7 video and visual content trends to watch in 2024
The world of content can be chaotic — so it’s best to prepare.
In 2024 generative AI will certainly be a disruptor, and conversely human-centric content will continue to reign.
Here are 7 video and visual trends to look out for in the year ahead:
1. AI-generated content
In 2024, creating high-quality, human-assured content will be more important than ever. By the end of 2023 it seemed that a new AI content creation tool was released daily. Want to create lurid social cards and piece-to-camera clips with unsettling avatars? Easy. But, is the content any good...?
This year we tested out a number of these apps to create experimental video and visuals. Our professional verdict was that the rigidity of the tools restricted creative freedom and brand application, meaning that the content was not customer-ready. The technology is evolving extremely fast, but now and in the near future we predict that these tools will fuel a deluge of amateur and advertorial content.
2. Comeback of the hand-crafted
Perhaps in rebellion against the above as well as excessive screen time, old crafts are returning.
Whether it’s the increasing popularity in hand drawn animation and illustrations or people appreciating the art of rug tufting (this video got 3 million views on TikTok!), these more traditional forms of expression could have a real impact on digital content creation.
We would love to see more content along the lines of these paper cut-out hand-drawn scenes celebrating women in climbing.
3. Kinetic typography
Or in simpler terms… animated text. Our designers and animators are looking forward to giving words more visual personality in 2024.
As Tom May points out in Creative Boom, tiny phone screens mean many brands have opted for similar style fonts to ensure readability.
This is making it harder for brands to stand out and make an impression.
Kinetic typography is an expressive and dynamic way of grabbing attention that could be what they need to compete in the feed.
4. Human-centric video content
About one in every two videos on our social feeds at the moment features a person. Tired people, funny people, important people. The classic narrator is back to ensure human connection and authenticity in a crowded and AI-generated digital space. Do you have a colleague with rizz - Oxford Dictionary’s word of the year 2023 - who wouldn’t mind putting themselves out there? Start buttering them up now to feature in next year’s content plan.
5. Earth-centric design
The climate emergency is penetrating all forms of visual communication and we hope it stays that way. Industry leaders are realising that they must focus on greener practices such as using materials that do not harm the environment.
This impacts design and branding - both in practice (using recycled paper, going completely digital, using vegetable-based inks and optimising websites so they are carbon neutral etc.) and in how brands present themselves.
We expect to see more earthy tones and textures in 2024 as organisations realise that people want to really see and understand how they’re helping to reduce global boiling.
6. Long-form video
In 2024 streaming services will continue to disconnect people from terrestrial TV, making way for more long-form video. Smart TVs with a YouTube app are normalising people watching longer videos from their sofas. According to Google, TV is YouTube’s fastest growing screen with viewers watching 700 million hours on television daily. This greater demand for viewing on a communal big screen is likely to come with the expectation of a higher-production value. Docu-series that are 10 minutes or longer will allow creators to tell more in-depth and complex stories - we’re so ready for the challenge.
7. Personalisation
That video you liked will probably not be on your friend’s feed. Content personalisation is producing and delivering content to a user based on their interests, preferences and past online behaviour - information made accessible thanks to machine learning. These tools are mostly used by big, commercial brands such as Sephora - who serve videos to users based on their skin type - but they are certainly changing everybody’s online experience. To ensure posts remain competitive, content teams need to lean on data to inform content decisions more than ever.
Ready for 2024 and the changes to come?
If you’re struggling to embed these new trends into your content, we can help.