Content marketing is one of the most fluid elements of the business world. This type of marketing and promotion is extremely adaptable, making it able to pivot with any change in your business plan. Content marketing has proven itself able to adapt to the pandemic and other changes across industries. Here are five of the top content marketing trends expected for 2022.

More Interactive Content

Marketers are in agreement that more interactive content will be one of the most distinguishing elements of the next several months as professionals look to provide a more comprehensive experience. The use of interactive content compared to static content has been shown to help marketers grab attention and keep visitors on your webpage for a longer period of time.

2022 is expected to usher in more forms of interactive content. Popular forms of engagement include daily quizzes, polls, and fluid landing pages. The goal should be to increase engagement by encouraging your website visitors to interact more with your brand, share their opinions, and become more invested in your products or services. It is no longer enough to simply use your website as a place to deliver information. Running a social media contest is another great way to see an increase in the amount of earned media and interactive content within your community of followers. 

Defined Content Marketing Plan

It used to be that marketers would haphazardly throw together their content marketing with no significant amount of long-term planning. In recent years as the use of this type of promotional vehicle has increased, business professionals have gravitated toward a more defined content marketing strategy.

According to content marketing experts, it is important to develop this strategy to the full extent if you want to meet all of your marketing goals. An effective strategy contains a defined audience, targeted goals, quality content production, a promotional plan, and the appropriate optimization. Without all of the elements in place, you will not harness the true power of content marketing. This makes it important that you develop this strategy with your goals in mind.

With that in mind expect changes to come about. A marketing plan is never set in stone and can change with the trends of the internet. Content marketing is always evolving and there may be a new strategy or medium that you will want to use when it arises. Listening to what other lead content marketers are saying and what recent data shows will help you tailor your marketing plan. 

Increasing Use of Video

2022 will continue to see an increase in the use of video as a vehicle for content marketing. Video will become even more important in 2022 with many marketers relying on this means as their most important form of promotional content. The ROI on video cannot be discounted, making it important you dive into this avenue if you have not already done so.

There are a multitude of options available to you if you do not have the capabilities in-house to produce your own video content. When produced correctly, you will be able to create and nurture deeper connections with your potential and current customers. Video is still one of the most effective ways to grab attention and keep people coming back to your website or social media accounts. Consider the use of interactive video to boost this engagement even further.

From long-form Youtube content, shorter Facebook clips, or Tiktoks make a plan for what kind of video content you want to create. This should be based on time, resources, and where your target audience is located. You could also use influencer marketing as a way to leverage creating video content without having to put as much work in on creating it. 

Influencer Marketing is Here to Stay

In the last few years, the use of influencer marketing has exploded. People feel a personal connection to the influencers they follow and so they want to support them. While in the past many brands went after the largest Tiktok stars and Instagram travel bloggers, now the emphasis is changing. Micro-influencers will lead the charge in 2022. 

With micro-influencers, there are some great advantages. They usually have a specific niche that can draw a closer connection to your brand. Their followings are very community-driven and oftentimes you are at an advantage. Since they have a smaller following you can negotiate a deal and receive a greater deal than you would with an influencer with a large following. This will save your company money and still gain significant exposure. Plus, if it is in the budget you may be able to team up with multiple micro-influencers rather than investing in just one more expensive deal with a large influencer. 

Blend of Virtual and Live Events

One of the silver linings of the pandemic is how it taught event professionals how to most effectively pivot to an online space. Out of sheer necessity, marketers now know how to hold events virtually, helping them to reach even more people as a result.

Heading into 2022, experts predict that there will be the continued use of virtual and live events working together. While most experiences in 2020 and 2021 were online, in-person events will make a comeback in 2022. However, business professionals now know that they can use both forms of event experiences to offer engagement opportunities and meet the needs of their customers.

If you have in-person events, livestream them to your Youtube channel as a webinar. Then turn that webinar into a video for your youtube page. Placing the video into your blog content will then give it an extra boost and will increase its chances of being used as a featured snippet. 

Hyper-Personalization

2022 will focus even more on personalized content. This will be particularly true in email marketing campaigns. Customers are now used to receiving personalized content, putting the onus on content marketers to raise the bar further to deliver hyper-personalization.

This intense personalization goes one step farther than just using a personal name. Hyper-personalization looks into the customer’s preferences and needs to provide content that is curated exactly for them. This type of personalization leans on artificial intelligence and data analytics to provide the automation needed to deliver a personally curated experience for each individual customer.

Conclusion 

Content marketing is always evolving and will continue to evolve as long as it remains an effective strategy. Staying on top of the latest content marketing trends will ensure that you are guiding your business to reach the most people in 2022. To do so, you will want to incorporate more video content, host hybrid events, have an emphasis on hyper-personalization, and create a solid goal-defined actionable plan.