Key Insights
Essential data points from our research
Content marketing generates over three times as many leads as outbound marketing and costs 62% less
73% of B2B marketers and 70% of B2C marketers use content marketing as part of their overall marketing strategy
82% of marketers are actively investing in content marketing
47% of buyers view three to five pieces of content before engaging with a sales rep
80% of business decision-makers prefer to get company information in a series of articles versus an advertisement
96% of B2B buyers want content with more input from industry thought leaders
Video is the #1 form of media used in content strategy, overtaking blogs and infographics
87% of video marketers say video has increased traffic to their website
The average blog post takes 3 hours and 55 minutes to write
Organic search creates 53% of all site traffic
The #1 result in Google gets 31.7% of all clicks
90.63% of pages get no organic traffic from Google
81% of consumers trust the advice and information they get from blogs
70% of consumers feel closer to a company as a result of content marketing
61% of consumers are more likely to buy from companies that offer custom content
B2B vs B2C Effectiveness
- 147% of buyers view three to five pieces of content before engaging with a sales rep
- 280% of business decision-makers prefer to get company information in a series of articles versus an advertisement
- 396% of B2B buyers want content with more input from industry thought leaders
- 471% of B2B buyers said they consumed blog content during their buyer's journey
- 561% of B2B buyers say they share content they enjoy with colleagues
- 6B2B companies that blog generate 67% more leads per month than those that do not
- 758% of B2B marketers use Twitter/X as a content distribution channel
- 8LinkedIn is the most effective social media platform for 89% of B2B marketers
- 960% of B2C marketers have a documented content strategy compared to 40% of B2B
- 1064% of B2B marketers outsource writing
- 1187% of B2B marketers prioritize the audience's informational needs over their organization's sales message
- 1278% of B2B buyers value case studies when researching purchases
- 13The top three goals for B2C content marketers are brand awareness (84%), customer retention (76%), and engagement (72%)
- 14B2C marketers are more likely to use visual content (images/video) than B2B marketers
- 1566% of B2B marketers use paid avenues to distribute content
- 1665% of B2B buyers say they have significantly more requirements for content quality than in previous years
- 1741% of B2B buyers consume 3-5 pieces of content before talking to a salesperson
- 18Short articles (less than 3,000 words) rank third in the B2B assets that generate the best results
- 1988% of the most successful B2B marketers value creativity and craft in content creation
- 2050% of B2B queries today are made on smartphones
Interpretation
Think of ads as elevator music and a series of articles as the playlist buyers actually want: today's mobile-first, quality-hungry B2B buyer reads several short, thought-leader-led pieces and case studies, often shares what they enjoy, and rewards blogs, creativity, audience-first messaging and smart distribution on LinkedIn and paid channels, while B2C leans visual and many teams still lack a documented strategy.
Consumer Behavior & Trust
- 181% of consumers trust the advice and information they get from blogs
- 270% of consumers feel closer to a company as a result of content marketing
- 361% of consumers are more likely to buy from companies that offer custom content
- 479% of people say user-generated content highly impacts their purchasing decisions
- 590% of consumers find custom content useful
- 682% of consumers feel more positive about a company after reading custom content
- 795% of purchasing decisions are subconscious and driven by feeling
- 874% of customers feel frustrated when website content is not personalized
- 964% of people say they would prefer to contact customer service via messaging content than over the phone
- 1054% of consumers want to see more video content from a brand or business they support
- 1163% of consumers said they would think more positively of a brand if it gave them content that was more valuable, interesting, or relevant
- 1248% of consumers say that the most critical time for a company to gain their loyalty is when they make their first purchase or begin service
- 1380% of consumers say authenticity of content is the most influential factor in their decision to follow a brand
- 1494% of people say they have discontinued communications with a company because of irrelevant promotions or messages
- 1538% of people will stop engaging with a website if the content or layout is unattractive
- 16Customers who perceive service content as "good" are 4x more likely to make a repeat purchase
- 1752% of consumers engage with a brand's content on mobile
- 1878% of consumers will trust your brand if you create more customized content
- 1962% of consumers read product reviews before making a purchase
- 2056% of consumers say that half or more of the content they see from brands is irrelevant to them
Interpretation
Think of content as your company's digital handshake: when it is authentic, personalized, useful and mobile-friendly, including blogs, videos, reviews, user-generated posts and messaging, customers feel closer, trust you and buy, but indifferent, irrelevant or unattractive content will quickly drive them away, especially at the critical first purchase where feelings and subconscious motives rule.
Content Formats
- 1Video is the #1 form of media used in content strategy, overtaking blogs and infographics
- 287% of video marketers say video has increased traffic to their website
- 3The average blog post takes 3 hours and 55 minutes to write
- 4Long-form content (3,000+ words) gets 3x more traffic, 4x more shares, and 3.5x more backlinks than average length articles
- 5Infographics are liked and shared on social media 3x more than any other type of content
- 640% of marketers predict that between 51% and 80% of their content will be automated by AI in 2024
- 791% of businesses use video as a marketing tool
- 8Posts with at least one image get twice as many shares on social media as posts with text only
- 9Interactive content generates 2x more conversions than passive content
- 1070% of marketers use email to distribute content
- 11Podcasts reach over 100 million Americans every month
- 1245% of bloggers who add audio to their posts see better results
- 13Articles with list headlines get 2x more traffic and 2x more shares on social media
- 1469% of marketers say visuals are very or quite important to their marketing strategy
- 15Combining video with full-page ads boosts engagement by 22%
- 1655% of business professionals say a great story captures their focus and keeps them engaged with content
- 17User-generated content usually has a 28% higher engagement rate than standard brand posts
- 18Blog posts with a video attract 3 times more inbound links than blog posts without video
- 1932% of marketers say visual images are the most important form of content for their business
- 2095% of users engage with a carousel ad
Interpretation
Think of content marketing as a multimedia party: show up with video and strong visuals, tell a long, story-driven piece, add interactive or user-generated elements, and amplify it with email, podcasts and AI to earn far more traffic, shares, links and conversions than plain text ever will.
SEO & Traffic
- 1Organic search creates 53% of all site traffic
- 2The #1 result in Google gets 31.7% of all clicks
- 390.63% of pages get no organic traffic from Google
- 4Websites with a blog have 434% more indexed pages
- 5Updating and republishing old blog posts with new content and images can increase organic traffic by as much as 106%
- 660% of smartphone users have contacted a business directly using the search results (e.g. "click to call")
- 775% of users never scroll past the first page of search results
- 870% of marketers see SEO as more effective than PPC
- 9Search engines drive 300% more traffic to content sites than social media does
- 10Companies who blog receive 97% more links to their website
- 1146% of all Google searches are local
- 1261% of marketers say growing their organic presence is their top inbound marketing priority
- 13The average top-ranking page on Google also ranks in the top 10 for nearly 1,000 other relevant keywords
- 1425.02% of top-ranking pages don’t have a meta description
- 1550% of search queries are 4 words or longer
- 16Voice search accounts for 20% of queries on the Google app
- 17Titles with 6-13 words attract the highest and most consistent amount of traffic
- 1888% of local business searches on a mobile device either call or visit the business within 24 hours
- 1992.4% of keywords get ten monthly searches or fewer
- 20Only 5.7% of pages will rank in the top 10 search results within a year of publication
Interpretation
Think of organic search as the VIP room of the internet—it's responsible for more than half of site traffic, the top result hoovers up nearly a third of clicks while most pages get none, so if you want visible, converting traffic you need to blog and build indexed pages and links, refresh and optimize your best posts, write search‑friendly titles and meta descriptions, target local and long‑tail (and voice) queries, and make it effortless for mobile users to call, because search drives far more real traffic than social and most sites still ignore the basics.
Strategy & Budgeting
- 1Content marketing generates over three times as many leads as outbound marketing and costs 62% less
- 273% of B2B marketers and 70% of B2C marketers use content marketing as part of their overall marketing strategy
- 382% of marketers are actively investing in content marketing
- 440% of B2B marketers have a documented content marketing strategy
- 572% of marketers say content marketing increases engagement
- 697% of respondents in a Semrush survey stated that content marketing was a part of their marketing tactics
- 7Content marketing is projected to be an industry worth $417.85 billion by 2021
- 869% of most successful B2B marketers have a documented content marketing strategy
- 942% of companies report having a dedicated content marketing group or team
- 1060% of marketers report that content marketing generates demand/leads
- 1170% of marketers are actively investing in content marketing
- 1246% of businesses want to increase their content creation spending in the coming year
- 13Marketers who prioritize blogging feel 13x more likely to see positive ROI
- 1450% of marketers say they outsource some content marketing
- 1591% of marketing orgs use content marketing to generate brand awareness
- 16Only 29% of B2B marketers consider their organization to be extremely or very successful with content marketing
- 1751% of businesses that invest in content marketing publish content every day
- 18Content marketing rakes in conversion rates six times higher than other methods
- 1972% of marketers say that content marketing helps to educate the audience
- 20Startups that blog attract 126% more lead growth than those that do not
Interpretation
Content marketing has become the smart, cost-efficient bet: costing 62% less while producing over three times the leads and six times the conversions of outbound tactics, it drives engagement, awareness and demand, and when teams actually document strategy and blog consistently they see outsized ROI, which explains why most marketers are pouring budget into it even though relatively few claim to be highly successful.
