Report · Culture

To persuade people online, Americans prefer a standard post

Reading

To win over an audience online, more Americans favor a standard post, a paragraph of text with a photo or video attached, than any other format (36%), according to an April 2024 Verasight survey.

Short-form video such as a TikTok or Reel is the next choice at 18%, ahead of a hashtagged photo or video spread across platforms (15%) and a long YouTube explainer (12%). About one-in-ten (11%) would avoid short formats entirely in favor of a long one, and the fewest would start a newsletter (8%).

Topline

single choice

Topline distribution

To persuade people online, Americans prefer a standard post.

If you were to post content online on a subject that matters to you (be it art, politics, music, etc.) what format would you choose to convince and get an audience?

  • A standard post with text plus photo or video 35.9%
  • A short format like TikTok or Reels 18.2%
  • A photo or video with a few hashtags 14.9%
  • A longer YouTube video 11.6%
  • A long format instead of TikTok or Reels 11.2%
  • A newsletter 8.3%

2024 · base n 1,000 · +/- 3.5%

2

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Methodology

Full methodology
Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
Field dates
2024-04-10 → 2024-04-15
Base (unweighted)
1,000
Margin of error
+/- 3.5%
Module
2

Source

Citation

Verasight MPSA Omnibus Survey #2024-037, fielded April 10-15, 2024, N=1,000 US adults age 18+, +/- 3.5%.

https://verasight-mpsa-2024.tiiny.co

Verasight survey methodology

How Verasight conducts surveys.

This page describes the Verasight general survey contract, separate from how the Data Library packages it. When a wave report is published, its field dates, sample sizes, and module breakdown are listed in that report.

Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting.
Population
US adults age 18+.
Sample design
Surveys are run as omnibus or single-topic waves. Omnibus waves are split into modules with their own respondent set, typically around one thousand respondents per module.
Field window
Each wave specifies its own field dates. Most omnibus waves field across roughly two weeks.
Weighting
Per-module weighting to CPS targets including age, race and ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, and metropolitan status.
Partisanship benchmark
Pew Research Center's NPORS benchmarking surveys, three-year running average.
Vote benchmark
2024 presidential vote population benchmarks.
Margin of error
Typically about plus or minus 3.4 to 3.6 percent per module at standard module sizes. Question-level MoE is recomputed when a base shrinks materially below the module baseline.
Reporting
The canonical report hub is reports.verasight.io. Verified legacy reports remain on their original hosts, and unpublished reports are marked pending.
Transparency
Verasight is a member of the American Association for Public Opinion Research Transparency Initiative.

The canonical report hub is reports.verasight.io; older reports may remain on verified legacy hosts.