Meltwater B : 8 Content Marketing Trends You Need to Know For 2022

What will content marketing look like in 2022? Content marketing and content creation as a profession, and a business necessity, has continued to grow in scope over the past few years. The importance of content as a part of the overall marketing strategy shows no signs of slowing down - though how it's used and the best practices are on their own rapid track of shifts and changes.

Read on for the top content marketing trends to keep an eye on in 2022.

Trends in content marketing move fast, with the advent of new technologies, changes to the Google algorithm, new social media platforms, and the always shifting nature of the digital world. Innovation and creative thinking are huge assets to any content marketing approach. There's almost no such thing as too out there when it comes to content marketing ideas - guaranteed if you don't someone else will.

So, with that in mind, keep your skills sharp and stay up on these newest content marketing trends:

1. Repurpose, Refresh, Repurpose

Any content marketer worth their salt knows the value of repurposing as a part of the content strategy. The skill is in creating one piece of content that can then serve multiple different purposes and goals. For example, a blog post can be created for SEO, but then perhaps split up into a short-form video series to post on YouTube or IGTV. This means you're not only serving your content marketing strategy, but your social media goals as well.

In 2022, the possibilities for repurposing content are expected to continue. Look for unique, new, cutting edge ways your content can be repackaged and re-shared, such as through an interactive infographic or an accompanying how-to guide.

Also, take a moment to non only repurpose your content, but refresh old pages. This is usually a fairly quick process for big rewards. You could refresh articles that contain outdated information, or update your keywords on a post that is not longer serving search intent as accurately as it could be.

2. Real Time Engagement

Today's consumers crave authenticity from the companies they follow on social media, or through an email list. Give your brand a personality and engage with your followers by answering questions and sharing UGC. 2022 will also be the year of even more live video as well - use Instagram Lives, Facebook Lives, and LinkedIn Lives to encourage real time interaction.

Another aspect of engagement is in customer service. More than ever consumers have an expectation that they can get their question answered or grievance addressed straight through social - not through traditional channels. Make sure your brand is set up to handle a consumer complaints and questions on social media with templates and copy pre-written for common questions.

Scale your engagement efforts so you never miss a mention, with a social engagement solution that allows you to do everything from one place.

3. Short Form, Long Form, & Ephemeral Video

It's no secret that video is more engaging than static images or posts. This trend will certainly continue in 2022. What's important to pay attention to is the numerous formats now available and take advantage of their popularity in your content marketing. You no longer need to force content into a box that doesn't really work.

For example: don't have enough time to write and produce a multi-shot, 10 minute YouTube video? Start with Instagram Reels or Stories instead. (But if you are ready to produce longer videos, we've got some great YouTube tips to share!).

Ephemeral video content is still going strong (though important to note that both Twitter and LinkedIn scrapped their versions of the "Story" in 2021). So Instagram is the place to be for short-form video.

4. Interactive Content

The walls between where interactivity can and can't live are breaking down. Like video content being more engaging, so too is any kind of visual content that involves animation or movement. Not only is it more fun for the reader, it also keeps them engaged with your content for a longer period of time - rather than bouncing off to another site.

Consider creating interactive guides or reports, with expandable sections or animations to illustrate a point. Quizzes and polls on social media are also extremely popular, and as a bonus, they give you some quick and easy information on your consumers. Interactive infographics as well are a great idea for repurposing content.

5. AI (Artificial Intelligence) & MGC (Machine Generated Content)

Keeping up a steady stream of content has been a struggle and pain point for content managers since online content began. It's a fact that more content means more keywords, means more pages for search engine crawlers to learn what your company is all about, means more search results, means more users clicking into your page.

AI-powered content marketing is a significant trend that will continue in 2022, and well beyond. Use it to improve the personalization of your site content, from recognizing repeat visitors and offering in-app suggestions or driving specific email campaigns based on user behavior and purchase patterns.

MGC (Machine Generated Content) is the way of the future for scaling crawlable content on your site. Before you cringe and break out the pitchforks, hear us out. It's true that MGC is still lagging a bit when it comes to the human voice. But it has grown in leaps and bounds over the past couple of years and is important to keep your eye on. 2022 could be the year where you get ahead of the curve and look into how AI-powered content marketing and MGC can augment, not replace, your content creation machine.

6. AR (Augmented Reality) & VR (Virtual Reality)

While we're on the subject of interactive content, one of the fastest growing content marketing trends is AR - augmented or virtual reality programs that immerse people into artificial 360* worlds, providing new ways of sampling products and purchasing, through the simple use of their phone.

This type of content is bubbling into the mainstream now, and promises to be the next stage of evolution for brand & product marketing. For copy and content writers, explainer copy and clear CTAs will be essential for encouraging users to tap into your AR features. If you're working in VR, this is going to require strong visual & written storytelling skills, and an ability to match the two together seamlessly.

7. Virtual and Hybrid Events

The pandemic created a quick shift from in-person meetings and events to an almost completely virtual world. As businesses scrambled to adapt, many of these shifts were cobbled-together "MVP" versions or short term fixes. In 2021 with the world struggling to bounce back, but still largely remote, virtual & hybrid eventsare still reigning supreme.

2022 will be the year this trend becomes solidified as a new reality, accommodating both personal comfort and hybrid work situations. From a content marketing perspective, virtual events present a new slew of interesting challenges whether you're running a webinar or managing a live social media stream. It will be crucial to keep innovating on learnings gleaned in 2020 and 2021, especially because this space is now more crowded than ever.

8. Expanded Social Universe

Just like the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) is entering its next phase, so too are we entering the next phase of what could be termed the "expanded social media universe". From new features on the old standbys, to the maturity of TikTok as a platform, to the wild west for marketers (think Clubhouse and Discord), new content marketing opportunities on a wider range of social platforms will be a trend to watch in 2022.

What's Not Changing in Content Marketing?

There are some fundamentals in content marketing that have stayed pretty constant since it became such an important part of the digital marketing ecosystem.

1. Backlinks are still key

Google is infamous for changing their algorithm rules on a very regular basis, sometimes without an announcement. It's only once SEOs start noticing anomalous dips or spikes in rankings that the news seems to corroborate the findings. (And of course those frantic emails to your SEO buddies).

Creating backlink worthy content is a key thing to keep in mind when determining your content marketing goals. Use the above new trends in content marketing to inform what this could look like. Is there an older blog post that could be turned into an interactive infographic for example?

2. Mobile first

Content marketing is partly about getting the most eyes on your content. However, arguably more important is keeping those eyes and encouraging a second action like subscribing to your email list or making a purchase. One way to drastically increase the probability of these actions occurring is to optimize your content for "mobile first".

Over half of global web traffic is through a mobile device (54.8%) and that number is expected to grow. By ensuring that your content is optimized for mobile viewing you'll have a way easier time capturing today's consumer.

Achieve greatness in content marketing in 2022 by staying ahead of these trends. Want to learn how Meltwater can help? Fill out the form below to be connected to a representative today.