What Are the Most Effective Video Strategies for 2026?
2025 was loud. 2026 rewards trust, utility, and speed. Feeds are full of perfect images and copycat edits, so the work that wins feels human, shows the room where it happened, and respects the first six seconds.
This is the shortlist we are taking into every plan.
1. Showing Something Real (the anti gloss)
Mess is the new polish. Leave the oops in. A stumble, a crew laugh, a half second of mic rustle. In a year of “was that AI,” the small human slip becomes the trust anchor that keeps people watching.
Example: In this FCC case study from our One Mission, Many Voices series, a grasshopper lands on the farmer mid sentence during his first emotional line. It is impossible not to lean in.
2. The Tour
Badge me in. Take me where the employees only sign lives. A first person walk through the job or the space scratches pure curiosity and teaches something real. After years of remote everything, people want process, not promise.
Tours like this give viewers something announcements often skip: a sense of place. They create sticky content for social media because they invite search, sharing, and a second look. And when planned with intention, they support both one-off videos and broader strategies without a heavy lift
3. AI Micro Trends, Macro Meh
Treat these like sparklers. Bright, loud, but gone in 15 seconds. They only work if you move fast. If you cannot get it out within 24 to 72 hours, skip the wave and save your energy for stories that last. The novelty cycle is shorter than ever in 2026, but yes, AI is still a trend.
Try: One quick reel that riffs on a fresh AI effect and points to a real tip or resource.
4. Frame One Seeds
Lead with something the brain will not forget. Your logo in motion, or better, an emotion tied to your mark. Plant that feeling plus logo in the first two seconds.
Pre roll buys are climbing in 2026 and you have about six seconds before the skip, so earn memory up front. That early imprint boosts recall when people search later.
Example: GEICO’s “unskippable” pre roll puts brand and premise in second one and turns the five second skip into the joke. The family freezes while the dog raids the table, and you remember it because it lands instantly.
5. Live to Shorts Pipelines
Short, memorable lines live longer than the event. The best moments often happen on stage: a one liner, a surprising stat, a clean closer. People trust what is said in the room, and in 2026 more events and more phones mean great quotes keep getting saved, shared, and searched.
Examples: The National Retail Federation cuts speaker moments into bite size clips, like “Goldman Sachs’ David Solomon speaks to retailers about 2025’s economic outlook”.
6. Vertical With Intent
Shoot 9:16 on purpose and keep full resolution. Mount a vertical camera and let the 9:16 vision come to life. The phone is the first screen in 2026, so native vertical looks better and feels right. Your subject sits right.
7. Humor That Humanizes
Treat the label as the joke, not the person. Name the bias with a wink, then cut to everyday life that makes the stereotype wilt. That pattern break lowers defenses, and watching the person simply do the thing lands the point and invites sharing. The tone stays confident and warm, with the brand in a supporting role and capability assumed. Examples: Assume That I Can for World Down Syndrome Day 2024 and Apple’s I’m Not Remarkable use light humor and ordinary moments to challenge bias without pity.
Let’s Get Started On Your 2026 Strategy
The thread that runs through all of this is respect. Respect for the audience’s time, for the first frame, and for the real people on camera. Make that your north star and the format takes care of itself. If you have a space worth showing or a stereotype worth breaking, bring us there and let it breathe.
If you’re stuck, curious, or just want to brainstorm what these trends could look like for your team, the LAI Video crew is here to help. We can talk through ideas, sketch a strategy, or help you build something small that sets the stage for what comes next.
