Content marketing is an ever-evolving activity that encompasses many different areas, depending on the brand’s specifics. Still, one thing is certain — embracing change is part of the job description. Fortunately, some good old classics often remain in the background of innovative strategies for engaging the audiences. Below, we will take a look at the top content marketing trends 2024 has in store and see how they relate to the tactics that have already proven efficient. 

Value-Driven Content Becomes Paramount 

This trend is clearly not a new development, but in 2024, value-driven, people-oriented content will be the key to engaging audiences across different channels. And yes, these tactics will apply to every channel, from blog and social media posts to email marketing and SEO landing pages. One of Google’s latest algorithm updates explicitly emphasizes the need to create ‘helpful, reliable, people-first content,’ which is exactly what marketers should strive to do. 

So, in 2024, the primary role of a content strategist is to carefully analyze long-term marketing goals and adjust those to the target audience’s needs. Traditionally, the focus should remain on content quality, not its quantity. Still, it is also important to review available marketing channels, eliminating the old ones or adding new ones when necessary. And that leads us to the next trend marketers can no longer afford to overlook. 

Hyper-Segmentation Is Key to Audience Engagement 

The best way to create engaging people-centric content that appeals to your audience is to hyper-segment this audience into small, very specific groups. In 2024, a one-size-fits-all marketing approach will not work — and marketers who want to truly embrace the change will need to think beyond location, age, and occupation as primary segmenting criteria. 

E-commerce brands, for example, are strongly encouraged to closely monitor their customers’ browsing and shopping habits. Today, generative AI is advanced enough to analyze such chaotic patterns and offer customers highly personalized suggestions based on their behavior. 

Another idea for segmenting your audience is to use social listening and see which subjects drive the most engagement from your followers and what content types appeal the most to each particular segment. That sounds like a lot of work (and it is), but the rewards will be worth it. 

AI Can Boost Productivity when Used Smartly 

Generative AI is already transforming the marketing industry, and content creation is only part of this change. AI, as it is today, has plenty of limitations, but it already acts as a major productivity booster. We already mentioned that generative AI can be very useful in segmenting the audience and offering leads personalized suggestions that have higher chances of conversion.

AI can also help create all sorts of content when used smartly. Here, the more specific you get with the prompt question, the better the answer will be. On the other hand, AI cannot work without experienced human editing because even the most advanced AI algorithms can only process already available information — so it’s no wonder that the first AI-generated posts were such a major flop.

However, AI can speed up the generation of ideas and, in experienced hands, can become a major productivity booster. It will not (not yet, at least) replace the need for unique human research—something that gives content a unique angle that engages the audience and conveys authority. Still, AI can help content creators optimize their efforts if they are ready to add their unique research and perspective to AI-generated prompts. 

Video Content Keeps Gaining Prominence 

TikTok has already proven that videos appeal to GenZ demographics, which caused a massive boom in short video creation. But short videos are not the only content form that drives results. Even on TikTok, popular video length gets longer and longer. YouTube, in turn, is also experiencing a rise in long-form content popularity — educational videos, an hour or more long, are as popular among Zoomers as TikTok shorts. 

Here, the focus is, once again, on value-driven content. Creating an hour-long informative video that keeps viewers glued to the screen is not an easy task — but expert interviews or any other form of content that prioritizes ‘knowledge and advice’ can generate thousands of views.

Optimization for SGE Drives Great Results 

Google’s search generative experience, SGE, is another trend marketers should prepare for. SGE is backed up by AI that provides users with a quick overview of the search topics. In practice, this would mean less actions for the users because they will be able to see quick AI suggestions instead of clicking through individual pages independently.

For businesses, on the other hand, optimizing for SGE will require some extra effort — more specifically, brands will have to optimize for long-tail keywords using any analytics tools of their choosing. 

Right now, Google is still working on SGE-powered searches, but brands should anticipate a major change soon enough. On mobile, the practice is already in full swing, and brands embracing this change are reaping generous rewards. 

Social Search Becomes Ever More Common 

While Google is working on SGE, many users, particularly GenZ, are shifting their search focus to social media. Over half of GenZ users have already reported using TikTok as the main search engine, and this trend is likely to continue.  As social networks are introducing entire marketplaces users can easily navigate, brands will need to pay closer attention to selling directly on social media.

Even though it’s highly unlikely that social search will replace Google any time soon, younger generations of mobile natives already feel more comfortable shopping through social media. But of course, TikTok is not the only platform worth paying attention to — it all depends on the brand specifics and target audience. 

UGC Promotes Brands by Empowering Audiences

User-generated content has been on the rise for a while now, and the power of UGC keeps growing both in the B2C and B2B segments. In B2C, brands that share reviews and great customer experiences inspire more trust from their followers — and not just among GenZ and late millennials. In the B2B niche, companies that encourage their staff to speak about their work experience enjoy more loyalty from their current employees and higher interest from potential job candidates. 

For instance, most Asana employees have active profiles on multiple social media sites — and they willingly share info about their daily routines, thus building up a highly positive brand image. This is a great example of how employees can turn into the best brand ambassadors — and a positive company image can boost sales and engage more leads in the long run. 

Brand Ambassadors  & Influencers Play Their Part

Finally, one should not forget the rising power of influencer marketing, which is not going to decline any time soon. UGC is a great way to promote a positive brand image, and brands should not disregard influencers who can help amplify this message. Similar to customer and employee updates, influencer content can result in relatable posts and mass sharing — that is, the ultimate goal of content marketing. 

These are some of the most certain trends content marketers will need to prepare for this year. Sure, the industry is not static, so we may have to face new developments before the year is over. But no matter how these trends may change, one thing is certain — marketers can never go wrong with prioritizing the quality of their content and the needs of their hyper-segmented audience.