Content Marketing Statistics That Define the Industry in 2023

Content marketing is a type of marketing approach with a primary focus on creating and distributing consistent, valuable, and relevant content with the sole purpose of attracting a targeted audience who will convert.

The following statistics reveal just how effective content marketing is and present some of the latest trends in this field.

Top Content Marketing Statistics | Editor’s Choice

• There was a 13% increase in the digital marketing budget in 2020.
• The recent data reveals that 69.6% of marketers are actively investing in content marketing.
• The latest statistics reveal that content marketing costs 62% less than traditional marketing.
• Content marketing campaigns create an average ROI of $984,000 annually.
• In 2020, 45% of B2B content marketers stated that the COVID-19 pandemic made a moderate impact on their content marketing strategy.
• 86% of video marketers say video has increased traffic to their website in 2021.
• Around 62% of consumers are more likely to buy a product that has customer photos and videos.
• 46% of marketers revealed that their companies spent around $10,000 on content marketing efforts in 2019.

What Is Content Marketing?

Let’s start by explaining what content marketing is and why it is vital for digital marketing strategies.

In the past, launching a marketing campaign meant renting attention from viewers with offline strategies such as trade shows, print advertising, word of mouth marketing, radio, and television.

However, content marketing allowed marketers to become publishers who could build their own audience.

It also showed huge potential to solve many problems that traditional marketing couldn’t overcome like increasing the volume of organic search or lacking the customer response.

General Content Marketing Stats

Many businesses are abandoning traditional marketing methods and turning to content marketing to build their brand. ‘’Content is king’’ is already a well-known phrase among marketers, and many of them are actively using this strategy to attract an audience.
Let’s go through some general statistics about content marketing.

1. The 2020 digital marketing statistics reported a 13% increase in digital marketing budget compared to the previous year.

Marketing a business online has become a serious thing. Many companies worldwide recognized the importance of channels like content, social media, video, and SEO, and they are investing more money and resources.
As a result, the number of internet users is higher than ever, and there was a massive shift in the way people interact with businesses and buy products.

2. According to the most recent data on the importance of content marketing, 69.6% of marketers are actively investing in content marketing.

One of the greatest advantages of content marketing is building a brand reputation through quality content. Consumers develop their opinion about brands mainly by reading the brand’s content. If it engages or provides enough value, building trust will be easier with a targeted audience.
However, according to recent digital marketing statistics, the competition between marketers is also on the rise, and it’s a real challenge to stand out in the sea of content.

3. According to the latest content marketing cost statistics, traditional marketing costs 62% more than content marketing.

Outsourcing content marketing services has an extensive cost range. Content marketing professionals charge for their services from $2,000 to $50,000 each month. However, the deciding factor is how much original content a business wants to produce and publish monthly.

The following are the main steps to consider before creating the budget for content marketing strategy—content planning and governance, content creation, content promotion, content analytics, and content optimization.

4. Statistics on content marketing effectiveness reveal that 60% of marketers believe that content marketing helped them nurture subscribers in 2020.

When implemented correctly, content marketing can be a significant force for driving sales. A good and well-organized idea will help to attract customers and entice them to convert on a business website. Conversion can mean various things like buying a product, signing up for a newsletter, or downloading software.

5. 29% of B2B content marketers reported an increase in technology spending in the last 12 months of 2019.

It’s essential to perform high-quality, cost-effective, and efficient content marketing research to achieve the desired conversions. Well-performed research can be a crucial factor of a marketing campaign that could promote engagement, raise visibility, and provide a brand much-needed spotlight. Simply put, the research will help you find the best answers about how the crafted content works for people who are using it.

6. Internet users have access to around 4.39 billion pages of content globally.

Nowadays, the world revolves around truthful advertising. That’s why good content marketing is essential for business growth. Customers research and look for reviews before purchasing a product, and overall, tend to trust brands that have authority over specific topics. Businesses can achieve this authority through accurate and valuable content.
Any brand should aim to develop a connection with customers while they are in the research stage, as this is one of the best ways to win them over and gain their trust. However, it’s important to know that investing in content marketing isn’t a one-time thing. It’s necessary to keep improving constantly.

7. According to content marketing ROI statistics, the content marketing campaign creates an average ROI of $984,000 annually.

The most important information for all marketers is the return of investment (ROI). To reach the desired ROI, content creators need to win a fight with Google’s algorithm and attract website visitors. The main reason why some companies have so much success with content marketing while others have none is the level of content quality.

8. B2B content marketing statistics reveal that 87% of B2B marketers stated content marketing helped their organizations achieve brand awareness.

In 2020, Statista’s research department surveyed B2B marketers in North America. The results indicated that 81% of respondents believed that their organizations managed to build credibility amongst customers with the help of content marketing. In addition, 75% of them revealed that they could generate leads, while 68% stated that they managed to build loyalty with existing clients.
However, only 45% of marketers reported that content marketing can support their organization in launching a new product.

9. The 2020 content marketing statistics show that 45% of B2B content marketers said that the pandemic has had a moderate impact on their content marketing strategy.

One thing is for sure, since the pandemic hit, the time people spend on the internet has reached the highest level ever. As a result, ecommerce businesses have seen an increase in conversions and revenues. Many B2B organizations adjusted effectively and quickly and jumped aboard the train that focuses on B2B buyers who use online sources to make their purchases.

The current content marketing trends reveal that over 36% of consumers in the US made an impulse buy that was based on an ad since the beginning of 2020. Also, many consumers stated that they purchased from a brand they wouldn’t usually purchase from.

10. Organic LinkedIn usage by B2B marketers increased to 96% in the last 12 months.

Almost every B2B marketer who distributes social media content uses LinkedIn. This platform proved to provide the best overall content marketing results for many businesses. According to content marketing statistics for 2021, content became the main driver of brand awareness. When it’s done right, the desired revenue follows.

The last 12 months saw a swift change in marketing strategies and the way companies do business. Many of them started to rely their campaigns more on social media. LinkedIn was the first choice for many B2B marketers both for organic and paid distribution. More than 500 million users registered on this platform with the sole purpose of discovering relevant content or creating and sharing content.

11. Content writing statistics from 2021 report that 78% of B2B marketers use keyword research tools for SEO while creating content.

It’s never enough for marketers to rely solely on chunks of text for online visibility. That’s why it is seemingly impossible to separate search engine optimization (SEO) and content marketing from one another. As an internet marketing strategy, SEO writing represents a way of increasing the site’s organic visibility and the rankings in the search engine results.

Visual Content Statistics in 2021

The audio and visual content is best used on social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, etc. Through these marketing channels and media content, marketing strategies show their full potential.
Here’s some interesting data in this field.

12. Visual content statistics indicate 86% of video marketers consider videos have increased traffic to their website in 2021.

People tend to get tired browsing through chunks of text, and that’s why marketers need to spice things up with videos. Videos aren’t just there to spruce up the article. They are a useful tool that helps potential buyers learn about a product or service.

Millennials are the most targeted group of digital marketing campaigns—since the start of the pandemic, 43% of millennials spend more time watching video content.

13. Video content marketing stats reveal that 60% of businesses use video as a marketing tool in 2021.

Videos are part of visual content marketing. They’re effective view drivers and often preferred by marketers as well. Many marketers focus on making YouTube videos for content marketing, while others focus primarily on posting videos on the brand’s Facebook page as part of their digital marketing campaign.

The bottom line is that video content should appear more in every content marketing campaign, regardless of the social media channel marketers choose.

14. Social media marketing ROI statistics for 2020 show that 30% of marketers believe they are able to measure social media ROI.

The ROI is the best way to find out if the business is allocating its budget effectively. Whether a marketer is a part of a small or big business, the recipe for improving ROI stays the same.
Focusing a digital marketing campaign on social media where billions of people are present will undoubtedly help achieve the desired results. Internet users search for product inspiration on their social media channels and trust social media sites to deliver brand information.

15. According to visual content marketing stats, nearly 62% of consumers were more likely to buy a product if customer photos and videos were available.

Reviews are an essential aspect of the consumer shopping process. This is even more true today because ecommerce became a trendy way of purchasing products. So, every customer now demands to see more visuals from the brand and other customer’s experiences.

This way, it is possible to look at a product better and go beyond text and product descriptions that often reveal only a tiny portion of information.

Value Of Content Marketing Through Statistics

Nowadays, valuable content is the essence of successful digital marketing. Creating content requires special attention and focus—high-quality content is genuine and helpful, but at the same time clear and compelling. Any combination of these attributes will form content that hits the spot with current and potential customers.

16. The 2020 data on how content marketing drives sales reveals that Facebook’s user-generated content influenced around 26.4% of purchasing decisions.

User-generated content (UGC) on social media has a strong influence on user purchasing habits. This is especially true for Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. As for other social media platforms, TikTok, Snapchat, and Twitter’s content have the most negligible influence on sales.

According to a Bazaarvoice/Savanta survey, 17.4% of respondents stated that Instagram’s UGC affected their shopping decisions, while 16.8% said the same for YouTube.

17. 60% of content marketing budget spend should be allocated for content promotion and no more than 40% for content creation.

Creating the best strategy is just half-job done because, in the end, everything comes down to proper budget distribution. In the past, the 80/20 rule was followed as the best ratio between content promotion and creation.

However, social media fever changed how internet users consume content, and the content promotion and creation ratio followed this change. For maximum impact, this ratio should be 50/50.

18. Content marketing ROI by industry data reveals that the energy and oil & gas industry averaged $3.1 million of new revenue in three years.

Businesses that belong to the energy and oil & gas industry often fail to think forward in their marketing strategies. They usually make connections through networking or recommendations, but they might also be amongst the few companies in the industry, so customers reach out to them.
However, times are changing, and traditional businesses are losing clients because of better promotion on digital channels. This is where content marketing proved to be very successful in bringing a compelling ROI. The main goal of content marketing for this industry is targeting decision-makers with trend data, in-depth reports, forecasts, and case studies.

19. According to 2019 content marketing facts, 46% of marketers stated their company spent up to $10,000 on content marketing efforts.

Content marketing involves many processes, including content research, analytics, promotion, and more, so the final audit will depend on the size and goal of the company. The total cost of a content marketing strategy can range between 500 thousand and five million US dollars.

Even though many companies are finally seeing the potential that content marketing brings, data shows that only 17% of companies worldwide invested between $10,000 and $25,000 in their content marketing campaigns in 2019.

20. The content marketing software market’s CAGR will increase by 18.34% until 2028.

Content marketing software makes it possible for marketers to manage content. This type of software assists organizations with efficient coordination of the content. The main difference between content marketing software and other marketing methods is making predictions and comparing based on already known customer needs for information.

There is already a high demand for this software because of its ability to improve the efficiency of the process, especially when combined with advanced technologies.

Content Marketing Statistics│The Takeaway

2021 made the content marketing field more competitive than ever. Staying on top of the job requires cutting through overcrowded search engines and social media by prioritizing individualized experiences to connect with a targeted audience.

One of the best ways to achieve ‘’above average’’ is by putting some extra effort into creating quality content. However, the first step of the content creation process is to know what’s popular amongst internet users. That’s why every serious marketer needs a SERP tracker.

For example, SerpWatch offers marketers an option to track keywords that will help their content rank well on targeted search engines. In addition, SerpWatch’s local tracking feature is incredibly convenient for businesses with multiple locations and allows tracking local keywords based on ZIP code, city, and state.

Content marketing stats for 2021 have reported that buyers often recognize valuable content and award it by sharing it with their network. Therefore, creating a thorough strategy and optimizing content for a targeted audience can be the real difference-maker.

Frequently Asked Questions│FAQ

What is the value of content marketing?

The value of content marketing is in the association between businesses and customers, allowing companies to connect with the audience who resist and mistrust traditional advertising. However, it is also essential to create engaging and high-quality content because customers expect that from their favorite brands.

In the past, content marketing consisted of surveys or letter and email marketing campaigns. However, the rise of online shopping and increased usage of search engines made content marketing more valuable than ever. Although, it’s important to remember that quality content promotes a reliable brand message no matter the platform and attracts a loyal audience.

How does content marketing drive sales?

Valuable content is often the crucial factor that makes consumers keep coming back. Content marketing drives sales by choosing a targeted audience and providing a reliable and steady flow of desired content.

Even though creating valuable and informative content requires more investment, it also increases sales leads and the number of website visitors. If visitors recognize the content is worthy enough, they will spend more time browsing through other pages on a website too. This way, existing and new visitors are more likely to become loyal customers.

How much does content marketing cost?

The costs for content marketing depend on the size and goals of the business, resources, and marketing budget. The costs can vary from $5,000–$50,000 monthly. However, this type of marketing is very cost-effective when appropriately used.

The latest data indicates that content marketing generates three times as many leads and drives six times higher conversion rates than other marketing strategies. However, it’s not possible to entirely predict the costs even with a detailed analysis. The best way to succeed with a content marketing strategy is to leave space for refining and adapting to customers’ feedback.

Is content marketing effective?

Content marketing is becoming a gold standard of the digital marketing industry which helps customers better understand products and businesses. Also, it allows them to understand how a business can solve their problems and allows them to decide if the solution is valuable before they make a purchase.

In recent years, there has been an undeniable growth of content in the US, with nearly 30 million blogs available—the entire world is seeing roughly five times that number.

How much is the content marketing industry worth?

This industry is divided into five regions globally—North America, LAMEA, Asia Pacific, and Europe.

According to a study by Research Dive, the North American region will account for $42,053.7 million by the end of 2026. On the other hand, the industry of the Asia-Pacific region is estimated to grow faster at a 15.3% CAGR.

As can be seen, the content marketing industry keeps growing every year. The latest available content marketing statistics reveal that this industry revenue stands at $42.15 billion. The Covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly contributed to the current and upcoming rise globally.

Sources: Biteable, Forbes, Content Marketing Institute, Data Bridge, eMarketer, First Page Sage, Hubspot, Marketing Charts, Statista, Statista, Statista, Statista, World Wide Web Size, WordStream, Wyzowl