Ijharul Islam
The most common types of marketing video are social media videos, explainers, customer story videos, presentations, video ads, teasers, product demos, sales videos, customer service videos, training, onboarding and app demos. In Wyzowl's 2026 survey of video marketers, social media videos (69%) and explainers (68%) led, followed by customer stories (57%) and presentations and ads (48% each).
Each type does a different job in the funnel. Below, each one gets its stage, a sensible length, where it works best and the cheapest way to make it. More planning guides are in our video marketing guides.
The short answer
Match the video to the buyer's stage: social clips, teasers and ads for awareness; explainers, webinars and presentations for consideration; product demos, customer stories and sales videos for the decision; onboarding, training and support videos after the sale. Keep top-of-funnel videos under a minute and let demos and webinars run as long as the task needs.
Key takeaways
- Social media videos (69%) and explainers (68%) are the two types most marketers make (Wyzowl 2026).
- Product demos (39%) and onboarding videos (23%) are made less often but sit closest to revenue and retention.
- One recording can feed several types: a webinar becomes clips, a demo and a help video.
- B2B teams lean on LinkedIn, webinars and demos; B2C on short social video and ads.
- Real customer videos need real customers: don't script or simulate them.
Disclosure: we make QuickVeed and show how to do this in it, along with other ways. Details about other products come from their public pages, checked in October 2026 and linked at the end.
What types of marketing videos do businesses make?
Share of video marketers who make each type, from Wyzowl's State of Video Marketing 2026 (respondents could pick several):
| Type | Share of video marketers | Funnel stage | Typical length | Where it works |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social media videos | 69% | Awareness | 15 to 60 s | Reels, TikTok, Shorts, LinkedIn |
| Explainer videos | 68% | Awareness to consideration | 60 to 120 s | Homepage, YouTube, sales emails |
| Customer story videos | 57% | Decision | 1 to 3 min | Case-study pages, sales decks |
| Presentation videos | 48% | Consideration | 5 to 20 min | YouTube, LinkedIn, events |
| Video ads | 48% | Awareness | 6 to 30 s | Meta, YouTube, TikTok ads |
| Teaser videos | 45% | Awareness | Under 30 s | Social, email before a launch |
| Product demos | 39% | Decision | 2 to 10 min | Product pages, sales calls |
| Sales videos | 37% | Decision | 1 to 3 min | Landing pages, one-to-one outreach |
| Customer service videos | 24% | Retention | 1 to 5 min | Help centre |
| Training videos | 23% | Retention | 3 to 10 min | Academy, LMS |
| Customer onboarding videos | 23% | Retention | 1 to 3 min each | In-app, welcome emails |
| App demo videos | 17% | Decision | 30 s to 2 min | App stores, product pages |
Shares are Wyzowl's; stages and lengths are our guidance from how each type is used, not survey data.
Awareness: social clips, teasers and ads
Top-of-funnel videos have to earn attention in the first seconds, so they're short, vertical and captioned. Start with a hook (how to write a hook for short videos), keep one idea per clip, and cut each to the platform's sweet spot (best video length per platform). The cheapest source is footage you already have: repurposing one long video gives a week of clips. Ads add a call to action and must meet each network's specs, such as Facebook video ad specs.
Consideration: explainers, presentations and webinars
Once people know you exist, they want to understand how you'd solve their problem. Explainers do it in 60 to 120 seconds: how to make an explainer video and explainer video cost cover the routes. Presentations and webinars go deeper and suit B2B, where 56% of video marketers have used webinars (Wyzowl). Record once, then turn the webinar into social clips.
Decision: demos, customer stories and sales videos
Near the purchase, buyers want proof. A product demo shows the product doing the job: how to make a product demo video has a script. Customer story videos let a real customer explain the before and after in their own words; film them with the customer's consent and don't script their opinions. The FTC requires endorsements to reflect the endorser's honest experience and paid relationships to be disclosed. Sales videos can be personal: a short screen recording that walks one prospect through their account.
After the sale: onboarding, training and support
These are made least often but save support time: in Wyzowl's survey, 57% of marketers say video has reduced support queries. Short onboarding clips in the app and help-centre videos answer the same question once instead of a hundred times. How to make a training video covers the format, and AI avatars suit videos you'll update often (training videos with AI avatars).
Which video types work best for B2B?
B2B buyers research for longer and involve more people, so the mix shifts toward explainers, webinars, demos and customer stories, distributed on LinkedIn, YouTube and email. In Wyzowl's 2026 survey 70% of video marketers had used LinkedIn and half rated it effective. LinkedIn video for B2B gives a posting plan. B2C leans on short social video and ads, where speed and volume matter more than depth.
How to make several types from one recording
Record a 30-minute webinar or demo once and you can cut: 5 to 10 social clips, a 90-second explainer from the clearest section, a full demo for the product page, and short help videos from the Q&A. In QuickVeed, Podcast to Clips picks and reframes the moments, auto subtitles captions them in any of 32 translation languages, AI dubbing makes other-language versions and AI avatars cover sections that change often. QuickVeed plans are $18 a month for 1,000 credits (Starter), $42 for 2,500 (Boost) and $114 for 6,000 (Scale), and a new account gets a 14-day trial with 250 credits, no card needed. That makes a credit worth about 1.7 to 1.9 cents.
Frequently asked questions
What are the main types of marketing videos?
Social media videos, explainers, customer stories, presentations, video ads, teasers, product demos, sales videos, customer service, training, onboarding and app demos, roughly in order of how many marketers make them (Wyzowl 2026).
Which type of marketing video is most popular?
Social media videos, made by 69% of video marketers, just ahead of explainers at 68%.
What videos work best for B2B marketing?
Explainers, webinars, product demos and customer stories, shared on LinkedIn, YouTube and in sales emails.
How long should a marketing video be?
It depends on the type: under a minute for social and ads, 60 to 120 seconds for explainers, and as long as needed for demos and webinars. 71% of marketers say 30 seconds to 2 minutes works best overall.
What is the cheapest type of marketing video to make?
Screen recordings and clips cut from footage you already have: a webinar, a demo or a podcast.
Try it with your own video
Turn one recording into clips, subtitles and translated versions. Upload a webinar or demo and cut it into captioned clips with the trial credits. QuickVeed plans start at $18/month, and new accounts get a 14-day trial with 250 credits, no card needed. Sign up or see pricing.
Sources
Competitor details in this post were checked against these public pages in October 2026. Products and prices change, so confirm with each vendor before you decide.
