Top Content Marketing Trends for 2024
In 30 seconds
New year, new content marketing trends. If you're in the content marketing game, you'll know that embracing the latest and greatest trends can help you win over your intended audience - so what's on the menu this year?
High quality content is always in, but the key content marketing trends emerging in 2024 centre on new ways to create engaging content - whether that's short form video or long form content streams.
It's not one-size-fits-all, however. A great content marketing strategy blends original content creation with relevance to create experiences that win over audiences. Take this as your starting point for your content marketing in 2024.
It’s that time of year again, so grab a fresh cup of coffee and peer into the new year with us.
As we step into the digital landscape of 2024, the world of content marketing will continue to grow. With social media platforms' content offerings proliferating, the dominance of user-generated content placing new kinds of influencers on centre stage, and the rise of Chat GPT and AI-generated content, the start of a new year is a perfect time to gather valuable insights, assess the relevant content marketing trends for your brand, and bake them into your content strategy.
So, without further ado, let’s take a look at the content marketing trends you should know for 2024.
Interactive content takes centre stage
The days of passive content consumption are fading. In 2024, interactive content that actively engages users will go from a novelty to the norm.
Social media users are increasingly familiar with interactive content: platforms such as Instagram and TikTok have been introducing fresh forms of interactivity on social media posts for some time now. These interactive elements help to elevate existing video content and relate it to the viewer - which is why we see influencers using them to build their communities.
In 2024, expect to see more brands taking a leaf out of this book. From quizzes and polls to augmented reality experiences, brands will leverage interactive content to captivate audiences, create memorable experiences, and drive higher levels of user participation.
Not only does interactivity help build brand community - which is proven to strengthen brand loyalty - but it helps deliver insights about your core audience. Brands who get this right when they create content will deliver high quality content experiences, while learning key information about how their customers consume media. This means they'll have even more knowledge to level up their content marketing efforts in the future.
AI-driven personalisation levels up
Artificial Intelligence (AI) isn’t going anywhere. In 2024, advanced algorithms will analyse user behaviour, preferences, and interactions to deliver personalised content recommendations.
Why? Because consumers love personalisation. 66% of consumers expect companies to understand their unique needs, while a whopping 74% of customers reportedly feel frustrated when website content isn't personalised. This means that in 2024, brands can't just personalise their offers to appeal to customers: they need to deliver content that's just right for them too.
Naturally, that level of personalisation - especially across multiple formats and marketing channels - means that content production will need to increase drastically. The way to do this while maintaining content quality is to embrace AI.
Far from threatening jobs, AI will help content marketers assess consumer behaviour, create value-driven content across multiple channels, and elevate their overall content marketing performance. Meanwhile, this level of customisation will enhance the customer's user experience and strengthen the bond between brands and their audience.
Purpose-driven content marketing advances
Consumers are increasingly conscious of the values and missions of the brands they support. In 2024 we’ll see brands aligning themselves with social and environmental causes.
Back in 2012, in a Forbes article The Attention War, marketing experts argued that to reach new customers, content marketing needed to be entertaining, interesting and helpful. But in the past few years, a fourth requirement has emerged: a personal connection created through shared values. In fact, a recent survey found that over 84% of global consumers say they are more inclined to buy from a brand whose values align with their own.
Naturally, as the new year brings a renewed focus on goals, you can expect to see plenty of brands placing their values in their January social media content. But this is one trend that won't fade with everyone's New Year Resolutions. Expect to see content marketing that is more integrated with the brand's purpose, and therefore equally integral to the content stategy - and the brand's overall activities - throughout the year.
A great example of a brand already getting this right is Patagonia, who pledged to donate all profits to helping fight climate change they’ve gone from strength to strength. This was widely shared by the brand and its employees across its various marketing channels, from thought leadership to short-form videos.
In 2024, authenticity will be key, and consumers will gravitate towards brands that not only provide quality products or services but also contribute positively to society. To grab attention, talk about something meaningful. Ensure your cause is relevant to your brand's purpose, and build this into your brand guidelines.
4. Micro-influencers gain traction
Okay so, influencer marketing isn't exactly a new concept, but in 2024, the spotlight will be on micro-influencers. With the social media content creation world so saturated, using micro-influencers means you're reaching the right target audience.
Many marketers include influencer marketing in their content strategy, but might overlook micro-influencers for the top dogs. While high reach on the surface seems positive (who doesn't love big audiences?), if you aren't attracting your target audience - or your audience isn't interested - then all your hard work could bring you nada.
Over 61% of consumers trust influencer endorsements, especially when they come from micro-influencers with smaller, more engaged audiences. Using micro-influencers in your marketing strategy helps your tap into a highly relevant audience who will benefit from seeing your brand (just as long as you find the right influencer). This explains why micro influencers achieve around 60% higher engagement rates: their audiences are far more interested in what they have to say.
Smaller influencers may be slightly fussier with what they're promoting, especially if they're somewhat niche. This can be a good thing though, as you can work inspire them to create content that really resonates with your brand. If you're well aligned, their audience will love you, too.
Think of their content creation as an extension of your brand's key messaging and you're on the right track for content marketing success.
5. Content marketing strategy goes truly cross-platform
This year will be the year of cross-platform harmony. Successful content marketing strategies will seamlessly integrate across various platforms, and brands will weave narratives that span social media, blogs, podcasts, and more. The content marketing world will become more connected than ever.
This is especially true for content marketing designed for findability. Google may be king of the search engines, but it now has competition from TikTok - as Gen Z are doing their "googling" there instead. short form video content is appearing prominently in search results across the social media company and Google, meaning content marketing teams are thinking seriously about conflating their SEO efforts with video content creation.
When creating content, think of the full customer journey across all platforms. Whether it's written content or short form video, create content that tells a cohesive story. You want to entice your audience to follow your journey.
We know authenticity sells, so if you're creating content that consistently shows who you are, your audience have more reason to stay loyal to you. If you're struggling to generate content, a trick is to look at your existing content and see how you can marry it together with anything new. Think about your blog post: can you link to your social channels? Your video that tells the right story? A web page to increase website traffic? This all helps with the customer journey and your engagement.
Gone are the days of mediocre content, the people want consistency.
The right content marketing trends in 2024
So that’s it, everything you should know about the best content marketing trends to look out for in 2024. But just cracking on with content production without truly considering consumer behavior, and how each marketing channel interconnects won't get you anywhere: water-tight content strategies are more important than ever.
If you think you need help putting these trends into practice by creating fame or findability-driven content,contact us now. After all, gleaming content marketing strategies are our bread and butter.