Video content, as it has over the last decade, continues to be king. Consumers and business leaders use it daily for entertainment, knowledge sharing, and experimental marketing.
Why? Videos are the most direct, creative, and accessible means to reach audiences across almost any platform, anywhere in the world.
We've become so accustomed to seeing at least five videos a day and creating new ones ourselves, that it's hard to imagine a world without video content everywhere.
This article outlines how crucial video content has become in our lives with 47 essential statistics. If you haven't invested in video marketing yet for your business, we'll show you why you need to.
In 2021, the total time spent watching videos rose to over 12 billion minutes, highlighting the exponential scale of global video consumption.
On average, people spend around 19 hours per week watching online videos. That’s an increase of 8.5 hours per week more than in 2018.
In fact, video content is so popular that it accounts for around 82% of all internet traffic.
Interactive and visual content is preferred by 91% of consumers, over traditional, text-based formats.
It’s no surprise that 79% of consumers would also rather watch a video than read about a product.
Music videos are the most popular type of video content (50%), followed by comedy, memes, and viral videos (35%), video live streams (28%), and tutorial videos (25%).
52% of consumers prefer pre-recorded videos, while 48% prefer live content.
80% of viewers are more likely to finish a video with subtitles.
Videos must grab viewers’ attention instantly, with 73% of consumers deciding whether to keep watching a video in under 30 seconds and 43% deciding in under 15 seconds.
60% of consumers say a video being too long would deter them from watching it at all. A huge majority (95%) agree that videos should be less than 2 minutes.
To be exact, 60% of short-from videos are watched for 41% to 80% of their length.
87% of consumers say videos must be high quality, too. Otherwise, their trust in a brand is negatively impacted.
Research shows that mobile viewing experiences lead to better results, with vertical videos having a 90% brand recall rate.
Social media videos generate 1200% more shares than images and text combined.
On LinkedIn specifically, users are 20 times more likely to share a video than any other post type.
Over half of marketers (51%) find Facebook the most effective video marketing channel, after Instagram and LinkedIn.
The popularity of video marketing on Facebook makes sense, considering video viewers account for more than 2 billion people each month.
85% of Facebook videos are watched with the sound off. This makes subtitles and in-video text increasingly important.
Alternatively, 80% of customers purchase products after watching YouTube videos about them.
On YouTube, 47.9% of daily watch time is from mobile devices. 12.9% is from desktops/laptops, while 39.2% is from smart TVs and other devices.
However, according to research, TikTok holds a 40% share of the short video market.
625 million videos are viewed on TikTok every minute, up from 167 million two years ago.
9 out of 10 TikTok users view sound as being vital to the TikTok experience.
More than nine out of ten US consumers between 12 and 44 years of age are digital video viewers.
Millennials are 150% more likely to use videos for shopping decisions than baby boomers.
Gen Z has the shortest active attention span among all age groups, at just 1.3 seconds. This showcases the impact of short-form video culture.
Companies using video marketing grow their revenue 49% faster.
Almost all marketers (96%) have placed ad spend on video because of its proven impact.
In fact, digital video budgets increase by 25% on average each year.
Around 68% of marketers argue that video ROI is even better than Google Ads.
Companies using video marketing report a 90% ROI and a 4.8% average conversion rate.
Organic website traffic can increase by as much as 157%.
Explainer videos are also 64% more likely to convert visitors.
Meanwhile, a video-based email increases its click-through rate by 300%.
Brands get more video views during Q1 and Q4, when people are more likely to purchase new products.
Almost 50% of marketing videos are testimonials, which significantly helps boost recruitment.
Job postings with video icons are also viewed 12% more than postings without video. They also have a 34% greater application rate than those without.
Companies can also save time and money training new recruits, with 97% of respondents finding video effective in helping employees retain information.
43% of companies say a lack of in-house skill (filming, editing, etc) remains a hurdle to high-quality video production.
Meanwhile, a third (33%) of marketers lack the time to commit to regular filming.
24% of businesses rely entirely on external agencies to create marketing videos.
However, outsourcing video production isn't easy. The world's best video production companies charge up to $20,000 per minute of content.
75% of video marketers have used AI to create or edit videos.
The uptick in AI use among video marketers makes sense, when companies can save up to 80% of their time and budget compared to traditional video production.
Researchers say 44.5% of consumers are expected to use VR for entertainment videos and travel content this year, as the VR market continues to expand.
Meanwhile, the AR market is expected to hit $61.3 billion in value by 2031, as retailers increasingly leverage the technology to market their products.
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