What does the future of content marketing look like in 2025? Where might it be headed in the year ahead? Is AI still dominating the content creation process?
Content marketing remains one of the best ways to educate your audience and build genuine connections that result in conversions. In fact, 39 percent of enterprise marketers say their marketing budgets will increase this year compared to 2024.
In this article, I discuss the future of content creation, the four content marketing trends I think are shaping the industry right now, and four predictions I think will come true over the next year.
Key Takeaways
- 58.5 percent of all US-based searches in Google are “zero-click” searches. This makes it more important than ever to rank as a zero-click search (for example, through a featured snippet or AI overview).
- AI will continue to be a content marketing trend in 2025, but the way people use it will diversify. People will continue to use AI for content generation, but also to streamline workflows and analyze datasets.
- Search everywhere optimization will become more prominent, with brands having to think about how people discover their content across multiple platforms.
- Short-form videos, E-E-A-T, and personalization will continue to be popular content marketing trends for 2025.
- Marketing teams will need to diversify and consider alternative content formats to stay ahead of the competition.
Table of Contents
- Key Takeaways
- Content Marketing 2025: Current Trends
- Content Marketing 2025: The Predictions
- FAQs
- Conclusion
Content Marketing 2025: Current Trends
To create content that resonates with your audience, you must stay ahead of emerging trends and evolving consumer preferences.
Here are four current content marketing trends to be aware of as we move into 2025.
Zero-Click Searches Are Changing How We Organize Our Content
In the past, the way we used search engines like Google was a lot simpler. We’d enter a keyword, look at the results, and go to the website we thought was most likely to offer what we needed.
However, search engines are now working harder than ever to keep us on their platforms.
SparkToro carried out an interesting study last year, where out of over 1,000 US Google searches, only 360 led to a non-Google-owned site.
This means it’s no longer enough for businesses to rank in the top three positions of the search results. They need to appear in a zero-click search. Basically, this is any search where you get an answer without needing to click on a link. Here are some of the key examples:
A zero-click search occurs when search engines provide answers directly in the results, eliminating the need for users to visit external websites. Zero-click results include:
- People Also Ask (PAA) boxes
You can increase the chances of being chosen for a zero-click search by using schema markup, making your content as clear and easy to understand as possible, and directly answering customer questions.
(We do this on the Neil Patel blog by adding “frequently asked questions” and “takeaways” to each of our articles.)
E-E-A-T Helps You Stand Above the AI Flood
Over half of marketers now use AI to create content, and another half use it to optimize existing content.
While AI tools are a great way to create articles, social media posts, and email campaigns quickly and cost-effectively, they have led to a flood of poor-quality, inaccurate content online.
Implementing E-E-A-T (experience, expertise, authoritativeness, trustworthiness) into your AI content is essential for showcasing your credentials and encouraging customers to put their faith in your content.
Google’s quality raters use the E-E-A-T framework to determine if a page meets users’ needs and expectations.
High levels of E-E-A-T don’t just influence your search engine rankings but show customers why they should trust your content, regardless of whether it’s created by humans or AI.
Ways you can weave E-E-A-T into your content strategy include:
- Regularly reviewing and updating your content to make sure it’s accurate and up to date.
- Citing trustworthy and authoritative sources in your content.
- Showcasing your expertise and knowledge (I do this on our blog by using author boxes and quotes from experts who work at NP Digital.)
- Working with trusted subject matter experts.
- Using trusted and reputable influencers and content creators (for example, micro-influencers) to promote your content.
AI Is Altering Content Workflows
Marketers aren’t just using AI for creating content, but for optimizing the creation process.
According to Mailchimp, 43 percent of marketers now use AI to automate tasks and processes.
AI-powered tools can help marketers scale their content marketing efforts and free up their time so they can focus on more big-picture strategies. For example:
- Generating content ideas.
- Determining the optimal time to post content.
- Transcribing meeting notes.
- Clustering similar keywords together.
Of course, while AI can help save time on repetitive tasks, it’s still important to regularly review the results to ensure quality, consistency, and accuracy.
As the old saying goes, “garbage in, garbage out.”
It’s also vital to consider data privacy—don’t share confidential or sensitive information when using AI tools.
Short-Form Video Is Still A Winning Format
Think content marketing only refers to written content? Think again.
Content marketing in 2025 is all about videos, especially short-form ones.
According to HubSpot, short-form video is now the number one content marketing format for marketers and the one that delivers the highest return on investment (ROI).
Why short-form videos? They’re easy to watch and understand, easy to create, and more likely to hold viewers’ attention.
Plus, many social media-based options,, like TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels, are specifically designed for hosting and promoting short video clips.
The great thing is, you can leverage short-form videos across all industries for all audiences, and with all tones.
For example, UK hardware retailer Screwfix uses humor to promote its products and identify with customers’ pain points.
You can use short-form videos to:
- Create how-to videos for your product or services.
- Introduce your team and provide a “behind the scenes” look at your business.
- Encourage user-generated content and reviews.
- Showcase new product features.
- React to trends.
Content Marketing 2025: The Predictions
Now it’s time to get out my crystal ball and look ahead to the future.
I predict the following four content marketing trends will take hold in the year ahead.
We Will See More AI Support To Make Use of Data
We’ve already talked about how you can use AI to create and plan content.
However, there is another use for AI that will become more popular this year—data analysis, visualization, and interpretation.
AI can handle large datasets and aggregate multiple datasets, quickly and accurately getting you the information you need to create high-quality content your customers trust.
My team uses AI to help our clients. For example, we improved the Universal Technical Institute’s search engine rankings by using AI to identify nearby cities to UTI’s campuses, using this data to develop over 200 localized, SEO-optimized web pages.
Search Everywhere Optimization Means Content Needs to Work Closely With Other Teams
While Google is still the number one search engine, it’s essential to have a presence across multiple online platforms. This includes social media, forums like Reddit and Quora, AI platforms like SearchGPT, and marketplaces like Amazon.
Search everywhere optimization is the process of optimizing your presence across all the platforms your customers use.
While SEO primarily concerns keywords and search intent, search everywhere optimization is all about discoverability. What can you do to increase the chances of people finding your brand through your content?
To utilize search everywhere optimization, think about all the platforms your target audience accesses.
With search everywhere optimization, your content needs to be:
- Tailored. What works for one platform may not work for another.
- Seamless. Your overall message and branding need to be consistent across all channels.
- Innovative. You need to consider platforms that you may not have ever considered.
For example, when I asked ChatGPT to list the world’s five biggest digital marketing agencies, it included NP Digital in the mix. Answer engine optimization is becoming increasingly important.
Personalization Will Be At An Even Higher Premium
Personalization has always been an important part of the content marketing process, and it will be even more vital in 2025.
Why? One in two people is concerned that the rising use of AI means that there’s a lack of a human being to connect with when they speak to a business.
You can use personalization to create individualized content for customers, making them happier and increasing trust in your brand.
As a result, they’re more likely to buy from your business. For example, personalized call-to-actions perform 202 percent better than non-personalized ones.
Good data is key to personalization—the more data you have, the higher-quality content you can create.
Ironically, while people might associate AI with a lack of human connection, it can also help personalize your content.
For example, Fitbod uses AI to analyze sleep patterns, activity levels, and stress levels to suggest personalized workouts.
Explore Diverse Content Formats
2025 is the year of thinking outside the box. As well as reflecting on your presence on different platforms, you’ll need to consider new content formats to stay ahead of the game.
Diversifying content formats expands audience reach, boosts engagement, and improves backlink opportunities.
What content formats should you consider? It depends on your goals, budget, and target audience. Some content types you might not have thought about before include:
- Webinars. Useful for building a community around your brand and for lead generation.
- E-books and Whitepapers. Useful for showcasing your expertise and providing long-term value to customers.
- Infographics. Useful for raising brand awareness and generating backlinks.
- Podcasts. Useful for reaching niche audiences and engaging directly with customers.
- Quizzes. Useful for gathering data and providing personalization opportunities to customers.
FAQs
Why is Content Marketing Booming?
Content marketing is all about engaging readers rather than selling to them—and that’s exactly why this marketing tactic is booming.
By providing valuable, relevant content, brands can establish themselves as thought leaders in their industry and build a customer-centered reputation.
How is Content Marketing Evolving?
A couple of years ago, content marketing meant creating the longest, most comprehensive, and most in-depth articles possible to rank in the search engines.
Today, content marketing is more about understanding your customers and creating content that builds relationships with them.
Shorter blog posts are much more common, as are short-form videos and social media-specific content.
How Does AI Change the Content Marketing Landscape?
Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing content marketing by allowing brands to create content faster and cheaper than ever before.
The web is being flooded with mediocre AI content, but this means brands that create useful, personalized content will stand out even more.
In 2025, AI is also being used behind the scenes, for example, analyzing data, developing content ideas, and automating repetitive tasks.
What Does the Future of Content Marketing Look Like With AI Overviews?
Conclusion
You probably didn’t need me to tell you that the use of AI and short-form videos are industry trends in 2025.
However, I think the power of personalization and search everywhere optimization are flying under the radar.
Get a handle on these, and you’ll get a significant advantage over your competitors.
I’ve done my best to predict how I think content marketing trends will change in the year ahead. But this is by no means an exhaustive list.
Things like building a strong brand based on values, influencer marketing, and live commerce will also impact content marketing trends in 2025 and beyond.
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