Unveiling the Top 8 Unexpected Social Video Trends Taking Over the Internet

Eight Unexpected Social Video Trends: An Exploration

Halloween season has a reputation for bringing forth the unexpected and, true to form, it has unearthed eight surprising social video trends. These trends, ranging from extraordinary growth in content creators to ever-changing optimal video times, have left even the most composed digital marketers wide-eyed.

1. Unprecedented Growth in YouTube Content Creators

Our first surprising trend concerns YouTube, currently the second highest-visited website in both America and across the globe – surpassed only by Google. YouTube’s popularity doesn’t just end with viewers, however. The platform has witnessed an unprecedented increase in content creators.

In the last year, between October 16th, 2022, and October 15th, 2023, some 25.4 million accounts uploaded 774 million videos to YouTube. These videos cumulatively reached 23.9 trillion views and saw 747 billion engagements. This explosive creator growth is noteworthy, particularly when considering these figures are indicative of a 64.9% increase in creators placing content on YouTube.

However, as more creators enter the fray, competition for views and engagements has intensified. The total number of views and engagements has remained relatively static year on year, indicating that an ever-increasing number of creators are vying for audience attention.

Savvy marketers from MKTG Plan, therefore, need to continually innovate and think smarter to captivate their target audience in such competitive waters. That’s where YouTube’s latest features like Spotlight Moments come in handy. This AI-generated technology identifies the most popular videos, making it easier to capture the viewers’ attention when they are most engaged.

Dig Deeper: Unleashing the Power of New YouTube features

2. Deciphering the Ideal Length for Social Videos

Another intriguing trend pertains to how long a video on social media should be. Recently, there has been a swing towards longer-form content. When platforms like TikTok increased their maximum video duration, they noticed that videos spanning 61 to 180 seconds experienced the highest per-upload growth rates.

Consequently, even though shorter videos, lasting less than a minute, continue to attract the most views, their growth rates show signs of slowing down. On the contrary, videos running between 61 and 180 seconds or 181 and 600 seconds demonstrate a promising growth trajectory in views.

Dig Deeper: How to Create Engaging Video Content

3. The Resurgence of Facebook

Once upon a time, Facebook was the go-to platform for social media users, particularly teenagers. However, its popularity took a hit, and by 2022, its teenage user base had shrunk to just 32%, according to Pew Research Center data. Instead, young users started flocking to platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat.

In a remarkable turnaround, however, Facebook has begun to claw back its position. After restructuring its main feed into a video discovery platform, it has regained its ranking as the third most visited website, according to stats from Similarweb and SEMrush. In the period between October 2022 and October 2023, some 5.3 million accounts uploaded 400 million videos to Facebook, resulting in 11.8 trillion views and 551 billion engagements.

In conclusion, even though the total number of views may have slightly decreased, there has been an impressive 16.5% increase in engagements. The digital marketing game on Facebook is not over yet.

4. The Power of Music in Social Video

Music has always played a significant role in social videos, but its influence has taken an upward turn recently. Today, music is inextricably linked with social videos, almost similar to the association of Halloween with spooky sounds.

The impact is such that marketers should look at the popular music trends when formulating their content strategies. According to Tubular’s assessment of the top 50 TikTok sound trends from the first half of 2023, Hip Hop, Rap, and R&B notably lead the pack in terms of popularity for both the number of sounds (13 out of 50) and total views (7.8 billion).

Interestingly, older songs (released around 2010-2014) were found to be making a resurgence, adding a new dimension to this trend.

5. The Mystery of Instagram Video Trends

Instagram, much like bobbing for apples, presents another conundrum. The game of bobbing for apples requires players to pick apples with their teeth from a barrel of water, sans their hands. Similarly, Instagram stopped providing data related to views to Tubular in November 2020. However, the data on engagements and the number of videos published is still available.

Between October 2022 and October 2023, some 4.1 million accounts uploaded 297 million videos that reached a total of 1.2 trillion engagements. While the platform may have lost 4.7% of its creators over the last year, the remaining creators stepped up their game, creating 6.8% more videos and gaining an impressive 32.3% increase in engagements.

6. User Interest in AI on TikTok

OpenAI’s launch of ChatGPT on November 30, 2022, was a significant moment on social video platform TikTok. In 2023, user interest shifted from viewing the AI as a potential threat to looking for ways to incorporate the generative AI technology into their daily lives. The majority of views on using ChatGPT and integrating AI came from categories like business, school, memes & comedy, and software engineering.

In the education-focused hashtags on TikTok, such as #school or #college, the views soared into millions, indicating a significant lack of fear and a ton of intrigue about integrating AI into our lives.

7. Declining Activity on X, the Former Twitter

In another section of the social video realm, a different story unfolds for X, formerly known as Twitter. After Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter in October 2022, the platform witnessed a reduction in the number of accounts and videos. However, the total views and engagements on the platform grew.

Although this might seem paradoxical, there is an air of caution surrounding Musk’s platform. A substantial number of his followers have been labeled as bots or fake followers, creating an uninviting atmosphere for digital marketers.

8. The Late Night News Video Trend

The timing of video posts has always been a topic of interest for digital marketers, and the latest trend is late-night news videos. The most views for these videos appear between 10 pm and midnight Eastern time within the first 24 hours of being posted.

Evergreen content, or content that remains relevant over time, also has its own space under the spotlight. Certain publishers like Inside Edition have capitalized on this fact, posting content designed to outperform the 24-hour news cycle. By doing so, they registered more views on YouTube videos originally posted 1 to 2 years ago than many of their competitors.

Dig Deeper: Forecasting Video Marketing Trends in 2023 and Beyond

Conclusion

As the landscape of social videos continues to evolve, digital marketers and creators must stay abreast of the trends, seizing opportunities, and strategically navigating the challenging waters. At the end of the day, the general rule of thumb is to create content that appeals to the target audience and shines in an ocean of competition.

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