Snapchat has published a new study which looks at evolving video consumption behaviors, particularly among younger audiences, and provides recommendations on how businesses can align their content efforts with these shifts.

The report is based on research conducted by The National Research Group, and incorporates responses from over N=1,000 respondents aged 13-35 in the US – while Snap has also produced localized versions for the UK and Saudi Arabia as well.

And there are some interesting insights – here’s a look at the highlights:

First off, Snapchat notes the rise in media consumption via smartphone, which has changed drastically over the last six years:

As per Snapchat:

“Premium content is driving the surge in mobile video – daily engagement has grown 40% in 2020, and 1 in 2 consumers enjoy premium content on their smartphone every day. Gen Z and Millennials are also spending more minutes with mobile entertainment, with 73% of consumers watching more video on their smartphone than they did a year ago.”

This is important to note, because while most people are aware of such behavioral shifts, it’s relevant to underline the significance of such in more recent times, when social media was already largely ubiquitous.

Most people consider technological advances in more broad terms – ‘things are a lot different to what they were before smartphones’, for example. But it’s also important to note that even on a smaller comparative range, consumption behaviors have changed rapidly, which needs to be factored into any effective content and marketing plan.

Indeed, on this, Snapchat identifies the current era as the shift to ‘Premium mobile video’.

And it has a range of stats to back this up:

These, again, are key shifts to note, especially if you’re looking to reach younger audiences. People are now highly engaged on mobile devices, and as such, they’re looking to alternative content formats more aligned with smaller screen presentation.

As you can see here, consumption behavior around all video content forms is up, but short-form, user-generated video is the highest amongst this cohort, which would largely be facilitated by the rise of the Stories format.

That points to new opportunities, and new considerations in how businesses connect. Snapchat says that the key elements of engaging mobile video content are:

‘Personal’ is a big one for Snap – according to the research, Snapchat is the app which best facilities a sense of community, aligning with its more private, intimate use case.

In addition to this, Snapchat also shares insight into the most popular mobile video genres among this user group.

As you can see, there’s a heap of interesting insight in the report, which will no doubt be beneficial for any business looking to maximize their content engagement, not only on Snap, but with younger audiences more generally. 

It’s definitely worth a look – you can download the full “20/20 Vision for Mobile Video” report here.