Photo by Robin Worrall on Unsplash
It’s a fast-paced world on social media platforms out there. The trends just keep changing from one year to the next. And social media video trends are no different.
Social media and video marketing now go hand in hand. When you scroll through your Facebook or Twitter feeds, you’re most likely to find a video waiting to be clicked– whether it’s a teaser video of a brand’s upcoming product or a funny, viral video clip.
Now that demand for online videos is at an all-time high, social media becomes a chock-a-block place with videos. For marketers like you, that means one thing: it’s only getting harder to stand out.
The best way to make your social media video stand out is to understand your competition by keeping up with the latest trends. Here are some hot trends you should take note of.
Trend #1. Social Media Users Love Storytelling Videos
Gone are the days when brands used videos to solely promote their business, listing their awesome features, and bragging about how they are better than their competitors.
Today’s social media cares more about the story that you tell. Think about it and it makes sense as every viral video always has a shareable story.
When it comes to marketing social media videos, 92% of consumers want brands to make ads feel like a story. When you pack your message in an intriguing way, it connects to the audience’s emotions, convincing them to remember the information better and taking action.
Trend #2. Video With Scrappy Production Is on the Rise
The beauty of social media video is that you can always create engaging videos even with no budget at all. Simply using your smartphone camera and free video editing tools, you can create videos that are both creative and professional. No DSLR cameras, lighting kit, or professional actors are required.
Instagram Stories, Live-streaming videos, Reels, YouTube Shorts, all of the popular social media features embrace scrappy videos. After all, the key here is always to come up with out-of-the-box ideas and content. Who cares if you create 4K social media videos if it tells nothing at all? Behind-the-scenes videos shot on smartphones are extremely popular, especially in restaurant video marketing where it’s easy to draw customers in by showing things like your chef preparing meals or your bartender mixing cocktails.
Trend #3. Nano-Influencer Marketing Is Gaining Traction
Nothing’s really new about influencer marketing. We all know that it’s a well-known marketing method. But, for the past few years, nano-influencers (those with fewer than 5,000 followers) drive the highest engagement rate– followed next by micro-influencers (users with 5,000-20,000 followers).
The reason why nano-influencers can work better than an influencer who has 1M followers is that the audience sees them as more authentic, relatable, and trustworthy.
So, when you aim to collaborate with any influencer using video as the medium, a nano-influencer is a good option.
Trend #4. Vertical Video Format Is Still Kicking
Mobile phones are still the go-to device to watch videos on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. According to the stats, out of 4.48 billion social media users, almost 99% access websites or apps through a mobile device. So to attract an audience and be in demand you need to focus on the mobile app.
Vertical video works best with mobile devices. Tilting the phone just to watch a landscape-formatted video might be like a chore for today’s fickle customers.
Even YouTube has enabled a fullscreen playback feature for vertical videos to address this. Not to mention those short-form video features or apps like TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram Stories, Reels, and YouTube Shorts are embracing this mobile-friendly video format.
Trend #5. Live Videos Remains a Powerful Engagement Tool
Interactive, engaging, quick, low-budget, authentic– that’s live videos. From Facebook to Instagram, most popular social media platforms have already embraced this video format with their ever-evolving live features. You can use live-stream for Q&A sessions, tutorials, product walkthroughs, or even a live interview with an industry expert.
Even though the video is being played in real-time and unedited, you can still apply filters and add text. You can also use it to announce your new products or engage with the audience by answering their queries directly.
So, it should come as no surprise that stats show that 80% of users would rather watch a live video from a brand than read a blog post, and 82% prefer live videos over static posts. If you’re looking to capture attention and engage with your social media followers in real-time, live videos can be such a powerful tool to help you with that.
Trend #6. Ephemeral Videos Are Still Hot
In the words of Snapchat’s CEO, “ephemerality is about intimacy.” And that’s what ephemeral videos are all about. They’re short-lived (usually less than 24 hours), unedited, and more personal.
Statistics show that 86% of digital users crave authenticity more than ever. That is the reason why short-lived videos are popular across social media platforms. They offer a behind-the-scenes look at your brand or product and are often used as a teaser for an upcoming product launch.
Although their “life” is short, they have the ability to generate high engagement rates and create a buzz around your brand. From Instagram Stories and Facebook Stories to Reels on Instagram or Fleets on Twitter, all these popular social media platforms offer various ephemeral video features.
When you use ephemeral videos for marketing purposes, it’s always best to add a call to action since you don’t have that much time to convey your whole message.
Wrapping Up
There you have it. Those are some essential social media video trends you should pay attention to. The trends come and go, but social video marketing is here to stay. Now that you understand what social media users love and how they behave on those platforms, it would be much easier for you to decide what you should bring to the table to give them video content they want to actually see.
Author
Andre Oentoro is the founder of Breadnbeyond, an award-winning explainer video company. He helps businesses increase conversion rates, close more sales, and get positive ROI from explainer videos (in that order).
Twitter: @breadnbeyond
Email: andre@breadnbeyond.com
LinkedIn: Andre Oentoro
