Content marketing is constantly evolving as new techniques are introduced to engage audiences, boost brand awareness, and convert leads. Adapting to these new realities is critical for remaining competitive and staying current with customer expectations. This article outlines 13 content marketing trends you should watch in 2022.
Video Marketing
Videos are already regarded as the most effective content form, given the deep level of engagement it offers consumers, and this trend will keep dominating in 2022. Seasoned content marketers can help you leverage popular avenues in 2022, including:
- Short-form videos: These videos run for a maximum of three minutes to get the point in time before viewers’ short attention span runs out. The rise of TikTok will further require you to create more short and entertaining videos while sending the right message.
- Interactive videos: These are videos that allow you to add elements of interactivity, such as call-to-action on the screen for better lead generation.
- Video-first strategy: Your content strategy should prioritize creating video content before re purposing them to other content forms.
Voice Search Optimized Content
The use of voice assistants such as Siri, OkGoogle, and Alexa, will grow in 2022, given how easy it is for users to speak directly into their devices. Optimizing your content for voice-related searches by making them more conversational while focusing on customer intent will set you up for success.
Smarter SEO
SEO algorithms are continuing to change, and in 2022, you must be ready for:
- Multitask United Model (MUM), Google’s new language processing model that uses an AI-powered algorithm to provide high-value answers to complex searches. These include long-form questions, texts from different languages, image searches, and video searches.
- Passage ranking, whereby Google allows a page to rank for a specific paragraph instead of the entire content.
- The shopping graph model is an AI-powered model that works in real-time to offer users relevant listings as they shop for available products.
Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Integration
There will be a wider integration of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) features to create immersive content in 2022. The real estate industry is already thriving from digital 3D tours that offer buyers like Leave The Key Homebuyers walkthroughs of properties.
Demand for Diversity
Consumers expect brands to show diversity and inclusion in 2022 through content that resonates with audiences. This calls for awareness in pop culture and better use of imagery and videos to show inclusivity in your market targets.
More Effort on Customer Retention
For market dominance, companies are expected to spend more on customer retention strategies in 2022. Some of the techniques that will be commonplace include:
- Quicker response to messages and comments on social media
- A broader range of quality content and personalized emails based on online behavior
- Use of customers as brand advocates
Increased Interest in Podcasts
Podcast listenership is growing by the day, with the number of regular listeners in the United States expected to hit over 164 million by 2024. As a business or content marketer, you can leverage this platform’s in-depth discussions on various topics to get the attention of your target audience. Podcasts have a human touch, and it is expected to have more impacts in swaying consumer behavior.
Greater Use of AI Technologies
In 2022, you can expect increased adoption of artificial intelligence in content marketing functions. Some of the areas that these technologies are expected to influence are:
- Data and content analysis: There will be greater automation of data and content analysis using AI technologies, providing marketers with better insights on the progress of a campaign while keeping up with the latest content trends in a niche industry.
- A/B testing: AI will enable marketers to better optimize landing pages and email campaigns by analyzing and predicting what best works for a specific niche and target audience.
- Content creation: You can expect the introduction of more AI-driven content creation tools that will perform content research, offer content suggestions, write content for you (Jasper AI is a good example),and recommend SEO strategies.
- Chatbot interaction with users: As chatbots collect data and analyze consumer behavior, they will be more effective in mimicking real-life conversation and become a primary tool for online customer services.
Storytelling
The art of storytelling will remain a fundamental component of online marketing in 2022, as consumers appreciate content that doesn’t feel sales-y. There will also be greater demand for niche content that targets a specific audience by showing how a product or service addresses their needs.
User-generated and User-directed Content
There will be an increased focus on empathetic content marketing in 2022, making it critical to place your customers at the center of your outreach strategies. Beyond viewing the world through the eyes of your customers when creating content, you will have to provide more room for user-generated and user-directed content. This will assure your target audience that your brand can meet their needs.
A Hybrid of Virtual and Live Events
The COVID-19 pandemic led to an increase in virtual events, and even as the world gets back on its feet, companies will be expected to create a hybrid of virtual and live events in 2022 to better balance their in-person and virtual interactions.
Account-based Marketing
Account-based marketing (ABM) will be the most effective strategy for B2B marketing in 2022 as it enables businesses to personalize their campaigns to suit specific micro-audiences. This strategy requires marketers to collaborate with the sales team and narrow down specific business accounts, gaining insights for creating highly targeted campaigns that outperform generic alternatives.
For example, an accounting software company that tailors its campaigns to target newly established businesses run by entrepreneurs with little to no bookkeeping experience will attract better leads than one generating content that targets all types of businesses.
Influencer Marketing
A survey by Hubspot shows that influencer marketing was the number one priority for 2022 for 34% of marketers. Content marketers can collaborate with influencers in a number of ways:
- Co-creating content
- Creating content and promoting it with a contribution or a quote from an influencer
- Posting content on the influencer’s website, blog, or other publication
Working with influencers is one of the most effective content marketing strategies, as it helps you reach people through someone they trust and adore. If you are lucky to find a niche-based influencer, it will be the equivalent of reaching an audience that is already filtered and is a few steps down the marketing funnel.
Endnote
2022 will be an exciting year for businesses, and rapid adaptation to these content marketing strategies will be a pillar for success.
