A Look at 2024's Top Content Marketing Trends
It seems as though, every time we get our heads wrapped around a new shift in the content landscape, the whole thing changes yet again. After all, nobody said being a content marketer would be easy, right? Between adjusting strategies to account for artificial intelligence to rethinking our general approach to social media, there’s always a new task or problem to solve. Staying current with the latest content trends can help you streamline your work and develop smarter approaches to your marketing.
Now that the year is well underway, it’s a better time than ever to look at the up-and-coming content trends that are influencing the industry. From the greater inclusion of AI in everyday content practices, to a need for more human-centric and social-forward creativity, here’s a look at Scribe & Script’s top content trends of 2024.
Trend #1: It’s Time to Return to Basics
Is it possible to have content that’s too SEO-friendly? Overly marketed? Unnatural? The answer is: Absolutely. Over the past few years, the increased prevalence of visible on-page SEO has made the search landscape more competitive than ever. It’s also pushed our collective content toward the uncanny valley, where marketers write nearly identical content in the hopes of hitting keywords or phrases to boost rankings.
It doesn’t read well and it can turn off the audience. One of the biggest content trends this year has in store is a return to basics. The basics being quality, human-oriented writing that has a clear voice and point of view. The difficulty with many AI tools and SEO efforts is that they eschew quality for speed, convenience, and marketing buzzwords.
Consumers are more media-savvy than ever. Many don’t want to feel like they’re being aggressively marketed to or sold to. As a result, writing natural, personable content can help you stand out in a sea of “SEO-friendly” articles.
Trend #2: Marketers Will Better Leverage AI for Human-Centric Content
AI has become a powerful tool in the content marketer's toolkit, but it's important to remember that it's just a tool. It's not a replacement for human creativity and judgment. In fact, AI can be used to create more human-focused content that resonates with audiences on a deeper level.
Use AI to understand your audience. AI can be used to analyze data about your audience, such as their demographics, interests, and behavior. By streamlining data collection, you can target your content to better meet your audience’s needs.
Use AI to generate ideas. AI can also be used to generate ideas for new content. This can be helpful when you're feeling stuck or uninspired. AI can also be used to identify trends and patterns in your data, which can help you to develop new content strategies.
Use AI to create more engaging content. AI can create more engaging content by adding interactivity, personalization, and multimedia elements. Some platforms can even recommend content, images, or videos based on AI algorithms.
By using AI in these ways, content marketers can create more human-focused content that resonates with audiences on a deeper level. This shift in strategy can lead to more site traffic, audience engagement, and even conversions.
Of course, it's important to use AI responsibly. If you’re using AI, let your audience know. Also, rigorously fact-check any AI-created content for inaccuracies, falsehoods, or harmful language.
Trend #3: Search Continues to Move Toward Social Media
Despite the current discussions around a possible TikTok ban, it’s impossible to overstate the platform’s impact on modern search. In fact, younger searchers are trending further and further away from the SERPs and heading to their preferred social media platforms to pose queries and get answers.
Many younger searchers view TikTok and Reddit as more reliable ways to get information that isn’t clearly SEO-stuffed to reach the first page. Taking advantage of social media-based search activities can give your brand the leverage it needs to reach a new audience or refine your existing messaging.
Trend #4: AI Will Influence Visual Content, Including Video
AI is rapidly changing the landscape of visual content and video. From creating realistic images and videos to automating the editing process, AI has a significant impact on how we create and consume visual content.
In addition to creating and editing visual content, AI is also being used to analyze and understand it. AI-powered tools can now be used to track the performance of visual content, identify trends, and even predict what content will be popular in the future.
AI is having a major impact on visual content and video, and this impact is only going to grow in the years to come. Here are some of the ways that AI is expected to impact visual content and video in the future:
AI-generated content will become more prevalent. AI-generated images, videos, and other visual content will become increasingly common as AI technology continues to improve. This will make it easier for businesses and individuals to create high-quality visual content without the need for expensive production costs.
AI will be used to create more personalized experiences. AI can be used to create personalized visual experiences for each individual viewer. This could include things like recommending videos based on a viewer's browsing history.
AI will be used to create more immersive experiences. Using artificial intelligence, visual martketers can craft more immersive experiences that blend with existing technology such as virtual reality or augmented reality.
AI is only going to continue to saturate visual content markets in the years to come. It’s necessary to use digital replication and creation tools responsibly and in a way that doesn’t mislead the consumer.
Scribe & Script can help you stay ahead of the content curve.
Ready to reshape your content strategy and get ahead of the curve? We’re here to help. Scribe & Script stays ahead of the newest developments in content, marketing, and SEO so your brand is always at the cutting edge. Reach out to us today if you’re ready to learn more!