The world of content marketing has come a long way since businesses first started putting information online. As technology continually improves, the smartest content marketers are taking advantage of every new format available and testing the waters of new content marketing frontiers.
In 2019, we saw more frequent and higher-impact Google Algorithm changes, which forced more sites to focus on mobile-first best practices and on improving trust and expertise signals.
TikTok continued to climb the social media ranks as the third most downloaded app (surpassed only by WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger), presenting new opportunities for hungry marketers. We also saw voice content making a push that’s sure to persist as people continue to add smart devices like Alexa and Google Home into their lives.
As the landscape continues to change, so should content marketing strategy. The businesses that survive and thrive will be those that are most in tune with the latest trends. Knowing where and how to spend content budget effectively is a must. To help keep you informed, we’ve put together a rundown of all the top content marketing statistics and trends that you need to know in 2020.
Click on a statistic to get a closer look.
CHAPTER 1
Content Marketing Trends
56% of businesses reported they want to increase their content creation spending.Content Marketing Institute 
61% of marketers ranked improving “their ability to measure and analyze their marketing impact” as a vital priority. 2018 Demand Generation Benchmark Survey Report
92% of marketers reported that their company views content as a business asset. Content Marketing Institute 
70% prioritize content quality over quantity. Point Visible
The biggest challenges for content marketing are reportedly lack of data (27%) and lack of strategy (28%). DMA
36.7% of marketers report that creating engaging visual content consistently is one of their top struggles. Venngage
38% of content marketers rate their content marketing strategy as average.
Only 9% believe their strategy is excellent. SEMrush
Only 9% believe their strategy is excellent. SEMrush
Changes to Search Algorithms is the top concern (61%) of content marketing organizations, followed by social media algorithm changes at 45%. Content Marketing Institute
Stock photography (40%) and infographics (37%) are the most frequently used visual content. Venngage 
76% of content marketers use organic traffic as a key metric to measuring content success. Only 22% use backlinks. SEMrush
36% of content marketing teams considered implementing more “how to” guides and educational content as an efficient tactic.SEMrush
94% of content marketers are using social media as a distribution channel for their content. SEMrush 
CHAPTER 2
Mobile Statistics
53% of mobile users will close a website if it takes more than three seconds to load. Think With Google
57% of users report they wouldn’t recommend a business with a poorly designed mobile site. Form Stack 
3 in 4 smartphone owners turn to search first to address their immediate needs Think With Google
Mobile traffic has a 125% growth rate (vs. 12% rate for desktop traffic). Issuu
CHAPTER 3
B2B Content Marketing Statistics
Email campaigns (87%) and educational content (77%) are the top content marketing methods B2B marketers use to nurture their audience. Content Marketing Institute
Infographics, photos, charts and other image content have seen a 56% increase for B2B marketers in 2019 in comparison to the previous year. Content Marketing Institute 
63% of content marketers use their content strategy to build loyalty with their existing clients. Content Marketing Institute
Social media (95%), blog posts/short articles (89%) and email newsletter (81%) are the top three types of content B2B marketers used in 2018/2019. Content Marketing Institute 
64% of content marketers prioritize building relationships with influencers, like brand advocates and journalists. Content Marketing Institute
Only 48% of B2B marketers frequently craft content based on the specific stages to the customer journey. Of the most successful content marketers, 74% do. Content Marketing Institute 
Only 66% of B2B marketers frequently prioritize their audience’s needs over their sales message when creating content. Of the most successful content marketers, 88% do. Content Marketing Institute
50% of B2B marketers outsource at least one content marketing activity. Companies with 1k+ employees are more likely to outsource marketing (71%). Content Marketing Institute
CHAPTER 4
B2C Content Marketing Statistics
Social media (94%), blog posts/short articles (80%) and email newsletters (74%) are the top three types of content B2C marketers used in 2018/2019. Content Marketing Institute
B2C marketers dedicate an average 26% of their total marketing budget towards content marketing. The most successful content marketers dedicate 40%. Content Marketing Institute
Only 33% of B2C content marketers reported always utilizing data in their distribution strategies.Conductor 
There has been a 69% increase in audio/visual content usage for B2C marketers from 2017—2018. Content Marketing Institute
CHAPTER 5
Email Marketing Statistics
iPhone Mail (29%) and Gmail (27%) are the two most popular ways to read email. Litmus
Personalized subject lines in email outreach increased the unique open rates by 27% and lead to an 11% higher
click-to-open rate. Experian Marketing Services
click-to-open rate. Experian Marketing Services
Segmented email campaigns achieve 14.31% higher open rates than non-segmented email campaigns. MailChimp
72% of consumers report that they are more inclined to open an email that offers a discount. Campaign Monitor 
86% of professionals prefer to use email when communicating for business purposes. Hubspot
40% of consumers prefer that brand emails be more informative (and less promotional). Adobe Campaign
21% responded emails that aren’t optimized for mobile when asked about the most annoying thing when reading an email from a brand on their smartphone. Adobe Campaign
CHAPTER 6
Video Marketing Statistics
43% of consumers will decide if they want to watch a video until the end in the first 15 seconds. Hubspot
Millennials are the generation that consumes the most videos. 75% of consumers aged 18-34 watch videos at least once a day. Hubspot 
78% of consumers reported that they are happy with or want to see more videos on their social feeds. Hubspot
YouTube is the consumer’s leading source of video content in the U.S. at 75%, followed by Facebook at 64%. Hubspot
97% of consumers and online marketers report that video helps customers understand their product. Wyzowl 
45% of consumers say that authoritative content makes a brand video feel authentic. Animoto
26% of consumers are less likely to finish a video if they need to turn their phones horizontally to watch. Animoto 
39% of viewers would never watch a video from a brand again if they had a negative viewing experience on mobile. Animoto
44% of consumers choose to watch live video from brands and other businesses once per week. Animoto
64% of consumers report that watching a marketing video on Facebook has influenced a purchase decision. Hubspot 
80% report an increase in dwell time on their site if it has video content. Wyzowl
56% of millenials watch video content right before bed, compared to only 38% of the general population. Singles are also 70% more likely to watch videos before going to bed than married people.Hubspot 
67% of marketers reported boosting or advertising their videos on Facebook in 2016/2017. Hubspot
Consumers prefer video content that is humorous, educational or related to a social issue or cause. Hubspot
B2B marketers have increased their audio and visual content by 64% in 2019 in comparison to the previous year. Content Marketing Institute 
27% of men watch branded YouTube videos 5 times a day, compared to 17% of women. Animoto
CHAPTER 7
Blogging Statistics
While 40% of content marketers most frequently used stock photography in 2019, only 13% reported to reach their marketing goals with these visuals. Use of original graphics helped 40% of marketers reach their goals. Venngage
Only 32% of bloggers reported utilizing analytics for every article when tracking blog performance. Orbit Media 
38% of bloggers who spend more 6+ hours on writing a post report “strong results”. Orbit Media
The average blog post published in 2019 is 1236 words long. Bloggers who write 2000+ words (55%) report the “strongest results.” Orbit Media 
In 2019, 24% of bloggers published new posts on a weekly basis. Orbit Media
Marketers who prioritize marketing efforts (e.g. making blogging a serious priority) are 13 times more likely to see positive ROI. Hubspot
47% of bloggers typically include two or three images in their posts. Only 3% report of including ten or more. Orbit Media 
55% of marketers say blog content creation is their number one inbound marketing priority. Hubspot
35% of blogger reported to conduct and publish original research in 2019. The previous year it was only 25%. Orbit Media
Long-form content (3000–10,000 words) gets shared more than short-form content. OkDork
90% of typical blog posts contain images, while only
60% contain lists and
59% statistics. Orbit Media
60% contain lists and
59% statistics. Orbit Media
58% of bloggers reported that they collaborated with influencers on 10-50% of their posts in 2019. State of Inbound
69% of bloggers are
aged 25–44. ConvertKit
aged 25–44. ConvertKit
CHAPTER 8
Podcast Statistics
Consumers from ages 35–54 are the most common monthly podcast listeners. Edison Research
Monthly podcast listeners subscribe to an average of seven different podcasts. Edison Research
50% of homes report being fans of at least one podcast and 22% consider themselves “avid” fans. Nielsen
27% of monthly podcast consumers (18+ years old) have attended a four year college. 34% have attained some grad school or advanced degree. Podcast Insights
17% of marketers plan to incorporate podcasts into their content marketing strategy. State of Inbound
Comedy (36%) and news (23%) were the most popular podcast genres during the third quarter of 2019. Edison Research 
43% of monthly podcast users listen to an entire podcast episode. Edison Research