11 Content Marketing Statistics to Help You Crush Your 2020 Goals

• The #1 position earns 31.7% of all clicks
• The #2 position earns 24.7% of all clicks
• The #3 position earns 18.7% of all clicks
• The #4 position earns 13.6 % of all clicks
• The #5 position earns 9.5% of all clicks
• The #6 position earns 6.2% of all clicks
• The #7 position earns 4.5% of all clicks

It may not be obvious what these stats mean in terms of content marketing but, be assured, that they matter a great deal. Ranking high on Google’s organic search results can yield incredible results.

A goal of content marketing is to generate website traffic. Great online content, such as blog posts, reports, video tutorials, and lead magnets, are powerful conversion tools, but they can’t be effective if they’re not seen.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is integral to content marketing, as optimized content is more likely to rank higher on Google. High rankings translate into more site traffic. So content marketers, make sure you don’t underestimate the importance of SEO.

• You can earn 94% more page views for your articles by including relevant images
• Posts with images on Facebook receive 352% more engagement than links alone
• 67% of people say that product image quality is “very important” when deciding whether to buy a product

Instinctively, you may already understand that images are important. What you might not realize, however, is the degree to which the visuals you use can impact your success.

Content marketing statistics show that images are more memorable than text. Visuals also yield more page views on your website and greater engagement on social media. This means your prospective clients remember you and spend more time interacting with your product or brand. Images are also are integral to the product evaluation and buying process as 67% of buyers say they need to see a clear and compelling product image to decide whether to make a purchase.

• 22% of content is for mid-funnel
• 14% of content is produced for bottom-stage funnel
• 11% of content is produced for post-sale needs
• 3% of content is produced for other reasons

The customer journey is often described as a sales funnel. The top of the funnel focuses on generating awareness for products or services. The middle of the funnel is where prospective customers are familiar with the brand or product but aren’t ready to buy. They’re still gathering facts and evaluating their options. The bottom of the funnel is where prospective customers decide whether to make a purchase. What these content marketing statistics make clear is that most content marketing is directed toward top-of-the-funnel needs. Yet, content marketing can be advantageous throughout the customer’s buying journey.

• 69% use website analytics to research content marketing
• 64% use keyword research
• 53% use database analysis
• 49% use primary research
• 47% use sales team feedback
• 40% use secondary research

Coming up with great content isn’t always easy, but luckily there are many different sources to research content marketing ideas. The most popular is social media listening. A full 70% of B2C marketers find that trends and discussions in social media channels offer a gold mine of content marketing ideas. Other channels B2C markets use to generate content marketing ideas include web analytics, keyword research, database analysis, primary research, sales team feedback, and secondary research. Most B2C marketers use multiple avenues for researching content ideas.

• 38% of email recipients believe they are emailed too often*
• 25% report the marketer’s data about them is wrong
• 24% feel that emails are too wordy or poorly written
• 21% state that emails urge them to buy a product they’ve already purchased

*All stats refer to emails received in the workplace
While 56%5 of respondents say that email is still the preferred way to receive offers at work, they’re underwhelmed with the emails they’re receiving. Brands are boring the pants off of email recipients.

More than one-third of people report that they’re being bombarded with too many emails. Marketers attempts at personalization are less than impressive as well because 25% say the marketers have incorrect data about them, and 21% say they often receive offers for items they’ve already purchased. If that’s not bad enough, the emails are often wordy or poorly written. It looks like marketers have a long way to go to improve email marketing efforts, starting with being a lot more creative.

• Once opened, 61% of emails keep a reader interested for 8 seconds or more
• 23.5% of all emails only get skimmed, as is evidenced by an average engagement of 2 to 8 seconds
• 15% of all email messages capture a reader’s attention for less than 2 seconds

Once people open your email, on average, you’ll have 13.4 seconds to engage your reader. That’s 29%6 more time than seven years ago, but that’s not the full story because there’s more to learn from these content marketing statistics.

When developing emails, you need to keep in mind that there are three different levels of reader engagement. There’s the just-a-glance reader, the skim reader, and the full email reader. You’ll achieve the best results from your efforts if you make your lead-in content compelling and provide eye-catching headlines that ensure every type of email reader gains something from opening your emails.

• 41% of listeners are discovering products through various online sources including blogs and articles
• 24% discover podcasts through friends
• 16% discover podcasts within apps

Podcast listenership is skyrocketing, which means that podcasting is quickly becoming one of the most popular forms of content marketing. Millennials are the largest audience for podcasts as nearly a third7 of them listen to five or more podcasts a week. Podcasts are also becoming more popular with Generation Z.

The content marketing stats make it clear that the most popular way to draw listeners to a podcast is through online articles and blogs, although word-of-mouth is also a powerful driver for podcast listenership. The stats also show there’s money to be made with podcasts. Nearly 25%7 of podcast listeners say they’ve purchased a product that they learned about through a podcast ad.

• 80% watch how-to-tutorial videos
• 66% enjoy behind-the-scenes videos
• 62% view Interview videos
• 61% watch news coverage videos
• 59% enjoy creative inspiration videos
• 49% view motivational post videos

Instagram’s active daily user count is more than 1 billion strong.8 This is one of the many reasons why this social media platform is so popular as an avenue for posting new marketing content as well as means of promoting content marketing that’s hosted off the platform.

Where Instagram seems to shine the most lately, however, is in videos. Users spend more than two-thirds of their time on Instagram watching videos. Take heed, content marketers―if you want to extend your reach and impact with your content marketing, then it’s time to invest more time and effort in creating compelling videos.

• 66% of millennials engage with a brand after watching a video on social media
• 56% of millennials find videos more engaging than other content
• 46% of millennials prefer video for brand communication

These content marketing statistics further confirm that videos are in high demand. While videos are popular among all ages, millennials seem to be most drawn to videos; more than half find marketing or brand videos more interesting than other content and are more likely to engage with a brand after watching a video. Even better, millennials frequently make buying decisions after watching videos.

The lesson for brand and business marketers is that you need to get into the video marketing game. Simply put, video development is an essential content marketing technique for achieving success today, and that trend is expected to continue well into the future.

• 72% Social media advertising and promoted posts
• 66% Sponsorships
• 61% Search engine marketing (pay-per-click)
• 46% Banner ads promoting content like e-books and webinars
• 32% Partner emails promoting content like e-books and webinars
• 31% Native advertising and sponsored posts, not including social media platforms
• 14% Other

B2B marketers use various paid channels for advertising and distributing content. Social media platforms are the most popular distribution channel, which makes sense since social sites are extremely popular, and most offer the added benefit of precise audience targeting. Many brands work with influencers and sponsor posts to promote their brands and products. Influencer marketing is a highly effective way to increase brand awareness and drive sales.

The good news about these content marketing stats is that you are not limited to one way to get the word out about your content marketing offerings. It’s not a one-size-fits-all scenario as most successful companies employ multiple methods to distribute content to various audiences.

• 71% use white papers to research B2B purchase decisions
• 69% use third-party and analyst reports
• 66% use webinars
• 62% use infographics
• 49% use video or motion graphics
• 36% use interactive content

If you want to wow a B2B prospect, the best way to do that is through case studies. B2B buyers have a strong preference for using case studies to research purchase decisions. They appreciate seeing how a product or service is used by other companies and want to understand the trials and successes others have experienced using the product or service.

Case studies aren’t the only way to woo potential B2B buyers, however. White papers and webinars are also high on the list of preferred content formats. In fact, 75%10 of B2B buyers say they will gladly share more information about themselves and their companies in exchange for receiving webinar content.