New research reveals shifting preferences in video content consumption across generations.
According to Traackr’s 2025 US Influencer Marketing Impact Report, Gen Z was more likely to find long-form videos engaging than their millennial counterparts.
YouTube maintains its position as the leading platform for creator content consumption across both generational cohorts, while the remainder of the top five platforms show distinct preferences between age groups.
For Gen Z, the rankings follow Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Snapchat, while Millennials prefer Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X.
Compared to the previous year’s rankings, Instagram has moved up one position from third to second place overall, while Facebook has advanced from fourth to third. TikTok experienced the most significant change, dropping two positions from second to fourth place. X has fallen out of the top five entirely, and Snapchat has replaced it.
Source: Traackr
Gender-based analysis reveals additional platform preferences. Male-identifying consumers show higher engagement with YouTube and Reddit while female-identifying consumers demonstrate a stronger affinity for Pinterest and TikTok.
The research also indicates that 61% of consumers expressed willingness to try new social platforms if trusted influencers post there — an 8% increase from the previous year’s findings.
Video Format Preferences Signal Market Shift
While short-form video remains the most engaging content format overall, long-form video and live streaming have climbed up the rankings compared to the previous year’s report.
Gender analysis reveals additional distinctions in format preferences, with male-identifying consumers showing stronger engagement with long-form videos than female-identifying consumers. Conversely, female-identifying consumers report higher engagement rates with short-form video content than their male counterparts. The study classifies short videos as content under five minutes, while long-form videos exceed this threshold.
RJ Larese, VP of Talent and Influencer Marketing at Paramount, notes in the report that “2025 is going to be a big year for” long-form video, citing YouTube’s extension of Shorts to three minutes as an indicator of industry direction.
Larese suggests that longer content enables creators to “tell richer stories, dive deeper into their experiences, and build an emotional connection that isn’t possible in 90 seconds.” The report indicates this trend may also increase monetization through expanded ad placement options for both platforms and creators.
Content Type Preferences
The study identifies four primary content categories that drive engagement:
Funny/humorous content
Educational content
Advice/inspirational content
Product recommendations
Educational content is particularly strong among Millennial viewers, who are 6% more likely to find it engaging than Gen Z audiences.
Platform Usage for Commerce
The research reveals distinct platform preferences for different stages of the purchase journey:
For product research and information:
Gen Z: YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, Facebook
The report finds that 64% of consumers will not purchase from brands that conflict with their values, representing a 4% increase from the previous year’s data.
Source: Traackr
Market Implications
The research indicates that while short-form video maintains dominance, the market shows increasing receptivity to longer formats, particularly among younger audiences.
Traackr cites industry forecasts from EMARKETER, which projected a 14.7% increase in influencer marketing spending for 2024, reaching approximately $5.89 billion. In 2023, influencer marketing growth outpaced social ad spending by more than three times.
Traackr conducted the survey between September 24 and 28, 2024, sampling 1,000 individuals in the United States through the Typeform platform. The study maintains a margin of error of ±4%, with no additional weighting applied to the initial sample.
Dragomir is a Serbian freelance blog writer and translator. He is passionate about covering insightful stories and exploring topics such as influencer marketing, the creator economy, technology, business, and cyber fraud.
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New research reveals shifting preferences in video content consumption across generations.
According to Traackr’s 2025 US Influencer Marketing Impact Report, Gen Z was more likely to find long-form videos engaging than their millennial counterparts.
YouTube maintains its position as the leading platform for creator content consumption across both generational cohorts, while the remainder of the top five platforms show distinct preferences between age groups.
For Gen Z, the rankings follow Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Snapchat, while Millennials prefer Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X.
Compared to the previous year’s rankings, Instagram has moved up one position from third to second place overall, while Facebook has advanced from fourth to third. TikTok experienced the most significant change, dropping two positions from second to fourth place. X has fallen out of the top five entirely, and Snapchat has replaced it.
Source: Traackr
Gender-based analysis reveals additional platform preferences. Male-identifying consumers show higher engagement with YouTube and Reddit while female-identifying consumers demonstrate a stronger affinity for Pinterest and TikTok.
The research also indicates that 61% of consumers expressed willingness to try new social platforms if trusted influencers post there — an 8% increase from the previous year’s findings.
Video Format Preferences Signal Market Shift
While short-form video remains the most engaging content format overall, long-form video and live streaming have climbed up the rankings compared to the previous year’s report.
Gender analysis reveals additional distinctions in format preferences, with male-identifying consumers showing stronger engagement with long-form videos than female-identifying consumers. Conversely, female-identifying consumers report higher engagement rates with short-form video content than their male counterparts. The study classifies short videos as content under five minutes, while long-form videos exceed this threshold.
RJ Larese, VP of Talent and Influencer Marketing at Paramount, notes in the report that “2025 is going to be a big year for” long-form video, citing YouTube’s extension of Shorts to three minutes as an indicator of industry direction.
Larese suggests that longer content enables creators to “tell richer stories, dive deeper into their experiences, and build an emotional connection that isn’t possible in 90 seconds.” The report indicates this trend may also increase monetization through expanded ad placement options for both platforms and creators.
Content Type Preferences
The study identifies four primary content categories that drive engagement:
Educational content is particularly strong among Millennial viewers, who are 6% more likely to find it engaging than Gen Z audiences.
Platform Usage for Commerce
The research reveals distinct platform preferences for different stages of the purchase journey:
For product research and information:
For social commerce:
The report finds that 64% of consumers will not purchase from brands that conflict with their values, representing a 4% increase from the previous year’s data.
Source: Traackr
Market Implications
The research indicates that while short-form video maintains dominance, the market shows increasing receptivity to longer formats, particularly among younger audiences.
Traackr cites industry forecasts from EMARKETER, which projected a 14.7% increase in influencer marketing spending for 2024, reaching approximately $5.89 billion. In 2023, influencer marketing growth outpaced social ad spending by more than three times.
Traackr conducted the survey between September 24 and 28, 2024, sampling 1,000 individuals in the United States through the Typeform platform. The study maintains a margin of error of ±4%, with no additional weighting applied to the initial sample.
Get the full report here.