It’s not a surprise that video content has become such a huge trend. Nowadays, creating and sharing high-quality video content no longer requires carrying a hefty camcorder around and then transferring that footage from a cassette to a computer and then to the internet.  The internet and the new, cloud-based file-sharing technologies have made everything related to video easy and accessible for all. It is, therefore, no wonder that even large-scale enterprises have started investing a great deal in video content creation and management.

According to Forrester, video plays a pivotal role in driving customer engagement and establishing a solid corporate culture in companies. Therefore, enterprises have been consistently seeking innovative ways to integrate video content into their customer outreach strategy. To ensure a robust video content strategy, it is essential to manage and distribute the content effectively through video content management systems. 

This article will discuss the recent boom in video content management and the kind of digital advancements that have made it a lot straightforward. It will also talk about what a robust video content management strategy looks like today and what it could become in the future.

How Did Video Content Management Start Out?

Video content management has not always been as sophisticated as it is today. In the early days of the internet, any content had to be stored onto personal physical storage devices or servers. Much of the content in the early web was static web content like web pages, text files, and images. As the internet started to grow popular, websites got dynamic and required more from the content management system where they were hosted.

When websites started hosting videos, a need for a dedicated video CMS emerged. Such CMSs effectively handle video assets in a secure environment created to handle and deploy video content.  

In the past decade, a wide variety of video content management systems have been released and users can now choose their favorite video CMS with ease. Some CMS options offer functionalities like greater storage space and quick-access viewing for enterprise-level needs. There are also options for small-time users looking for a system to host and simply share their video content. Some popular names in the video content management space include Panopto, Brightcove, Kaltura, Mux, Crafter, and Qumu.

What Does Effective Video Content Management Look Like?

Each of the different video CMSs on the market tries to offer unique functionalities to gain a competitive advantage.  However, they have some basic functionalities that are common to every video CMS solution. 

Here are some of the most important characteristics of a robust video content management system:

• Simple Pricing Model: Research has shown that enterprises are often confused by the pricing plans of different video content management systems. A simple pricing model helps you to decide whether to go for the product or not.
• Powerful Search Capability: If you’re hosting thousands of videos a powerful search functionality can be very helpful. Such functionality would normally include filters and options for case sensitivity. Additionally, it could also include the ability to search a video’s content through subtitles.
• User Analytics and Insights: Not only should a video content management system host and distribute content, but it should also provide you with key insights. 
• Multifaceted Storage Options: Most modern video management systems don’t require on-premises storage and provide cloud hosting. However, an effective video CMS system should be able to accommodate both kinds of scenarios.
• Third-party Integration: While video content management systems aim at delivering every functionality out-of-the-box, they must support add-ons and extensions. 
• Multi-Device Support: In today’s digital age, content is consumed on a myriad of different screen sizes. The ideal video content management system should smoothly accommodate all the different devices that can access them.
• Effective Live Streaming Ability: Streaming live video content is becoming increasingly popular among users. Therefore, a powerful video content management system should offer smooth and unhindered live streaming options to its users.  
• Close-ended Security Features: Security is an important detail in an enterprise-grade application. Video content management is no different, and an effective system should provide top-notch security facilities to the hosted video content.
• Syndication and Distribution Features: A video CMS should support content delivery for the different platforms on which users share video content. Additionally, if the enterprise wishes to syndicate its content, the system should allow it.

What Could the Future Of Video Content Management Look Like?

As cloud and web technology gets more advanced, content management systems will also grow more powerful. The current landscape of video content management systems has different players who can satisfy our current video content needs. However, according to Forrester, consuming, producing, and sharing video content may look very different in the future. Therefore, the video content management systems will have to adapt.

Research by the World Bank has shown that a great example that our video content needs are growing is the recent global pandemic and how it forced educational institutions to shift online completely. Lectures and tutorials are being uploaded and streamed in massive numbers and at different locations. Video content management systems like Panopto have played a significant role in this pedagogical challenge and helped institutions pull it off with great ease.

Headless video content management applications like Mux and Crafter CMS have also seen a surge in popularity. Mux has enabled video to be added and seamlessly streamed through just straightforward API calls. Crafter CMS has become a popular open-source choice for enterprises that want their developers and content creators to collaborate effectively on content. Both are just two examples of what modern video content management applications are capable of.

What new functionality future content management systems may hold is speculation at this point. Maybe powerful AI will be used for the automatic categorization of videos based on their content. The whole video content creation process could be accelerated further and integrated within a management system for a completely seamless experience. Then, a video CMS could suggest SEO recommendations in real-time so that the user can make SEO-friendly content on the fly.  

Final Thoughts

This article showed how video content management had become a point of deep interest for enterprises and many different options to choose from. The attributes of a powerful video content management system were also discussed so users can make a better choice.

As the famous quote goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words,” meaning that a video must be worth so much more. No wonder video content is where the future seems to be heading towards. While the current technological landscape is pretty advanced already, it is interesting to think about how far video content management systems have come. Keeping the current rate of technological growth, it is safe to say that video content management will only further grow from here.