Top 5 Video Trends (and how to make them interactive)

With the overwhelming volume of written information available online, videos provide a refreshing alternative. So refreshing, in fact, that viewers retain 95% of the message while watching a video, compared to 10% when reading text. As a result, it’s no surprise that our media and culture consumption is increasingly centered around video. On average, people watch 16 hours of videos online per week. For the brands and people building those videos, that’s content that can be used to build trust while connecting with their viewers, foster engagement, boost conversions, and reach a larger audience at a lower cost. Several types of video content can be created for these goals:

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• Educational videos
• Marketing videos
• Shoppable videos
• Training videos
• Vlogs
• Short video ads
• Long-form videos
• Soundless videos
• Product demo videos
• Testimonial videos
• Sales introduction videos
• Prequalification videos

Wherever video exists - interactive video can exist! With deep personalization and design settings, the interactive experience you create can be results-focused and spoken through the voice of your brand. So how will you maximize your video runtime and get your audience excited? One great place to start is by looking at today's top video trends.  

2022 Top Video Trend: Interactivity

By far the most popular trend in the video right now is interactive video. We’ve talked about it, and so have many other brands—if you’re not creating interactive videos for your brand, you’re missing out on crucial engagement opportunities. But what’s especially valuable is layering interactivity with other trends in video creation and content. Here are the other top 5 video trends in 2022 and ways in which you can add interactivity to really make your videos stand out.

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Top 5 video trends:

1. Short videos are becoming increasingly popular

Short videos are a very effective way of delivering your message within a short timeframe. These videos (think TikTok-style content) are created to provide immediate gratification to viewers in a highly engaging way. By adding value through interactive elements, you can make them more attention-grabbing for the audience. Engagement is increased with interactive video by prompting the audience to take action, such as clicking a button, answering a question, or providing feedback.

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2. Livestream videos are an effective way to reach your target audience

Using live streaming has become one of the leading ways to become more personal with your audience and engage with them on a more meaningful level. Through livestreaming, you can communicate directly with your audience and be able to provide them with real-time answers to their questions.

Most popular types of live streaming include influencer Q&As, info sessions, webinars, and product demos. But the benefits of a live stream do not end with the stream itself. You can record the live stream and expand its use by adding interactive elements, like links to your landing pages, or forms to gain more insights from your audience. Adding captions is also a good idea. Not only is it accessible for those with hearing impairments, but watching videos without sound is becoming increasingly popular and expected.

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3. Increase in online and training videos

There have been a lot of educational institutes and companies that have moved toward online education and training since the onset of the pandemic. Even product brands are using more digital training than ever before. In order to make learning more enjoyable and less monotonous, interactive videos are the solution to creating videos that are engaging and immersive.

Through added interactivity, the video becomes more user-driven and personalized. For example, by including a branching element, you can create a custom learning arc and make educational and training videos multi-layered. By enabling this feature, you’re providing the user with the opportunity to explore—blurring the lines between video and gaming—an option not available in passive video viewing.

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4. Personalized videos are in demand

Typically, businesses can cater to a wide set of audiences. But if you try to communicate to everyone all the time, you end up creating bland, vague content. So how do you include personalization without alienating crucial members of your audience?  Again, the key is interactivity. Adding the name of the user and allowing them to choose their own adventure through branching gives a sense of control to the user. Similarly, personalization in sales videos can help make the follow-up to the customers more interesting by using variables in the URL to address them by name.

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5. The rise of shoppable videos

The user is provided with a "one-stop-shop" experience when they view a shoppable video. As they watch a shoppable video, customers can simultaneously see the products featured in the video. Then, they can click and instantly shop, leading to immediate sales. By driving more actions, shoppable videos streamline the customer journey and shorten the sales cycle. In addition to adding products to shoppable videos, interactive videos can also include links to other pages of your e-comm website, like founder stories or capsule collections.

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Enhance these video trends by making them interactive

The most successful way to use these top video trends for 2022 is to add interactivity to them so they can be effectively utilized. Incorporating powerful interactive elements like surveys, questions, buttons, dynamic navigation, and more, into your videos is an excellent way to keep your viewers engaged, ultimately leading them to take action.

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Ready to Reap the Benefits of Interactive Video?

Now that you know the top video trends, it’s time to kick it up a notch by adding interactive video elements that really stand out from the crowd.With the help of Mindstamp’s interactive video solution, you can easily create engaging videos by adding interactive features such as buttons, hotspots, images, and more to your existing video marketing content. Click here to get a demo of Mindstamp and see how it can enhance your business. Or start your free trial to start maximizing your runtime today!