It can be hard to keep up with the latest trends in video marketing. Formats, apps, devices, platforms, and their features have moved lightyears ahead of where they were even a year or two ago. Sometimes it feels like the one thing that’s remained constant is the fact that including video as part of your strategy to increase your audience is crucial for every marketer. Video on mobile, laptop and tablet is only increasing year-on-year.
“The consumption of online video is growing rapidly,” asserts Jonathan Barnard, Head of Forecasting at the Zenith agency, “and the average person will spend half as much time viewing online video as they spend viewing conventional television this year.”
He may very well be right. And if he is, it means you’ll need to take a hard look at what your video strategy is, and consider giving it a major reboot, to ensure you’re getting the optimal chunk of viewers possible.
No matter where you’ve been posting your videos, it’s likely you could do with a refresh on your video strategy for the coming year. Remember that your audience has ever-changing likes and appetites – and the algorithms that determine how your content is distributed are constantly being tweaked, too.
The fine line you need to walk is to stay true to your brand and your target audience, while still catering to the changes with some of the new strategies and techniques out there. This guide will walk you through how to completely revamp your video strategy in 2021.
Commit to a Content Plan Now
Before jumping right into creating new videos and posting them everywhere, take a step back to plan things out. You know the demand is there – it’s paramount to commit to a plan to ensure you make the most of the year to come.
The good news is, with a little forethought, you can predict some of the most likely trends to come. Reflect on what video trends were popular this year and think about how you can rise to that challenge next year.
For instance, if you’re a veterinarian aiming to increase your online presence, you’ll be interested to know the National Hug Your Cat Day hashtag (#NationalHugYourCatDay) has driven nearly 5k views on TikTok. This holiday comes back in early June every year. With some good planning, you can come up with a funny video that has much more potential to go viral than something you do on the spur of the moment when the trend has already passed.
Focusing on the notable events and potential trends you can create videos around – trends that are relevant to your industry and that did well this year – gives you the best chance of creating high-quality content that is also timely and relevant.
This doesn’t have to be a day-by-day plan – just putting together a loose calendar with some ideas and deadlines will help you stay current and keep your followers satisfied.
One powerful (and free) tool you can use here is Later. This app will allow you to schedule content to go live on Instagram, for example, and lets you see what your grid will look like. Later also reminds you when it’s time to post, so you can pre-write the captions and upload photos to be ready to go in just a few clicks.
Step Up Your Production Professionalism
A promising video strategy positions you as a professional. Now that the market is so saturated with content, it’s paramount to ensure you stand out. While it’s possible to go viral with sub-par content as long as it’s funny or relevant, it’s a lot easier if your videos look the part.
You may consider a few investments. If you plan on doing a lot of facetime on your videos, purchasing a ring light or getting a new camera can give you that leg up that finally lets your video content stand apart from the crowd.
Equally, you should invest some time in getting to know the best tools, apps, and techniques that can take your videos to the next level. For example, no matter what your industry, Videoleap is a great example of an app that’s intuitive, easy to use on a mobile, and has the flexibility to let you do some slick things with your videos, whatever the subject.
One trend that has proven particularly popular on TikTok, for example, is adding captions to videos, as many viewers watch without sound. TikTok’s captioning tool is a bit clunky to use, whereas Videoleap makes it easy to add them in a manner that syncs visually with the video.
Reconnect With Your Audience Through New Video Types
One of the best developments of video marketing is the fact that viewers have shown an appetite for more intimate, authentic, behind-the-scenes content rather than polished promotional material, and the video tools available have stepped up to help you provide that.
For example, live streaming, process videos, and user-generated content are popular with viewers. Stackla reports that 79% of people say that user-generated content actually highly impacts their purchasing decisions, which we can interpret to mean they find it more trustworthy than content published by brands themselves.
If you don’t feel comfortable live streaming or sharing user-generated content, are there any behind-the-scenes action shots you could share? The goal here is to be more and more personable to your audience. They’re hungry to see more behind the curtains, and although it can feel scary to move away from anything polished and perfect, they want to get that fresh, genuine feel.
Changing Tastes But Increasing Demand
Audience members in 2021 will want more videos. They want to see well-thought-out, funny, engaging, educational, topical videos that look professional – though not overly polished. High-quality, genuine video is what’s currently most in demand, and if you’re not producing that content, you run the risk of missing out on a huge amount of potential traffic and viewers.
By creating and sticking to a rough plan, investing in some tools to make your videos look professional, and maintaining a genuine connection with your viewers, you can revamp your video strategy in time for video content’s biggest year ever.
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