Top Content Marketing Trends We’ve Seen This Year

The way we produce content and engage with customers continues to change, but its impact remains the same. Content marketing, like ads and blogs, is still the preferred way that customers get to know a company. In fact, 70 percent of consumers believe that companies who produce custom content are interested in building a good relationship with them. And amid the pandemic, content marketing continues to thrive, setting new trends for B2B businesses worldwide. Want to know what trends are ruling 2020? Read on to find out what made our list.

Video and Live-stream Content

Long before the COVID crisis forced us all to become experts at conducting business online, content marketing started to head in that direction. In recent years, it’s become the go-to content outlet for brands, coming in second to blogs. It allows brands to showcase their creativity and relatability, all while keeping customers engaged. And customers prefer it, too. LiveStream, the streaming portion of Vimeo, found that 80 percent of audiences would rather watch a video from a brand than read a blog.

There are many ways you can use video or streaming content for marketing. It just depends on your industry and what your customers respond to. A few of our favorite examples are behind-the-scenes videos, webinars, product demos, and sharing best practices.

Shoppable Posts

Content comes in many forms, including social media posts. Once used for status updates and keeping up with friends and family, social media has become to be one of the most powerful marketing tools. In 2020, we’ve noticed an uptick in shoppable posts, seemingly overnight. According to experts, 72 percent of Instagram users have purchased a product through the app, thanks to shoppable posts.

Although e-commerce stores primarily use it, it proves promising for other industries as well. Shoppable posts use the unmatched convenience of being able to purchase without navigating away from your current page. And different industries could use the capabilities to offer goods, services, and subscriptions right from a social media post.

Voice-activated Experiences

In the past year, the number of people who owned one or more smart speakers grew from 38.9 percent to 52 percent. There are other devices including clock radios, internet browsers, and automobile manufacturers integrating voice-activated systems into their products. This growing trend shows that there’s a whole new avenue of content creation for businesses to explore.

For most consumers, smart speakers are part of their every day, so adoption and usage of voice-activated content would be easy to adopt. It’s handsfree and available practically everywhere. All you need to consider is how your customers interact with your brand and the type of voice-activated content you could provide to your audience: information, helpful tips, or industry-specific news.

Another thing for businesses to keep in mind is that this budding content marketing trend also creates a further need to be more strategic with SEO and marketing. With search engines, customers are given a page of results, whereas, with a smart speaker, the top answer is the only one given.

Chatbots

In the age of technology, businesses are always looking for new ways to enhance customer engagement and boost conversion. An increasing trend we’ve seen is the use of artificial intelligence to create an immersive experience that extends past the standard methods of communication.

To date, the most common use of AI is chatbots. A software application that mimics written or spoken speech, they’re an exceptionally helpful tool that can be used in various ways to complement businesses. A few uses include tech support or customer service during or after hours, as a pricing tool, and as a lead gathering tool. And customers are responsive to the use of chatbots. It’s reported that customers prefer chatbots due to the quick response time for questions they otherwise would have to wait to get responses to.

Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality

Another side of the immersive content trend is the use of virtual reality or augmented reality. If you’ve used IKEA’s Place app or Apple’s ARKit, you’re likely familiar with it. Now think of how it can be used in content marketing. When digital information is layered on real objects, it allows the customer to experience how virtual items would look in their homes, offices, or even their bodies. VR and AR also enable companies to do things like product demos, augment business cards and brochures, and create immersive experiences with the aid of their mobile device.

Podcasts Continue to Reign

It seems like everyone has a podcast; from the kid, next door, to the gas station attendant. And people love them to listen to them; Statista reports that the number of podcast listeners has tripled in the past decade. And it’s not just that more people are listening to podcasts, it’s that those listening are more engaged than ever. Podcasts offer something for every kind of interest and listener. When it comes to content marketing, podcasts can be used to advertise to listeners and inform them. But it has to be treated with the same enthusiasm as your other marketing efforts. If you don’t think that creating a podcast aligns with your brand, try being a guest on a podcast geared toward your industry or opting for paid content. 

Personalized Experiences

Although there’s been much discussion about companies and how they use customer data, it can be a potent marketing tool if used responsibly. A popular content marketing trend is to segment data and create a more personalized content experience for each customer. By using data collected from contact us sheets, online behaviors, or segmented email lists, they ensure that their customers only receive content relevant to them. In email marketing strategies, the demographics collected can be used to personalize greeting, customize subject lines and CTAs, and increase overall customer engagement.

Joseph Studios: Helping You Keep Up with Content Marketing Trends

Content marketing trends are ever-changing and keeping up with them can be a lot of work. But don’t fret, Joseph Studios is at your service.

Our team of marketing experts can help your business stay on top of marketing trends by providing you with everything you need to succeed and make an impact with your customers.

Contact us, and let’s work together to make your brand shine.