It’s hard to ignore the importance of good, relevant content as a SEO factor that helps your website to rank highly. To keep on top of search results pages, businesses must create fresh content that matches what audience expect right now. To do this, businesses must be aware of the latest content marketing trends. Check out the top trends below that your website needs to implement in its content marketing strategy, to maximise the impact your it has on your website’s rankings.
1. It’s About Quantity and Quality Content
The quantity of words, images and videos in your content remains an important ranking factor.
Creating content that avoids being too thin is favoured by Google’s algorithms, so does quality content that optimises the user’s experience. This is why you need to ensure that your website includes sufficient but also relevant, authentic information that informs the user and grabs their attention.
Use facts, statistics and real-life examples to make sure your content stands out and enhances the user experience. Details help ensure your content ranks better and is seen by the right audience. So, it’s clear to see that quality and quantity content as a trend is here to stay.
2. Shorter Video Content Enhances Engagement
We live in a modern society, where a wealth of information is available to people instantly.
It’s therefore probably not completely surprising that short-form content, which includes videos less than two minutes in length, is the most effective when it comes to sustaining audience interaction.
While this was also the case regardless of which industry or country the content related to, static images were not far behind short-form videos in terms of successfully engaging their audience.
An emphasis should be placed on the influence that content which is easily shared via social media channels can have on the target audience. Focusing on visual content formats is therefore one way to maximise potential engagement with your brand or product.
3. Authentic Content is Key
According to a Stackla survey, 2019 saw 90% of consumers state that authenticity was something they looked for in brands they associate with and would ultimately invest in.
The lack of agreement was apparent, however, when far more brands thought they had achieved authentic content compared to the views of their consumers.
Authentic content is a trend that comes with rewards, with 90% of consumers agreeing that they would reward authenticity, either in the form of brand recommendations or personal loyalty towards the brand.
4. Influencer Marketing Has an Impact
With social network now, it is perhaps hard to argue with the fact that influencers are associated with these channels.
However, the view that influencers on channels like Instagram, Facebook and YouTube have less influence now than they did before seems to buck the trend. With influencers now appearing on Snapchat too, it seems this is a trend that companies can capitalise upon.
Whether you wish to engage with influencers or have missed this trend entirely, it is worth noting that they gained their name for a reason. Their content is, at the very least entertaining for those who follow them, and therefore could help engage audiences you haven’t yet reached.
5. Product-Focused Content Exceeds Expectations
Product-focused content, which explains the products the brand offers to the user, often outperformed the types of content companies are more inclined to focus on.
Whilst it varied according to the brand’s industry, PR and content marketing teams usually focus least on this type of content. Decision-based content presented by a subject matter expert, collectively known as thought leadership pieces, were still favoured by industries such as healthcare and finance. However, e-commerce retailers and manufacturers found that content focusing on their product offering was most effective at engaging their target audience.
The trend therefore suggests that retail and manufacturing brands in particular need to reevaluate their content strategy, to determine if they are meeting the needs of the majority of their consumers.
No matter the industry you’re in, Ricemedia’s dedicated SEO and PPC specialists have worked with a range of clients, in the UK and abroad, to improve their digital presence. Contact us today to find out how we can help you optimise your content strategy.
