Content marketing is constantly evolving, and staying ahead of the curve—or even just keeping up with the latest trends and strategies—is essential for professionals in the creative media space to create authentic, engaging, and impactful content. As digital natives, Millennials and Zoomers are uniquely positioned to consume and leverage emerging trends, but understanding the “why” behind them is just as essential as creating and implementing them. Here are three key content categories to embrace and to watch closely in 2025.
1. Short-Form Video Content
Video content continues to dominate, with short-form video emerging as the preferred medium for Gen Z and Millennials. In 2020, YouTube Shorts videos got 3.5 billion daily views. Since, that number has exploded to more than 70 billion views daily. Elsewhere on Instagram, U.S. adults spend an average of 33 minutes per day on the platform. 61 percent of its 2 billion monthly users are between the ages of 18 and 34. Also important to note is that there is a significant Instagram user base also on other social media platforms, such as Facebook (80.8%), YouTube (77.4%), and TikTok (52.8%), where short-form video content is also popular. Such a finding can arguably make a strong argument in favor of brands needing a strong and effective cross-platform marketing strategy for success in connecting with younger audiences. Even professional social media giant LinkedIn has demonstrated their interest in short-form video content, having launched immersive video content of their own in late 2024.
Distribution of Instagram users worldwide as of April 2024, by age group
Source: Statista
Overall, when it comes to short-form video content, it’s no secret that brands and organizations should focus on storytelling and relatability. Millennials and Gen Z prioritize authenticity over polish or impersonal AI-generated content. This means that they are looking for content that is humorous, raw, or emotionally resonant, and brands that are quick to respond to them.
2. The Rise of Interactive Content
According to a recent Forbes survey, 81 percent of marketers agreed that interactive content, such as quizzes, polls, and calculators, surveys, and augmented reality (AR) experiences, are still considered much more effective than more traditional and static content.
A unique example of how effective this type of content can be is Spotify’s Wrapped campaign. Launched in 2015 as a simple year-end playlist and presenting itself every year after under it’s “Wrapped” identity, Spotify has seen massive interactive success with its users. Forbes reports that 30 million users accessed Wrapped in 2017, while significant growth in popularity in the feature saw 120 million users access it in 2021. In 2022, that number continued to climb, hitting 160 million users. Additionally, 60 million Spotify users shared their Wrapped results to their social media in 2021, while that number grew to a staggering 400 million users just a year later, only three days after Wrapped was released.
While the Spotify case ties to mere entertainment, interactive content that is easy to consume and share might also be beneficial for organizations that are looking to educate or share vital information to key stakeholders. Research has recently showed that those in the Millennial and Gen Z populations learn easier through media. During the COVID-19 pandemic when information was seen as critical to make key health decisions, but also something that overwhelmed consumers, shareable media shared on platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and X were found to be effective at informing masses, but also getting such masses to then relay (through sharing) that information to others.
3. Authenticity Through User-Generated Content (UGC)
Have you ever bought something, took a picture with your phone, and posted it on social media? Have you ever took pictures of your food to post on Google or Yelp along with a written review? Have you seen GoPro videos made by others using the GoPro logo or #GoPro hashtag? Well, whether you knew it or not at the time, those are all good examples of user-generated content (UGC).
Authenticity matters more than ever. Research recently published in Online Media and Global Communication found that both Millennial and Gen Z audiences place a great deal of importance on perceived authenticity. Further, as more Zoomers enter the workforce, use of digital devices that they once used solely for socializing or entertainment purposes, will soon become used for more research on practical, everyday products and services. Paired with their desire for authenticity, there’s nothing more authentic that real consumers sharing their experience with products and services that will prove to be convincing enough or not.
A survey found that 73 percent of Gen Z consumers say they will make a purchase online as a result of media creators. 66 percent of millennials were found to make the same purchase as a result of media creators. More interestingly, 74 percent of Gen Z consumers expressed a preference to shop on a mobile device.
When authenticity is desired and UGC plays a significant influential role for a growing younger consumer base, organizations today cannot afford to look the other way when generating content.
Moving Forward
To thrive in content marketing, brands and organizations should be aiming to simply own it in these areas. By embracing interactivity, prioritizing UGC, and mastering short-form video, they can create campaigns that effectively resonate with their tech-savvy, information-through-media-consuming audiences. These trends are not just about keeping up—they’re about leading and informing through innovation, building trust, and fostering genuine connections.
