50 Content Creation Community Statistics

The w50 Mind Blowing Content Creation Community Statisticsay companies approach content creation is changing. With the growth of freelancers and the gig economy, marketers can find more opportunities in outsourcing content marketing than ever before. Freelancers are no longer looked to for cheap, low-quality content; they’re becoming an important part of the marketing department. We built the nDash Content Community platform as a response to this change.

Don’t worry; we weren’t reading tea leaves to make our predictions. The following are 50 content community statistics that have helped us see where the marketing and freelance industries are heading and help marketers take advantage of the trend:

Content Marketing Statistics

  1. According to the Content Marketing Institute, 70% of companies plan to increase the amount of content they create in 2017.
  2. Half (51%) of marketers plan to increase spending on content marketing in the next year.
  3. Only 35% of companies that have a content marketing strategy include the ability to scale their content over time and grow with their organization.
  4. Of the businesses that saw increased success with content marketing this year, 85% attribute it to a more efficient, higher-quality content creation system.
  5. 41% of content creators said gaining a better understanding of their audience was a top priority in 2016.
  6. 52% of marketers support 2 to 4 roles and buyer personas with dedicated content.
  7. Nearly half (48%) of marketers support 3 to 5 buying stages with dedicated content.
  8. A top priority for 65% of content creators is to gain a better understanding of what content is effective and what isn’t.
  9. According to the Content Marketing Institute, 80% of marketers have a content marketing strategy, but only 40% of those companies document their strategy.
  10. According to eMarketer, 60% of marketers create at least one piece of content each day.
  11. According to the Content Marketing Institute, 35% of B2B marketers are challenged with producing a variety of content.
  12. In HubSpot’s State of Inbound 2016 report, 60% of marketers said a top inbound priority this year is blog content creation.
  13. According to HubSpot, the top inbound marketing priorities this year are growing SEO/organic presence (66%); blog content creation (60%); content distribution/amplification (50%); marketing automation (44%); interactive content creation (41%); and long-form (ebooks, whitepapers) (33%).

Content Sources Statistics

  1. 55% of B2B organizations have a small (or one-person marketing team that serves the entire organization.
  2. 63% of people find blogs with multiple authors to be more credible.
  3. In their recent State of Inbound 2016 study, HubSpot found that every source of content, from guest posters to freelance writers, has increased in use this year.
  4. Staff writers were used by 71% of companies in 2016 compared to 41% in 2015, 73%
  5. Executives contribute content at 31% of companies this year compared to only 18% in 2015
  6. Freelance writers were used by 23% of marketers in 2016 compared to only 13% in 2015
  7. Agency Partners are found at 19% of organizations vs. 10% in 2015
  8. The use of guest posts increased to 14% in 2016 from 8% in 2015
  9. Agency Partner use increased by 90% in 2016.
  10. The use of freelance writers increased by 77% this year.
  11. Guest post use increased by 75% in 2016.

Freelance Industry Statistics

  1. There are currently 53.7 million freelancers in the U.S.
  2. It’s predicted that, by 2020, 40% of the workforce – that’s approximately 60 million people – will be working as freelancers.
  3. In fact, over one-third of all U.S. workers qualify as freelancers.
  4. 65% of freelancers believe the career path is more respected than it was 3 years ago.
  5. Over three-fourths (77%) believe the best days of the freelance job market are still ahead.
  6. 43% of freelance writers are looking for new writing jobs every day.
  7. A Millennial Branding study found that 72% of Gen Z want to start their own business.
  8. 87% say the talent level among freelancers is comparable to that of permanent employees.
  9. All net employment growth in the U.S. since 2005 has come from “alternative labor arrangements.”
  10. Independent Contractors earn a 17% hourly wage premium but have 28% lower weekly earnings due to their working fewer hours than a comparable full-time employee.

Use of Freelancers (Content Creation Community Statistics)

  1. 85% of companies are outsourcing to contingent workers.
  2. A recent study by Fieldglass found in 2015, the average company’s workforce was 20% freelance workers.
  3. Companies that foster creativity are three times more likely to see a 10% growth in revenue year to year compared to companies that do not.
  4. 45% of business owners say they’ve used freelancers to expand into new markets.
  5. 50% say they’ve used freelancers to work on specific projects.
  6. 90% say they think that supplementing their workforce with freelancers gives them a competitive advantage.
  7. 95% of businesses now view the freelance workforce as a key element to developing and running a successful business.
  8. According to ClickZ’s The State of Creative Agency Land, 80% of respondents work in agencies that are partially staffed by freelancers, and 15% said that freelancers make up half of their workforce or more.
  9. 27% of companies outsource to cut costs.
  10. 90% of businesses cited outsourcing as crucial to their growth.
  11. Outsourcing can increase productivity and competitiveness 10- to 100-fold.

Outsourcing Challenges (Content Creation Community Statistics)

  1. Of businesses whose content marketing success stagnated in 2016, 49% cite content creation challenges.
  2. Of businesses whose content marketing success decreased in 2016, 47% cite content creation challenges.
  3. Improving the efficiency and productivity of freelance writers is a top priority of 42% of organizations.
  4. According to Aberdeen research, 40% of all organizations said they have low visibility into the use of non-employee workers.
  5. Nearly 50% of organizations have lost independent contractor talent due to poor engagement strategies or processes.

What other content community statistics have you seen? Share them with us, and we’ll include them in the next update!