We live in a world of digital information – and that information moves fast. As a society we’re generally finding our attention span isn’t quite what it used to be. In fact, National Geographic recently highlighted that in the last quarter of a century, our attention for digital content has decreased from 2.5 minutes to just 40 seconds. This puts marketers in a bit of a conundrum as fighting for your audience’s attention becomes more difficult. For successful online campaigns, video content has become effectively essential. Let’s talk about why you need to include engaging videos in your 2026 marketing strategy – and how to create them.
Beating “Doom-scrolling”
This is a massive hurdle for marketers in today’s landscape. Even if your content is successfully appearing on target feeds, you’re fighting for attention from a multitude of sources. The way we interact with social media has changed dramatically as media formats like TikTok and YouTube Shorts encourage users to scroll through endlessly generated content. Within this habitual behaviour, it’s said that marketers or influencers only have a maximum of 10 seconds to engage their audience before they scroll past. On average, video content is 85% more successful at engaging users than static imagery – this is why video content is so crucial within marketing strategies today.
Creating an engaging video in 2026
How to create an engaging video depends entirely on your brand tone of voice, strategy and target audience. But heres some of the things you should generally consider when creating an engaging video for social media in 2026.
A concise message
You only have 10 seconds to get your core message communicated, so it’s important to ensure you have a tight script and a clear understanding of just exactly what the message is you’re actually wanting to share. A muddled message that isn’t to the point or a message that doesn’t captivate will likely lead to your content being ignored. The purpose of your video, what you say – and how you say it – really is the most crucial aspect of creating an engaging video.
Unique visuals
It seems obvious, but a unique visual isn’t necessarily something that pertains to one video. A unique visual can be a specific style that creates brand recognition across your whole content mix. Have you ever stopped scrolling as you instantly recognise the visuals from one of your favourite brands? The below image is from an iconic brands’ typical background that it uses across its materials. Do you know what brand it is?
If you said Coca-Cola, you’d be correct. You’re one of the 80% who are more likely to recognise a brand by its visual style, than its name alone. In fact, half of a consumers first brand impression is visual, therefore to engage with an audience via video, you must consider what your brands distinctive style is.
Create a narrative
Ok so we don’t mean writing War and Peace, or the next superhero blockbuster, but video content should always tell a story. This can be a story that appeals to modern trends, about how your product is produced, or it can be a narrative about the brand itself and how people interact with it. The more relatable the content is to your audience, the better.
In summer 2025, Nintendo did this particularly well. What on the surface appeared to be a regular Nintendo advert featuring Paul Rudd, fans made the realisation that the advert was oddly familiar to one broadcast in 1991. Nintendo had meticulously recreated one of their past adverts, that also featured Paul Rudd, right down to even recreating the same clothing.
What ensued was a full press tour featuring Paul Rudd and interviews where the actor talked about his Nintendo experiences and what the brand meant to him. A campaign that on the surface could have been generic became a brilliantly engaging piece thanks to smart weaving of nostalgic narrative.
Inject some humour
We all like to laugh and smile, right? Social media has become this hub of humour, in fact, take a look at your phone notifications now – theres a high chance you have a message where you’ve received some shared content. Perhaps it’s your mate in the group chat, maybe your teenage daughter who’s sharing a YouTube short, or your Dad sharing a video from Facebook. I bet they all have one theme in common, whoever sent them; it’s something they think will make you laugh.
Humour is not something that’s necessarily a fit for every brand. But for those who can position their video content using it, it’s likely to not only engage your audience, but equally be content that’s shared to potentially new audiences. For brands that use humour on their social media, look no further than the likes of Aldi, Ryanair, Netflix, Duolingo and a smattering of fast food and takeaway services.
Affective sound design
If we said to you “Jess Glynne – Hold my hand”, what brand does it make you think of? If you said “Nothing beats a Jet2 Holiday…” you’d be right. Hearing that song has the power to make anyone think instantly about quickly booking a European break away. In fact, it’s so iconic that it became its very own meme in 2025.
Effective sound design however far out stretches the traditional jingles such as McDonalds’ “Bah, dah, bah, bah, bah…”. It’s equally about using sound effects to retain engagement. It could involve lots of popping sound effects every time messaging appears on screen, using iconic sound effects that give the viewer an essence of nostalgia, or utilising sound effects that are on trend and ‘memed’ to appeal to a Gen Z audience. Whatever fits with your brand, sound design in video is now more crucial than ever.
Call to action
So you’ve ticked all the boxes, you’ve got your visual and sound design nailed, your script and story in the bag, you’re ready to go! This may actually be the case, but consider the purpose of the video content you are creating. If it’s just for brand exposure, well the video may do enough to achieve that in its own right. If you’re wanting the viewer to do something specific however, ensure that the video explicitly tells them that. For example, if you want them to click a link, buy a product or fill out a form, the video needs to make that clear that that is the intended action for them post-viewing.
How Kensa can help shape your video content
Tell us what you want to achieve, and we’ll work out how to create the best video content possible to meet your objectives. We have a full team of creatives who can design bespoke visual styles and brand strategy, script and copywriters who can ensure your messaging is concise; as well as our video team who can capture your content to a professional standard, edit and add all the effects to really make your content leave a lasting impression. Want to see what we can do? Start a project with us.
