Video continues to be a powerhouse tool for digital marketing. The average person watches 17 hours of videos online each week, ranging from long-form YouTube tutorials to quick clips across Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Not only is video engaging, but it is also sharable. On average, people are 52% more likely to share video content than articles, graphics, and other forms of media.
While video is a popular content tool, it is also changing. User behavior affects the type of content brands must create and how they share it. Don’t fall behind. Here are seven trends in video marketing that will affect your content strategy in 2023.
Audiences Crave Informative Content
While funny dance crazes and stories of kittens befriending puppies are always popular online, people also turn to video content to learn. This is good news for brands that don’t want to keep chasing the next viral trend. According to the Content Marketing Institute’s 2022 B2C annual report, how-to videos produced the best results for brands in the past 12 months.
Nearly 40% of respondents said how-to videos supported their content marketing efforts by driving engagement and leads to the brand. These were followed by interviews with industry experts (37%) and educational webinars (31%).
CMI creates separate reports for B2B and B2C brands, and it’s important to note that how-to videos still drive the highest ROI for B2C content marketing teams. This proves that it’s okay to get technical with your video content. You can explain the inner workings of a car or create video content on programming smart features in the latest models. Your customers will appreciate your insights and trust you more because of it.
Most People Don’t Watch the Entire Video
While people watch a lot of video content, they rarely sit through the same video from start to finish. One of the most important metrics to track as you publish videos is the average video duration, which is the percentage of the video people watch on average.
Most companies try to get at least a 50% average video duration (AVD). If you create a 10-minute video, you want most people to watch at least five minutes of content. However, your own metrics will vary — and your AVD might differ from one video to the next. How-to videos tend to be “sticker” than other forms of content, which means you might get an 80% AVD from them. Product reviews and unboxing content also have high unboxing rates.
The AVD will also vary by platform. Instagram has a much lower retention rate as people watch for a few seconds and then keep scrolling. The YouTube AVD is typically higher.
In this case, the solution isn’t to keep shortening your videos. Doing so could cause you to edit out important content that your viewers need. Instead, be strategic with how you develop video content. Here are a few things to try:
- Provide a quick overview of what the video will cover so your audience knows the information is relevant throughout.
- Include calls to action at the beginning and middle of your video. This way, they aren’t lost at the end.
- Place important information at the start of the video. If you know people will drop off, ensure they get the most relevant content first.
The videos you create for your social media advertising strategy will also vary by channel. Content that works for YouTube might not be appropriate for Facebook and Instagram audiences.
Audiences Watch 91 Seconds of Content on Average
One of content marketers’ most significant challenges is knowing how long their videos should be. According to one survey, most people only watch one minute and 31 seconds of video footage before moving on to the next clip. Across the bell curve, this drops to 40 seconds on the low end and 3 minutes and 16 seconds on the high end.
While this insight into audience behavior is useful, it isn’t necessarily set in stone. Different types of content can keep audiences engaged, and viewers might pay more attention to your videos if you provide helpful information. However, if you are new to the world of video marketing, this benchmark is a good place to start.
Use this data point combined with the AVD information above to guide your video creation strategy. Consider developing scripts for three to five-minute videos on YouTube and Facebook. If the content is sticky, you will hold your audience’s attention and can explore longer forms of content and different types of videos.
Like most aspects of marketing, video creation requires a lot of trial and error. You need to learn what works for your specific audience and what types of content help your brand.
Google Is Changing Which Video Thumbnails It Shows
Video content is key in social media, search engine marketing, and SEO. Very few marketing channels are siloed and don’t help one another. This is why any SEO news related to video rankings is a big deal.
In April 2023, Google announced it would no longer show video thumbnails next to search results unless the video was part of the post’s main content. Some search experts believe this is a standard update to improve the SERPs, while others call it a “video thumbnail apocalypse.” The reality is likely somewhere in between.
If you embed video content on your pages and blog posts to rank higher and increase your site traffic, you might notice a decrease in hits due to this change. However, this update also creates an opportunity for your content team. Google will still feature the video if it is the main content on the page. After you develop and publish the video, consider creating a blog post around it. The post can highlight key points and encourage readers to watch the footage.
When done right, you can leverage this update to generate blog post ideas, use video content in multiple ways, and increase your overall rankings. Not every Google update will be an apocalypse for your brand.
TikTok Isn’t Just for Teens Anymore
One of the biggest mistakes companies can make as they look to the future of video marketing is to write off TikTok as an app for kids. Yes, the largest demographic of TikTok users is 10 to 19-year-olds. However, they only make up 25% of total users. Nearly 65% of TikTok users fall between the ages of 20 to 49. Usage is spread evenly between people in their 20s, 30s, and 40s. When you look at the data, people under 20 only have a slight edge over other demographics.
Social media marketing often requires brands to go where their customers are. As you develop video content for different channels, consider whether you have the resources to create posts for TikTok. You might be able to modify clips or create some informal videos with your team to practice creating content for this channel.
TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social media platforms right now. Even if your target audience isn’t there yet, it will likely be soon. It is better to jump in now and establish a strong presence instead of chasing after trends that you missed.
Vertical Video is Back
When smartphones first debuted, there was a general cry to stop filming vertical content. Social media channels were designed to display horizontal footage, which meant vertical content was hard to watch. Brands tried to accommodate viewer demand and started producing videos filmed horizontally, which you can still see on YouTube.
However, in 2023, vertical video is back on-trend. This started with TikTok. The platform was designed to watch vertical video footage. Instagram and Facebook quickly adjusted their interface designs to favor vertical video, which you can see in their promoted reels.
As you develop a video content strategy for the coming months, consider how your footage will be displayed. If you are creating a YouTube video tutorial that will get shared on your blog, then a horizontal alignment might be the better option. If you are developing social content, you might want to flip your screen vertically.
Note: YouTube Shorts also utilize the vertical screen trend as well, proving that the vertical trend is here to stay.
There may be some cases where you film the same content twice – once horizontally and once vertically. This is potentially an excellent way to use the same content twice while sharing it effectively on different channels. This way, you won’t need two content calendars — one for vertical viewers and one for horizontal fans.
Your Audience Wants You to Go Live
The final trend to consider as you develop a video marketing plan in 2023 is live video. More platforms than ever offer live video streaming, including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. Live video is considered more organic (less scripted and edited) and allows for higher levels of engagement. In fact, 80% of people say they would rather watch a live stream than read a blog post.
For example, you could go live at your car dealership to talk about brake pads. You can talk about how quickly they wear out and when they need to be replaced. During this time, viewers can ask a variety of questions, like what causes this wear and whether brake pads vary by make and model. This creates direct engagement with fans and comes with a natural call to action to get your car serviced.
Going live can be stressful for teams and marketers. You don’t know what will happen, and your presenter will need to be able to answer questions quickly and think on their feet. However, this can be a powerful and informative tool for your company.
Watch a few live videos of brands and personalities you admire. They don’t even need to be in your industry. This is a great way to get inspired to create your own live content. You can do this.
Take Control of Your Video Marketing Content
When done well, video marketing can support your social, SEO, and display advertising efforts. It can elevate your branding while driving potential leads deeper into the sales funnel. However, businesses need a clear marketing plan to achieve these goals, including trackable KPIs to review and improve performance. Simply hitting play on a smartphone and uploading the occasional video won’t have the desired results you need.
If you are ready to take video marketing seriously in 2023, turn to J&L Marketing. We specialize in creating video content for a variety of social media channels while helping you integrate the content into your web strategy. Our efforts are always results-driven and customer-focused.
Learn more about the work we do and the impact we have. Contact our team today and tell us how we can improve your video marketing efforts.
