Originally published November 12, 2021 , updated on January 17, 2023

You need to stay ahead of the trends to stay on top in your field. This is not only true for your field of business but content marketing too. Any seasoned content marketing agency will be privy to new content trends as they happen. But especially well-versed companies may even be able to predict trends before they happen.

Every year, how people read, consume, and engage with content changes. These changes can sometimes be subtle. Other times, they can be the result of massive detours in the way we live our lives, like the hit of a global pandemic. A top content marketing trend for this past year, for example, is that people were spending more time watching short videos than ever before. 

This year saw a sizable increase in users for platforms such as TikTok. This, in turn, saw similar products being developed by tech giants such as Instagram and YouTube. Content marketers who jumped on this trend early enough will already be well established. It’s not too late for this trend to be harnessed by people who are late to the party, but it will be more difficult to establish yourself because of the popularity it gained. 

But don’t fret. There are several content marketing trends for the coming year that will help to enhance your business. 

Here are seven content marketing trends that we’ve predicted for 2022. 

Visual Storytelling Will Continue to Soar

If you are still denying the power of video, then you are missing out on a huge market. To put it into perspective, over 500 million people watch Facebook videos every day, according to TechJury.net. According to YouTube, more than 1 billion hours are spent watching YouTube in a day – every single day. 

We already mentioned the popularity of TikTok above. Generation Z and younger millennials dominate the TikTok platform. Digital content marketers would be making a big mistake to ignore it. The spending power of these generations will continue to get stronger.

To reach Gen Z and millennials, you need to meet them where they are at. That is on video and social media platforms. Create content marketing plans that include visual and video storytelling. These hold the attention of your audience for longer periods and they are far more engaging and entertaining. 

The Rise of AR and VR

While the use of augmented reality and virtual reality has been on the rise for quite some time, the world practically shutting down gave it the shove it needed to shoot up like bamboo. 

Before everyone was forced to work from home, actual reality was the only reality. You could create interactive content marketing experiences at in-person events and activations. When COVID-19 forced everyone into their homes for an indefinite period, businesses and whoever they used as their digital content marketing agency needed to find new ways to engage with customers. AR and VR got their moment in the spotlight, and this was only the beginning. 

Brands across the world have now created augmented reality and virtual reality experiences as part of their content marketing strategies. Drew Barrymore’s talk show is an excellent example of this. Through the use of technology, Drew and her crew were able to make it look as though she and her guests were in the same room opposite one another. They were, in fact, in separate parts of the country. 

This is a trend that is going to stick around for some time. 

The Popularity of Podcasts

Podcasts are by no means a new phenomenon. They have been around for some time. But it’s only in recent years that they have been regarded as a strong content marketing platform for businesses. 

Not only are businesses able to create their own podcasts as part of their content plans, but they can be guests on suitable podcasts too. It is a medium that’s set to stick around for some time. 

More Emphasis on Content Relevance 

Moving away from new-age content marketing techniques, let’s talk about an upcoming trend in SEO that you need to know about. Search engines are going to place a lot more emphasis on the relevance of your content. 

You and your content marketing agency might have written a great story with all your requested keywords. But if that content doesn’t seem relevant to the reader, search engines will penalise you. 

As the algorithms get smarter, they will place more emphasis on how much your content matches the search terms when it comes to relevance. Having irrelevant content will not only lose the trust of the search engines but also your audience. 

A Focus on Specialised Content 

There is a lot of content out there. And it can often be difficult to cut through the noise of what everyone is doing. This is why specialised content is going to become more and more important. 

Ebooks and white papers are perfect examples of this. These types of pieces lend themselves well to specialised content. You can use these forms of content to speak at length about something that you are knowledgeable about. You can tackle topics that others in your industry haven’t spoken about yet. 

Specialised content will go a long way in establishing you as a thought leader in your industry. And it also does well for SEO. 

Greater Use of FAQs 

“Hey, Siri…” 

 A lot of what is asked over voice search are things that can be found in the FAQs of many businesses. The rise of voice search has increased the importance of having your frequently asked questions as part of your content marketing pieces.

Build out story and content ideas based on what your FAQs are to get featured in more voice search answers. 

More Outsourcing of Content Marketing Tasks

With the increase in content needs, a big trend for the year 2022 is making use of outside services for writing and content creation. It’s becoming more difficult for businesses to keep these tasks in-house as the workloads pile up. 

Using an outside content marketing agency or a content writing company takes this off the plate of the internal team and leaves it in the hands of professionals. It also means that you can create more content, at a quicker rate. An important consideration if you wish to stay ahead of your competitors. 

Be sure to stay clued up on these trends and others in the months to come. It is sure to enhance your business.

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