List of the top content marketing trends for 2023.
Content marketing is the game of strategizing the creation and distribution of sales-generating content that is targeted at addressing a very specific set of target audience.
With every year, the requirements for content updates in accordance with the search engine algorithms and market relevance bring a new gig to all content marketers.
High-yielding content is now a byproduct of an intelligent content strategy comprising all the latest trends and up-to-date understanding of the target audience as well as their preferences.
From how rapidly the digital landscape is evolving, the year 2023 will be all about advancing internet, technology, artificial intelligence, automation, cybersecurity, and global connectivity. As the world becomes one, competition grows, as does the need to provide tangible value to your customers.
That’s exactly why even your content marketing strategy needs an upgrade.
In this article, we cover the content marketing trends you need to look out for in 2023.
Content marketing trends for 2023
1. Strategic SEO
Majority of the people will think that with SEO, traffic is brought on by optimizing tools and keywords only. However, content marketers understand that SEO is a devotional process.
Strategic SEO in content marketing is neither a new trend nor has it ever been outdated. As long as there are search engines, developing an SEO plan will remain a prerequisite for content marketing.
Although there are more than 200 ranking variables for content to rank, the fundamental goal is to match search intent with credible information (backlinks). Google’s most recent update prioritized people-first content that gives significant value compared to other content.
Isn’t Google striving to encourage us to speak only if it improves the silence?
For 2023, making an SEO framework around content that speaks volumes about your services and targets problems in your niche will provide you with the best ROI in the age of democratization of consumption. Written, graphic and all other required content will be simple to curate once your SEO plan is complete.
2. Long-form Content
Time provides space to build trust and credibility. If long-form content could be a book, this line could be enough for the preface.
In a world full of people with haste, turns out they are not so hasty while making a purchase decision. People respond positively to authoritative content and long-form content is best for building authority for your services.
Besides the technical fact of long-form content being able to hold more space for information, keywords, and backlinks, it also reflects credibility and expertise. Longer blogs attract 40% more dwell time making sure people get enough time and opportunity to learn about your services and statistics.
Even with the diminishing attention span, the relevance of long-form content is untouched and hence is a must for your 2023 content marketing strategy.
3. Power of Visual Content
Did you know that 65% of people are visual learners? And with the hyperactive presence of social media and digital upgradation, visual content is receiving comparatively more love and attention. Visual content provokes an emotional response from the viewers and instills a better comprehension that increases the retention rate by 42%.
Social media with images also drive higher engagement as visuals trigger reactions. Images, typography, videos, charts, graphs, logos, and other visual content are examples of the variety. And, for your 2023 content marketing strategy, you will have an upper hand in click-through rate as well as in conversion if you manage to include images and videos in your blogs and websites.
4. Short videos are a game changer
As we discussed, the human brain has an established affinity for images and videos over text. Visuals strike our attention faster and enable us to comprehend concepts better. Creators are capitalizing on this privilege by being quick, direct, and innovative with their message in short videos.
The emerging trend shows that 51% of marketers are planning to increase their investment in short video content marketing. There is a reason for it. A HubSpot report shows that short videos generate the highest ROI compared to other content formats.
Short attention spans are often a sore area for marketers, and short videos are quick to target this attention span by targeting people’s fragmented timelines. Due to its features that tick all the right boxes, short videos attract more traffic with a higher retention rate making them one of the most shareable content. How could SEO not love short videos?
The popularity of short videos is a parasite, it grows as social media users grow. And since social media is in an ever-growing phase, short videos are certain to have a stronger game.
With 4.9 billion people scrolling their social media pages, no content marketer wants to miss out on laying a strong short video strategy for 2023.
5. Value-driven content
No one turns to search engines to search for an uncommon and complex term for reading repetitious and unhelpful content. Since blogging and SEO aren’t going anywhere, giving precise answers to search queries adds value and helps blogging and SEO success.
People will become accustomed to superior consumer experiences as the internet of things progresses. Time thus becomes the most valuable resource for people.
You must approach each piece of content as your only opportunity to impress your intended audience. Therefore, if your content is not addressing customers’ interests and failing to improve their experience in 2023, there is a greater likelihood that you have ruined any opportunity you had of hosting them in the future.
6. Blog Repurposing
Is the game of content marketing solely about creating and distributing new content? Our excitement and eagerness might insert some conviction to work on the new write-up, but so often, the weight of churning out fresh content every time rests heavily on the content team.
Can we expect a content head to create unique and engaging content for the website and all social media platforms? Repurposing content allows us to do this.
The main idea behind repurposing the content is to retarget and reach new audiences through easily digestible segments of old content to reestablish authority. Repurposing boosts organic visibility and traffic by enabling the creator to consistently publish optimized content.
Blog repurposing is the best strategy to include in your content marketing process as many experts and authoritative creators approve of this trend. Distilling a bunch of bite-sized pieces from long-written blogs and lengthy videos will never leave you in a state of banality.
For your 2023 content marketing strategy, plan your new content and repurpose your old for keeping intact with the demanding season.
7. Data Privacy
Personalization and customization happen due to data gathering but customers nowadays are skeptical about their data collection. With the controversial and wildly popular issue of data privacy between large corporations and governments of substantial nations, the air has brushed us all.
Consumers are taking a dim view of data gathering due to the vulnerability of fraud, privacy invasion, and intrusive marketing pitches. The ethical collection of data is now appealing to the masses.
Adhering to the established regulations and standards, as well as ethical data collection and informing customers about it, will keep you ahead of the curve in content marketing in 2023.
The increasing focus on privacy, and the potential of cookie-free advertising in the future, are all elements that will have a significant impact on the responsibilities of advertisers and marketers in the coming time. Data portability, Artificial Intelligence, Data Localization, and other domains are growing trends and topics for enhancing data privacy and protection.
8. Virtual Reality
Future of digital transformation lies in virtual reality. The possibility of 6G is emphasizing the creation of a highly detailed VR world. People are eager to participate in virtual world activities such as dining, training, entertainment, learning, and so on.
By providing 360-degree stimulation, VR may greatly simplify manuals and tutorials. Through virtual access, customers will be able to understand your services with more convenience and convection.
Rich storytelling will lead to better levels of consumer engagement and experience, and many firms have already embraced the VR trend in content marketing. Incorporating VR technology into your content plan can deliver a more engaged, dynamic, and personalized customer experience.
9. Interactive content
A one-sided dialogue becomes stale with time, and the entire purpose of interactive content is to support this notion. The primary goal of interactive content is to elicit active involvement and response from the intended audience.
Because of its attention-grabbing capacity, interactive content not only distinguishes your brand from the competition but also generates significantly more leads and conversions.
In order to improve customer experience, a customer-centric strategy has always been crucial. Interactive content helps you get to know your target audience better through their active engagement.
When your audiences engage in interactive content (such as quizzes, polls, games, and webinars), they are more likely to retain your messages, making interactive content ideal for the awareness stage of the sales funnel.
10. Voice Search
Siri and Alexa are quickly becoming everyone’s go-to people these days. According to research, 71% of consumers prefer voice search over typing due to the convenience, and it is especially popular among smartphone users.
Digital assistance is becoming more popular as a result of increased digitalization, and if your content is not voice search optimized, you risk losing up to 20% of global consumers.
Voice search is classified as conversational content and is an effective option when multitasking. Voice-based searches are more popular for local searches, and voice-based chatbots are becoming more popular as they help with faster responses.
Voice searches are not specific in nature, hence the 2023 content needs to include long-tail keywords and questions that can directly route searches to your provided information.
11. Audio content
Audio content is hitting the right notes with people due to the ease of learning it provides with the effort similar to listening to music. Audio content is also emerging as a form of content with no-nonsense conversations that is generating greater audience engagement.
Podcasts, audiobooks, and audio advertisements are all making inroads into the marketing world and audio content works smoothly for social media optimization. Audio content has been steadily increasing in popularity in recent years, and it is quickly becoming the most important option to include in your content marketing strategy.
12. International Content
The introduction of high-speed internet created a demand for multinational content. The ease with which cross-border commerce is possible suggests the need for market expansion and international content targeting.
In this digital age, domestic inventions can have a significant impact on the international market, and foreign inventions are likely to have the same impact on the domestic market.
For 2023, the content marketing strategy should scrutinize such opportunities and tap into markets with international content to generate more revenue. Personalization and localization are effective strategies for reaching out to international consumers with enhanced experiences.
13. Personalized & Targeted Content
In today’s world of global competition, personalization is the key to creating long-term customer relationships. Personalization makes the experience more tailored and builds familiarity and loyalty between a business and its clients, which encourages repeat sales. 71% of consumers want companies to personalize their interactions.
Due to fierce business competition and the abundance of options for consumers, personalization will always be beneficial and relevant. According to studies, using personalization techniques increases income by 40% for businesses.
Personalization with the cutting-edge trends (such as AI and privacy driven) should unquestionably be a keep while creating a content marketing strategy for the year 2023.
14. Social Media Optimization
We hardly know someone who does not use social media and does not spend significant time on it. So, how can a marketing campaign in today’s environment be carried out without the use of social media optimization?
With social media becoming as good as television, it appears to be a more cost-effective medium for promotion and advertising if you remain consistent.
Even though the trend indicates an unrivaled increase in social media users, it isn’t enough to represent reality. It takes time for new content to leave an impression on existing social media users. People’s habits are pretty much confined. If they like a certain page, they are more likely to trust it. This emphasizes the significance of providing valuable content for brand building and developing a connection through this direct communication tool.
Short videos and influencer marketing are safe bets for the 2023 content marketing strategy due to their expanding popularity.
15. Localized content
The best engagement comes from conversing in your native language, and content localization is all about capturing the quirks and peculiarities of your consumers’ culture. Localization is a variety of hyper-personalization targeting and generates a warm connection with the clients by prioritizing their demands as per their culture.
Localizing content and targeting different markets requires extra effort with extensive research and translation, but it is a crucial choice for your content marketing strategy if you aspire to tap into the global market. Localized content is also valuable for SEO as it comes across as credible answers to all geo-modified search queries.
The expanding internet is encouraging worldwide connectivity, and it is the best time to increase your reach and shoot your revenues via content localization.
16. Automation
The concept of incorporating automation in content marketing is to shoulder the burden for all content heads.
As we move forward in this globally connected era, content must not only be consistent but also come in a variety of formats with a personal touch. Automation works as a beast of burden due to its convenience in performing repetitive activities without the need for manual involvement.
Even an amateur looks out for ways to save their time and efforts.
There are already a plethora of automation tools and applications to help you set the relevance and target of the content as well as for knowing the factors and metrics of the outcomes. In 2023, while laying a content marketing strategy, make sure to identify content domains that can be done without your actual involvement and yet deliver satisfactory results.
17. Artificial Intelligence
AI is a booming industry. Experts are also betting on generative AI to be the next big thing in 2023, and with AI democratization, it will be easier to carry out regular business operations.
NLP (Natural Language Processing) and NLG (Natural Language Generating) models in AI can be used to create, edit, enhance and repurpose content. Content distribution is an important aspect of content marketing, and AI handles it by targeting each set of content to the appropriate individuals at the right time.
AI will be crucial in the 2023 content marketing strategy for extracting algorithms, intent, data, and insights, as well as optimizing content to target the correct group of audiences.
Conclusion
According to estimates, the number of internet users will reach 5.3 billion by 2023, with 43 billion devices contributing to the internet of things. The high-speed internet will create a high-speed environment with people approving only instant access to all information with fewer efforts.
Experts say, only useful content survives in this haste. And, there isn’t any lie in that.
Such value-driven write-ups will likewise fail if they are not coming in the face of the latest trends. The secret sauce to content marketing is to integrate modern trends and technologies into your solution-focused content to offer the best user experience.
Ready to get started with content marketing in 2023?
