Video marketing trends and best practices in 2022

It’s no secret that video is the most preferred format for consuming content among consumers. But as technology and consumer preferences continue to change, it isn’t always easy for marketers and business owners to keep up with the changing trends. So to help businesses build solid marketing strategies, we will look at the top video marketing trends in 2022. We won’t stop there. We will also see the best practices that will help you create effective video content.

Let’s get started.

‍

Top video marketing trends

1. Increased video usage in 2022

The demand for video content by consumers continues to increase every year. Studies show that 54% of consumers want their favorite brands to create more video content. And according to recent research, brands and marketers are creating more videos. A recent survey by Wyzowl showed that 86% of businesses now use video as part of their marketing tool in 2022. In 2017, the number of businesses using video marketing was just 63%. This is a significant increase in video usage in just five years.92% of marketers that participated in the survey also say that video is an important part of their marketing strategy. The percentage of marketers who don’t use video content say they don’t know how to get started with creating video – and not because they don’t want to. So if video content is not a key part of your marketing strategy, you should include it now.

‍

2. Consumers prefer user-generated video content

User-generated content has become a popular content format in recent years. Whether it is in the form of video, images, testimonials, or reviews. And for good reason too. UGC is very effective in keeping users engaged. Studies show that consumers watch user-generated videos ten times more than branded content on YouTube. 85% of customers also find visual UGC more influential than branded video or photos. This is not to say that businesses should scrap out branded content. Both can work hand in hand as research shows that combining both professional content and user-generated video can increase brand engagement by 28%. Also, when it comes to making purchase decisions, customers look to UGC content for inspiration. A survey of 1500 consumers from the US, UK, and Australia reported that 79% of the participants say user-generated content highly influences their purchase decision. Reports from Econsultancy also show that visitors who visit a site via UGC typically spend on average 45% more when making purchases than regular visitors.So regardless of your business size or industry, UGC content should be part of your marketing strategy. Read this article to see how brands are using UGC in 2022.

‍

3. Live streaming has grown exponentially since the pandemic

The use of live streaming became very popular during the lockdown as brands and marketers could no longer interact with their audience in person. Data from Unscreen showed that live streaming increased by 300% between March and August 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Even though the lockdown is over, there is still a surge in the use of live streams. In fact, live videos are expected to grow by 15% in 2022 and make up 17% of all internet traffic. And in the first quarter of 2022 alone, consumers have watched over 8 billion hours of live streamed content. There is also an increase in viewers live streaming on mobile devices. PR Newswire reports that the average US consumer has an average of 9.5 video streaming apps on their mobile devices. Analysts do not see live streaming slowing down anytime soon as it is expected to reach a revenue of $184.27 billion by 2027. Live streaming for sure will continue to be one of the main video marketing trends in 2022 and in years to come.

‍

4. Video advertising is increasingly popular

Video is becoming the go-to content format for advertisers in 2022. Statista reports that video ad spending in the US alone is expected to increase by $46.5 billion in 2022. In 2021, the number was $40.6 billion.  And it is forecasted that it will reach $63.3 billion by 2025. And this growth is not limited to the US alone. In Europe, video ad spending is expected to reach $23.67 billion in 2022. And with a projected yearly growth of 8.94%, ad spending is predicted to reach $36.32 billion by 2027. And it’s no surprise that more marketers are investing in video advertising. Wyzowl reports that 84% of people are convinced to buy a product or service after watching a brand’s video. Google also says that 55% of shoppers use online video while shopping in a store. What this means is that businesses that want to increase their return on ad spend should make video an integral part of their advertising strategy.

‍

5. Short-form videos are trending

Since the explosive growth of TikTok and Instagram Reels, more creators and marketers are making short-form marketing videos. According to a survey conducted by HubSpot, 38% of marketers who used short-form videos in 2021 plan to invest more in 2022.And this trend is not expected to slow down anytime soon due to its effectiveness. Reports from Vidyard show that 68% of users prefer to watch business videos with a duration of under one minute. Customers will also share short videos twice as much as any other online content. Short videos also convert well. Compared to other social media marketing strategies, short videos have the highest ROI. To be effective at video marketing, especially when it comes to social media, then you should focus on creating short-form videos.

‍

6. AR/VR content are becoming more commonplace

Despite virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) being relatively new technology, it is becoming increasingly popular among companies as their uses and potential become clearer. Statistics from Statista show that the global market size of AR and VR is expected to reach $296.9 billion by 2024. In 2021, the market size was registered as $30.7 billion. This exponential growth shows how popular AR and VR technology will be in the next few years. And even though VR and AR devices are not as popular as other devices like smartphones, their fast growth is a clear sign of their potential. Big tech companies like Meta, Microsoft, and Sony are investing billions of dollars into building AR and VR technology and making it more accessible. Considering how fast this technology is growing, it will make sense to add it to your video marketing strategy where possible. An example of a brand using VR to connect with its audience is American Express.  During the 2015 US Open, American Express offered attendees the opportunity to experience VR first-hand. One of these immersive experiences was a VR-based game that allowed fans to play a virtual tennis match with tennis star Maria Sharapova.

7. Shoppable videos are on the rise

A 2020 survey of North American and European ecommerce decision makers found that 40% of ecommerce companies evaluate their market competition to be very tough. With this level of competition, ecommerce businesses are constantly looking for ways to improve the customer experience. The more seamless the buyer experience, the more likely they will make a purchase. This is the reason why strategies like shoppable videos are on the rise. A shoppable video is an interactive video that allows shoppers to buy products being advertised directly from the video. And this strategy works. Research shows that interactive videos see 10x higher click-through rates than passive videos. Reports from Lemonlight also show that shoppable video can increase purchase intent by 9x and 41% of viewers will add a product to their cart as a result of a shoppable video. You can use shoppable videos on social media platforms, during live streaming, and directly on your ecommerce website.

‍

8. More educational videos and online training

During the pandemic, up to 93% of households used some form of e-learning to educate their kids. Companies did their training online and webinars became more popular. After the pandemic, the trend of online education continues. Reports from Linker estimate that the e-learning market will grow by 10.3 percent; from $250.8 billion in 2020 to $457.8 billion in 2026. This is to be expected as educational videos are watched by 30 percent of internet users and rank as one of the most popular video types on the internet.

‍

Video marketing best practices

Now that we have seen the top video marketing trends, let's see some of the best practices you should follow to ensure that your video marketing strategies are successful.

‍

1. Make your videos watchable without sound

Did you know that a percentage of your audience prefers to watch videos without sound? A poll carried out by Verizon Media and Publicis Media found that 25% of participants view videos with the sound off in private places and 69% view videos with the sound off in public places. Even social media channels like Instagram, auto-play videos silently when users are scrolling through their feed.One way to make your videos watchable without sound is to include captions so that viewers can understand the video without audio. What is the difference between captions and subtitles?Captions are usually intended for people that cannot hear the video while subtitles are for people who do not understand the language. Captions provide a time-to-text track that can act as a replacement for the video audio. It helps the viewer understand the context of the video and usually includes elements like speaker IDs, sound effects, and other non-speech elements.Subtitles on the other hand are video translations. Both captions and subtitles are effective because they make your video accessible to a larger audience; people that prefer to watch videos without audio and those that do not understand the original language the video was made in. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube offer you tools to automatically add captions to videos using speech recognition technology.

‍

2. Grab the viewer’s attention fast

On YouTube alone, over 500 hours of video are uploaded every minute and 720,000 hours daily. What this means is that you are competing with a lot of other creators for the attention of your target audience. Also, due to the rise of short-video platforms like TikTok, the attention span of viewers is rapidly decreasing. According to AdAge, the average attention span of viewers is 8 seconds. So if your video doesn't connect with the viewer within this time frame, you risk losing them. Here are some parts of your video you should optimize to grab your viewers’ attention quickly:The thumbnail: This is the first thing the viewer sees when they come across your video. It should be engaging enough to make them want to click.

• The soundbite: These are the first things your audience hears when they click on the video. The first few sounds from your video should draw the audience in. For example, if you clicked on a video and the first thing you hear is someone saying “And that was the day I almost died”. You will feel inclined to find out what happened on the said day. The point is to make the video compelling from the get-go.  

• The opening shot: This is the viewer's first look at your video. It’s important you make a good first impression. Along with your soundbite, the first few seconds of your video should be creative.

3. Follow the best practices for each social media platform

Each social media platform has specific video practices that work best for it. Here is a quick summary for each of the top channels.

‍

Instagram best video practices

• Instagram advises brands to share original content that shows what they do and highlights their brand’s personality.
• You should also maintain a consistent video theme on your channel. It will make your content easily recognizable by your audience.
• Influencers are very popular on Instagram. Collaborate with them to make the most out of your Instagram video content.
• Most people are using Instagram in portrait or selfie mode. Reels and Stories are also vertically oriented. As much as possible, shoot your Instagram videos in vertical mode.

Facebook best video practices

• On the Facebook blog, viewers are advised not to use text montages, looping videos, or slideshows of images as they reduce the viewer’s video experience.
• The recommended video specs for Facebook videos are 30 frames per second and a minimum bit rate of 720 px resolution.
• For announcements, ads, teasers, and polls, limit the video length to less than one minute and a maximum of 20 seconds for stories.
• Use a 1:1 (square) or 9:16 (vertical) ratio for videos that you want to share on your story. This format offers the best viewing experience.
• Add accurate video tags and titles so your videos can be easily searchable.

‍

LinkedIn best video practices

• LinkedIn’s Video Ad Guide recommends that you include the word video in your promotional videos as it “can vastly increase the click-through rate”. ​​​​
• The best aspect ratio for videos on LinkedIn is 1:2.4 to 2.4:1. Videos should also have frame rates between 10fps to 60 fps.
• Headlines are very important on LinkedIn. Studies from LinkedIn show that headlines are the most influential factor in encouraging people to click on a video.

TikTok best video practices

• Video quality matters on TikTok. Shoot your videos in very high quality. 83.2% of the best-performing videos on TikTok have a video resolution of 720p or higher.
• On TikTok, audio is important. While it’s best practice to expect your viewers to watch your video without sound on other social media channels, on TikTok, 93% of the top-performing videos have audio. This can be as simple as a voiceover or a soundtrack.
• Shorter videos perform better on TikTok. Videos between 21 and 34 seconds on average, see a 1.6% lift in impressions.
• The best aspect ratio for TikTok videos is 9:16 (aka full-screen videos). Your video should show no black space on the screen.
• For ecommerce videos, product placement matters. Ecommerce videos that are shot with a variety of angles and background settings have a 40.6% lift in impressions when compared to videos without any transitions or B-roll.

4. Include a call-to-action (CTA)

Your CTA is the prompt that directs the viewer on what action to take after watching your video. Including a call-to-action in your videos will help improve its conversion rate.A video call to action can be anything from appealing to the viewer to subscribe to directing them to make a purchase. The key thing is that your CTA must be clear. For example, “Buy Now” or “Subscribe Now”. Also, do not have multiple CTAs in one video as this can confuse the viewer. There are three major ways you can use CTAs in your videos:

• Call to action buttons: This might not work for every type of video as it will depend on the platform you are sharing the video to. On platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube that prioritize social selling, you can add a CTA button to your video. The CTA button can be used to direct the viewer to make a purchase, subscribe to a form, or download an app.

• Verbal call to action: In this type of CTA, you verbally encourage the viewer to take an action at the end of the video. This CTA type is effective because you can say longer phrases to try and convince the viewer to take action, unlike CTA buttons where it is one or two words.

• Text call to action: Here you display the CTA with animated text. This CTA type works well when you want to include promo codes or information that the viewer will understand better when reading.

5. Don’t neglect video SEO

Video SEO is simply optimizing your videos so they can rank higher on search engine result pages for relevant keywords. Why is video SEO important?Cisco reports that video will make up 82% of the entire web traffic in 2022. What this means is that as more people create video content and share it on the web, the competition for reach and visibility will increase. And one way you can increase the chances of your video content getting seen by your audience is by optimizing it for search engines.So let's look at some of the ways you can optimize your video for search.

‍

Choose the right video hosting platform

Your goal for creating video content will determine where you will host your video. If your goal is to increase brand awareness and recognition, hosting platforms like YouTube and Vimeo will work well. But if your goal is to increase traffic to your website and drive conversions, these platforms aren't the best option for two reasons. One, when your video gets indexed, the traffic from the search engine is directed to the hosting platform and not your website. Second, there are millions of videos from other publishers on YouTube and your visitors can get lost in this sea of content. If you want the traffic from search engines to be directed to your website, host the video on an external platform and then embed it on your website. When choosing an external video host, select one that will automatically add SEO metadata and uses JSON-LD (they are lightweight and fast). This will increase the chances of your video getting indexed.

‍

Insert a video transcript

Video transcripts are the same thing as captions mentioned earlier in the post. Not only do they allow viewers to watch your video without sound, but it also makes your video more scrapable by search bots. Transcripts are indexable text and they allow your video to rank for more search queries.

‍

Pay attention to your video meta description and title

Similar to when writing a blog post, the meta description and title of your post are ranking factors for your videos. Ensure that you include the keywords that your target audience is searching for in your video title and meta description.

Embed the video you want to rank for first on the web page

Wistia’s video SEO expert Phil Nottingham says this - “Google typically indexes only one video per page. If you are including multiple videos on the page, ensure that video is first”. An extra safeguard to ensure the right video gets indexed is to just have one video per webpage. Also, you should only embed a video on a page with content relevant to that video, or search engines might not bother to crawl the video. The video should also be the focus of the page. Do not make the video hard to locate by embedding it far below the fold. This could significantly reduce the video’s ranking.

‍

Update your video marketing strategy

Marketing trends serve as a guideline to show you the areas where you should concentrate your marketing efforts. In this article, we have seen the top video marketing trends in 2022. More brands are using live videos, creating shorter videos, testing out AR/VR content, and investing in more user-generated video content. So along with the best practices mentioned above, take the moment to update your video marketing strategy.As you create more video content, it's important that you have a solution for managing, customizing, delivering and measuring all of your video assets. With a digital asset management (DAM) tool like Wedia, you can take full advantage of the various advanced video features out there in order to give viewers the opportunity to experience your videos and your brand in the best way possible and ultimately grow your business.Ready to get started with video marketing? Discover all of Wedia’s solutions now.