Every year for the past 3 years I've heard from marketers, "This is the year for video!" And, well...they've been right. And right, again. And again. And well, you get the idea. Owning a video production company has been incredibly rewarding, but - this year I could feel a shift in what clients were asking for. Based on the asks, some emerging research, and well...plain old gut instinct, here are the 5 video trends you should be on the lookout for, in 2018!
1. Live video becomes not just something to dabble in – but crucial.
Both, as a way to make good content, in a cheap way – and repurpose it., and as a way to continue the conversation with consumers. Places most popular to repurpose to will be: youtube, instagram, blogs, emails, and twitter. Trendwatch: The mevo camera has stepped into the space, which – I’m using this week, and will review next week. But, it looks like it’s gonna be a game changer. See amazon ad below (affiliate link):
2. Facebook Watch becomes a big player!
Get ready for a spot to put long form talk show style videos, on the most popular social platform. Does your brand have something that should be a TV show? Make it. Do it. Especially with younger folks consuming 47% less television – evergreen content is here to stay, so why not be a player? Just like nobody could imagine original movies coming out of a streaming service years ago...and it happened, evergreen content/appointment "TV" will become a thing for live video. Much like how blogtv was about 10 years ago, but...this time it's here to stay!
3. Re-allocation of budget to “smarter” video.
We saw a lot of brands jump in feet first with video in 2017 – but, it seemed like a lot of folks just put TV ads, on social – which, is not what social is for. Look for internal marketing teams to be tapped, or even combine forces WITH production agencies to keep things going out consistently and smarter. This could mean you see more retainers, consultants in house to help with efficiencies, or on site trainings – I’m seeing a lot of demand for all 3.
4. Internal video communication.
Sick of the boring newsletters from your CEO? With people making the corporate jump and folks in fortune 500 looking to make company culture more appealing for great workers, folks in the C suite will be getting training on how to be more approachable on camera, especially in bigger organizations, in order to bond with employees and to help them feel heard/valued. It's time to make the big cheese in the corner office more approachable, and the best way to do that is NOT by sending a stuffy newsletter.
5. Immersive, really personal experience.
Look for brands to section off into individualized facebook groups or email lists to target more effectively with video. Also, with youtube – you’ll see more companies doing “choose your own adventure” type of storytelling.
BONUS:
Lastly, 360 video is something to start brainstorming for – but I'm not seeing most companies being able to invest in this quite yet. Be smart about this. Consumer cameras aren’t great yet, and since 85% of big corps have INTERNAL video teams - I just don't think it's realistic at this time....IF you rely on an internal team, because it's easy to become very overwhelmed, and they'll be pumping out the above mentioned items. But, as technology develops and comes down in price, this will be more and more relevant for internal teams, for sure! Areas I see using this more and more will be: real estate, higher ed, and concert/event spaces. For those looking for more info about 360 video and VR, I recommend talking to my buddy Chuck Olsen over at Visual
*The above link to the mevo camera is an amazon affiliate link. If you're thinking about buying the product anyway, feel free to use my link at no additional cost to you. If not, that's cool too!