guide) and the channel's cadence - a trend you cannot film in time is
   not an opportunity, it is a regret.
2. Never claim a trend you have not seen. If the timing rests on a live spike, say "confirm with
   $yt-viral first" rather than asserting it.

## The two clocks

- **The recurring calendar.** Every niche has dated demand: tax season for finance, new-model launches
  for tech, new-year for fitness, back-to-school for education, conference seasons, annual "best X of
  the year". Map the next 90 days of these for the niche. These are predictable - plan the video weeks
  ahead, publish just before the search peak, not during it.
- **The live spike.** A model drops, a thing goes viral, a controversy. These you cannot plan, only
  react to fast. Decide in advance how much of the schedule is reserved for reaction (usually one slot
  a month) so a spike does not blow up the whole plan.

## The mix

Aim roughly **3 evergreen : 1 timely**. Evergreen is the library that earns while you sleep; timely is
the wave that brings new viewers to the library. All evergreen and the channel never rides anything;
all timely and there is nothing left the week nothing happens.

## The move

- Map the niche's recurring dated demand for the next 90 days.
- Slot evergreen anchors on the quiet weeks, timely bets just before each peak.
- Reserve the reaction slot and name the trigger that would use it.
- Pair each timely slot with a "confirm with $yt-viral" check before shooting.

## What to hand back

- a 90-day calendar: evergreen anchors, timely bets, the reserved reaction slot
- for each timely slot, the publish-before date and the search peak it targets
- the evergreen/timely ratio of the plan, stated
- one line: the next dated opportunity and the week to start filming it