From social media features including IGTV to the need for a quick turnaround on trending topics and books like Nappily Ever After, demand for video is as high as it’s ever been, and we don’t expect the demand to fall off anytime soon. So how can video producers, marketing professionals, and other creative professionals keep up with the ever-rising demand for more video content? After analyzing our search data, we’re betting on lightweight video editors and time-saving templates.

One of the barriers to producing videos is a relatively steep learning curve. For creatives looking to learn the basics or marketers trying to create simple videos, it’s not worth the time to learn the ins and outs of advanced programs like Premiere Pro and Final Cut Pro—and quite frankly, those programs can be kind of terrifying when you first open them. One of the solutions for video novices is finding a lightweight editor that will get the job done. Whether you’re planning to start with the basics or you never plan to move on from them, editors like iMovie, Filmora, Windows Movie Maker, and Vegas Movie Studio make it easier to get moving.

Lightweight editors are useful for simple videos, but for creatives who know the basics and want to create more professional videos with smooth transitions, animations, and visual effects, templates and video effects are key. These creative tools simplify the process and diminish the learning curve associated with complex programs like Adobe After Effects and Apple Motion.

Our creative community has caught on to the power of templates and VFX on shortening the production cycle. On Storyblocks Video, we’ve seen a large increase in the number of searches for templates--including a 153% increase in searches for “After Effects template,” an 83% increase in searches for “typography template,” and a 71% increase in searches for “promo template.” We’re seeing similar trends for VFX searches--there was a 211% rise in searches for “VFX,” a 98% increase in searches for “transitions,” a 44% increase in searches for “smoke,” and a 23% increase in searches for “fire effects.”

Both lightweight video editors and video templates made for more complex editors empower creatives to create more videos—faster. We’re happy to provide our creative community with these time-saving tools to help them tell their stories through engaging and inspiring means.