Video trends in 2018

As marketers find more innovative ways to engage audiences, video continues to be a significant part of the strategic conversation. Build a relationship with your customers and stakeholders, tell your brand story, or highlight your USP in a crowded marketplace – videos can do wonders for your business!

Did you know that over 50% of marketers around the world cite video as the type of content with the best ROI? And this number is increasing thanks to the effectiveness of videos and their ability to capture attention.

With increasing internet bandwidths, affordable video technologies available, and secure delivery platforms, 2018 promises to be a fun-filled year for video!

Let’s look at some video trends that are sure to catch up in the coming months:

The age of live video

Live video is here to stay thanks to better internet connectivity, increased mobile phone penetration, and easy-to-use tools and apps. Live videos can help businesses get closer to their target audience. Live video can make an event truly global without additional distribution costs. Live videos can also help you monetize. Statistics show that about 45% of live video audiences are ready to pay for live, exclusive, and on-demand video if they are properly interested.

Stream, host, analyze and stream more

It’s not so much about choosing the cheapest or most popular live video streaming platform, but rather the one with the most attributes that will benefit your business. The most effective and convenient platforms will be all-inclusive, allowing you to stream, host, embed, monetize, search, and analyze video content, while giving you full control over your content. With video streaming apps and online platforms vying to grab your attention, you’re in for an exciting time!

Virtual reality may soon become reality

Virtual Reality is still unexplored territory. It’s more fun than business! With an affordable headset that gives you 360-degree access to a 3D virtual world, the coming year promises to be exciting for marketers brave enough to use these technologies to create immersive and interactive customer interfaces. We pin our hopes on great marketing strategies in 2018 designed around virtual reality.

Holograms for marketing? yes, it’s happening

We were fascinated by holograms when the technology came into use. Artists readily adopted it as an alternative medium to canvas. But it has yet to be fully utilized as an effective means of communication, particularly given the daunting technology at play here. However, holographic videos provide immense reach for telepresence in multiple locations through realistic 3D images of speakers and products. Will 2018 bring us communication strategies woven around holographic images and videos? Cross our fingers!

Videomapping is changing the customer experience

A great tool for experiential marketing: The video mapping craze promises an upward trend in the coming years. The technology is affordable and provides scope for companies to reach a broader target audience at a fairly low price. Using available flat surfaces like buildings or monuments, 3D projections can convey the right message quite impressively. It’s larger than life projections, make sure people don’t miss your messages.

Next level of personalization with videos

A great way to open up inboxes and make a real impact is to personalize videos for your target audience. With Facebook leading the way, personalized videos are something your audience might expect you to deliver as well. From recorded messages for your customers to explainer videos with specific services and even simpler “birthday wishes” – make sure your communication strategies aren’t aimed at a faceless crowd! Thanks to machine learning, customization and built-in search are now pretty basic for your videos.

Users/customers are becoming content publishers

The responsibility of creating videos is rapidly shifting from the producers to the users. Videos are easier than ever to create thanks to rapidly advancing mobile technologies. Therefore, brands turn to their audiences to share their products and services instead of crafting their own communication. As attention spans drop dramatically, user-generated content is a great way to keep audiences engaged in marketing campaigns. The focus is on building experiences and connections. From being a passive recipient of your messages, make your audience the active creators of value for your brand.

Video is on its way to rule digital marketing

More consumers and customers are engaging with video today than ever before. Video marketing is a powerful strategy for promoting, branding, and growing your business online. Videos are useful for building engagement and impacting results like clicks, shares, lead generation, and sales. 55% of online traffic watches videos every day.