Video is a mainstream marketing channel: 91% of businesses use it, and 82% of video marketers say it delivers good ROI, according to Wyzowl’s 2026 survey. Those figures describe what respondents report—not proof that video alone caused better results. For 2026, the evidence points to continued investment, wider use of AI tools, and a practical need to match each video to a specific audience and business goal.
How many businesses use video marketing in 2026?
Wyzowl reports that 91% of businesses use video as a marketing tool, while 93% say video is important to their overall strategy. Its 2026 findings came from 266 unique respondents surveyed in late 2025, including marketing professionals and online consumers. Wyzowl says its trend data spans 12 consecutive years.
These are survey findings, not a census of every business. They show how common video is among respondents and how they view its strategic importance; they do not mean that every business uses video in the same way or at the same scale.
What is the reported ROI of video marketing?
In Wyzowl’s 2026 survey, 82% of video marketers say video gives them good ROI. Respondents also report gains across several marketing outcomes:
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- 93% report increased understanding of their product or service.
- 93% report increased brand awareness.
- 85% report increased lead generation.
- 83% report increased sales.
- 82% report increased web traffic.
These are marketers’ reported results, not causal estimates. They do not establish that video by itself produced each gain, or that a typical campaign will achieve the same outcome. ROI depends on what a business counts as a return, how it measures costs, the audience reached, and whether the video is supported by distribution and a clear next step.
For a useful internal measurement, choose the outcome before production and pair it with a metric: reach or views for awareness, completion or retention for viewing quality, clicks and qualified leads for acquisition, and attributed sales or revenue for conversion. Compare results against the campaign’s cost and an appropriate baseline rather than treating views as proof of financial return.
How much are businesses spending on video?
The U.S. digital-video advertising market is projected to exceed $80 billion in 2026, with spending growing 11% year over year, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). This is a U.S. advertising-spend projection, not a measure of worldwide video budgets or the amount an individual company should spend. Wyzowl separately reports that 92% of marketers plan to spend the same amount or more on video in 2026.
Wistia’s 2026 State of Video draws on more than 900 professionals and analysis of 13 million videos and 79 million viewing hours. In that study, 41% of companies said they spent under $20,000 on video promotion and advertising in 2025, while 28% said they spent more than $20,000. These are reported 2025 company spending levels, not a recommended budget or a forecast for 2026; the figures also do not describe production spending alone.
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Set a budget by separating the work into production and distribution, then decide whether the goal calls for organic publishing, paid promotion, or both. A modest production budget can still support a focused test; paid reach can expand distribution, but it does not guarantee engagement or sales. Use the budget range that your goals and measurement plan can justify rather than treating market growth as a spending target.
Which video platforms do businesses use, and which do they rate effective?
Wyzowl’s 2026 survey reports the following platform usage and perceived effectiveness among businesses. “Effective” is respondents’ assessment, not a controlled comparison of platform performance.
Rank #3
| Platform | Businesses using it | Businesses rating it effective |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube | 82% | 69% |
| 70% | 50% | |
| 69% | 56% | |
| 66% | 55% |
YouTube leads this group in reported usage and effectiveness, but the figures alone cannot identify the best channel for a particular company. Choose based on where the intended audience can be reached, what format the campaign needs, and what the team can measure. A platform that supports discovery may serve awareness; a channel suited to professional audiences may fit business-to-business education or lead generation. Validate the choice with campaign-specific results instead of assuming survey ratings predict your own return.
How long should a marketing video be?
There is no single length established as optimal by these surveys. Wyzowl reports that 71% of respondents prefer marketing videos in the range of 30 seconds to two minutes. HubSpot’s cited survey reports a 30-to-60-second preference from 51% of respondents. These are different survey ranges, not a head-to-head test or a universal rule.
Use the shortest length that answers the viewer’s question and supports the desired action. A concise social clip may be suited to quick discovery, while a product explanation can need more time to clarify a complicated offer. Check retention and completion alongside clicks or conversions: a short video that fails to explain the offer is not necessarily more effective than a longer one.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How are AI tools changing video marketing?
Wyzowl reports that 63% of video marketers have used AI video tools. The figure measures reported use, not how frequently the tools are used, how much work they replace, or whether their use improves campaign outcomes.
The IAB reports that nearly two-thirds of digital-video ad buyers use generative AI for video creative. It also reports that in 2026, 21% have live agentic AI campaigns, 20% are testing them, and 25% plan to use them. These are reported buyer adoption stages for agentic campaigns, rather than a claim that AI-generated video is the norm across all businesses.
For a marketing team, AI can be considered as part of a workflow—not as a substitute for deciding the message, audience, and success metric. Assess whether a tool improves a task your team needs to do, and review generated material before publication for accuracy and suitability. The adoption figures do not establish that AI use automatically raises ROI.
Best Value
What do viewers say they want from brand video?
Wyzowl’s 2026 survey reports several audience attitudes that help explain the demand for video:
- 96% have watched an explainer video to learn about a product or service.
- 85% say a video has convinced them to buy a product or download software.
- 84% want to see more brand video in 2026.
- 89% say video quality affects their trust in a brand.
These are respondents’ reported experiences and preferences, not a guarantee that a particular video will persuade or build trust. For marketers, the practical implication is to make the content useful and credible: explain the offer clearly, keep production quality appropriate to the brand, and make the next step easy to understand.
Quick Recap
How to turn the 2026 statistics into a video plan
- Set one primary objective. Decide whether the video is meant to build awareness, explain a product, generate leads, or support sales. The reported outcomes differ, so avoid judging every video by the same metric.
- Choose a platform for the audience and format. Use the Wyzowl usage and effectiveness figures as context, then test a channel against your own audience and goal.
- Choose length to fit the explanation. Treat the Wyzowl and HubSpot preference ranges as survey evidence, not a mandatory duration. Review retention and action metrics together.
- Budget for both making and distributing the video. Decide how much production and promotion the objective warrants, and distinguish paid reach from organic publishing when reviewing results.
- Measure the outcome that matters. Track a relevant KPI—such as qualified leads or attributable sales for conversion goals—in addition to views or engagement.
- Use AI selectively and review the result. Adoption is widespread enough to merit consideration, but the survey figures do not prove that any specific AI tool will improve performance.
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