Vertical videos from Davos confirm the 2025 trend
Key takeaways:
- Many global leaders chose vertical video to post brief observations from their time at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland
- LinkedIn is one of many social platforms encouraging the usage of vertical video, for greater engagement and visibility
- Videos shared from Davos sought to provide an authenticity meant to build trust and broaden reach
Did you get the message from Davos last week?
Happening early in the year as it does, the World Economic Forum has a way of teeing up global economic, political and business trends for the coming 12 months and beyond. Communications with direct import for digital marketers, though, are rare.
But there was no mistaking the support for vertical video by participants filing reports from the conference. My LinkedIn feed was heavy on 9:16 quick, casual takes by the world’s leaders, shakers and otherwise citizens of the world, many of them delivering their updates while fighting the outside elements that included traffic sounds, sleet and snow.
"That’s a lot to ask of executives and marketers trained to strike every stammer and fix every hair out of place."
Neither I nor my AI search friends could find any public statements explicitly encouraging the creation of these, but such solidarity across the board seems more than a coincidence.
LinkedIn is a strategic partner of WEF and has been pushing vertical video since it added a Videos for You feed last August. At the same time, ongoing legal challenges to the category leader TikTok have served to fortify other platforms’ focus. Instagram Reels is already out there, but X, Bluesky and even Pinterest have beefed up their offerings over the last few weeks.
Vertical video belongs in your 2025 plan, as you likely know. On LinkedIn—the favored investment management social network—video is reported to enjoy much higher engagement rates and, as such, is favored by The Algorithm.
The format is best used to present a subject matter expert in a natural way, providing an authenticity that lacks orchestration. That’s a lot to ask of executives and marketers trained to strike every stammer and fix every hair out of place. If you’ve been facing any resistance on your efforts to fire up this distinct content form with your subject matter experts, the sampling below—which is a bit broader than our typical investment firm-only scope—may help argue your case. To watch more, just do a “#WEF25” posts/content type:video” search on LinkedIn.
Note, also, that these videos were posted from individual accounts, with the corporate accounts just sharing them. That assumes that these leaders have already developed some kind of following. It’s not out of the question for a series of videos to be used to wake up a quiet account, it’s just a steeper climb to amplification and engagement.
Braving the elements
This video by Julie Teigland, EY EMEIA Area Managing Partner, is one of the more effective I watched from Davos. She was prepared with something to say, she was supported by someone holding the camera (and walking backward on an icy walk?), and the video includes captions. Watch how neither the talent nor the camera operator misses a beat toward the end of the video when a group of fellow attendees come up from behind Teigland and then overtakes her. Keeping the focus is not easy, she’s a pro.
In the moment > staged moment
I’m partial to videos that jump in and jump out, with no time devoted to an intro or a prolonged windup. Also, the less artificial the better.
On the face of it, there’s nothing wrong with the Q&A format of this video or with how it starts. But no doubt Jane Lawrie, Global Head of Corporate Affairs, KPMG International, could have handled this message on her own, without the crutch of an interviewer for a 59-second video. Vertical video, especially onsite at a conference, is designed to be in the moment. This seems like a staged moment, inadvertently undermining the effort being made.
Prepping for the day
This early morning video from Lazard CEO Peter Orszag in his running clothes, including a scan down to look at his shoes, generated more than 300 likes. While not providing a lot of information, it’s a 50-second behind-the-scenes report that serves to “humanize” (let’s try to find a better word this year). As a viewer, it’s nice to know that Orszag is thinking of us even before he dresses for work.
Why he’s there
No stranger to vertical video (see a full listing on his LinkedIn account), Bridgewater Founder Ray Dalio filed two reports from Davos: one on how to solve the global debt problem and the second on what he does at Davos. The second one, shown below, attracted twice as much interest.
Show us your room!
Franklin Templeton President and CEO Jenny Johnson posted twice from Davos, generating hundreds of reactions and lots of comments.
But this video of her sharing her “luxurious” accommodations has to win the authenticity award. There is no way anyone scripted her comment and it’s hard to discern any strategy. It demystifies Davos as a tony affair—and seems to confirm what one commenter calls Johnson: “The most down to earth CEO and President.”
Creating such videos and tagging them with the forum hashtag is truly a highwire act on a global stage. Being real involves risk.
Hope you can find a lower profile occasion, and good sports to work with, for your initial efforts.
Lowe Group offers a range of digital marketing strategy consulting, including social media. Send us a note for more information. Oh, and see our vertical videos, created indoors and on a more comfortable schedule than the Davos posters.
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