How to Measure Video ROI in 2026: The Metrics That Actually Matter

The idea of measuring everything in this "digital age" sounds great, but in this era of being able to measure everything, it's a little overwhelming, and for some things, a little unrealistic. Even though seemingly every platform has endless analytics and reporting tools, just because the capabilities exist doesn't mean they're measuring exactly what's most important to decision makers.

When it comes to recruiting videos, here's the simple truth: real attribution is messy. Sure, every hiring boss or marketing leader wants to walk into their boss's office with an incredible attribution story—"We spent 'x' amount on this video and it generated 47 qualified applicants." But is that honestly realistic?

Think about how candidates really make decisions. They see a LinkedIn post with your culture video. Three weeks later, a recruiter reaches out. They visit your careers page and watch the full video, then hop on LinkedIn to see who they know at your company. They message a former colleague who left for your organization two years ago. They read Glassdoor—some reviews praise your culture, others complain about the growth phase chaos. They find a YouTube video someone posted from a company event. They watch your bio videos, scroll Instagram for team photos, read blog posts, look at your competitors' content.

Two weeks later, they apply. In their cover letter, they mention "your collaborative culture" and reference something the CTO said in the brand video.

So which video gets credit for that hire?

The pressure to justify every marketing dollar is real, the desire for powerful metrics is understandable. But the reality of how people make decisions? It's complicated. That doesn't mean video ROI is unknown. It just means we need to get smarter—and more honest—about how we measure it.

The Attribution Problem

Video can, but rarely does, work in isolation. It's part of a longer, winding journey where multiple touchpoints—some you control, many you don't—shape a candidate's perception of your organization. Simple "video view → application" tracking misses this entirely. The role video plays is often influence, not conversion. It builds trust, sets expectations, answers unasked questions, and gives candidates permission to see themselves at your company. Don't misunderstand—that's incredibly valuable, it's just not easily measured in a single metric.

What Video Metrics Can Be Tracked

Even though perfect attribution is impossible, directional understanding and confidence is achievable.

Application rates on pages with video vs. without video: This is one of the clearest signals available. If your careers page has a 2% application rate and role-specific pages with bio videos have a 4% rate, that tells you something. It doesn't tell you everything—maybe those roles are just more appealing—but it's a data point worth tracking.

Traffic to careers pages from video posts: This shows which content is driving interest. When you share video on LinkedIn or Instagram, UTM parameters let you see which pieces drive the most traffic to your careers page.

Video completion rates: Again, not perfect, but this can reveal whether your content is resonating. High completion rates suggest people are engaged. If they're bouncing after 15 seconds, either the wrong audience is finding your video or your story isn't connecting.

Click-through rates from video CTAs: CTAs aren't always used with videos on websites for some reason, but they measure direct intent. When your video ends with a clickable CTA to "Visit our careers page" or "Schedule a call with our recruiting team," you can track how many people take that action.

Time spent on careers pages: This is a metric we've tracked for years—the time spent on web pages with video is higher than those without. When candidates spend more time learning about your organization, it typically correlates with higher-quality applicants.

Offer acceptance rates: Are you converting new applicants at a higher rate? This can signal whether video is setting proper expectations. If candidates are accepting offers at higher rates after you've implemented video, they're probably not being surprised by what they find when they dig deeper.

A/B Test When You Can

If you want cleaner data, A/B testing gives you the closest thing to a controlled experiment. Show half your visitors a careers page with video, and half without. Measure application rates, time on page, and click-throughs to role-specific pages.

Some platforms like LinkedIn Jobs allow you to include video in certain postings. Running the same role with and without video lets you compare application volume and quality.

If you're running recruiting email campaigns, sending one version with a video link and one without shows you the impact on open rates, click-throughs, and conversions.

A/B testing isn't the solution for all attribution woes—candidates still experience multiple touchpoints—but it gives you the cleanest possible signal about video's impact in specific contexts.

Listen For References to Video

When candidates reference specific videos during interviews—"I loved the video where Sarah talked about the team's approach to mentorship"—that's proof they watched, engaged, and remembered. When your recruiters hear unprompted mentions like "I applied because I saw myself fitting in after watching your culture video," that's qualitative data worth tracking.

New hires often explain what influenced their decision to join during onboarding. If video comes up repeatedly, it's playing a role. Pay attention to the questions candidates aren't asking. If your bio videos show day-to-day work life, you may not hear "What's a typical day like?" as often. If your culture video addresses work-life balance, fewer candidates will ask about flexibility. Those missing questions suggest video is doing its job.

We've seen clients implement simple processes to capture this. One organization added a single question to their new hire onboarding survey: "What resources were most helpful as you learned about our company?" They don't mention video specifically—they just listen for it. Over time, they've built a qualitative dataset that clearly shows video's role in the hiring process.

The Compounding Effect of Video

Often, leaders in organizations want ROI for things like video.

• "Did the culture video work?"

• "Did the CEO message drive applications?"

• "Was the day-in-the-life video worth it?"

It's easy to forget that video is part of an ecosystem. When you have multiple videos working together, the impact compounds. Your brand video builds initial awareness and emotional connection. Your team bio videos deepen that connection and help candidates see themselves on the team. Your role-specific videos answer tactical questions and drive action.

A candidate might not apply after watching just your culture video. But after watching the culture video, then the bio video of their potential manager, then reading a blog post, then seeing a LinkedIn post from one of your employees—now they may be ready. The ROI isn't one video, it's the compound effect of the library you've built.

Metrics by Video Type

A common mistake businesses make is thinking that if they produce a video, it's going to solve some sort of mystical marketing problem. But that's not true. Not all videos serve the same purpose, so they shouldn't be measured the same way.

Brand/Culture Videos introduce your organization, communicate values, and build emotional connection. These are top-of-funnel videos—their job is to get on someone's radar and make them curious enough to learn more. Reach and awareness metrics apply here: views, shares, impressions, engagement, watch time, and traffic driven to careers pages.

Bio Videos introduce team members, show what it's like to work with specific people, and, most of all, build trust. These are mid-funnel videos that help candidates move from "This seems like a good company" to "I could see myself working with these people." Completion rates, replays, and application rates on pages where bio videos are embedded tell you whether they're working.

Role-Specific Videos answer practical questions, set clear expectations, and drive action. These are bottom-of-the-funnel videos—their job is to convert interest into action and ensure the right people apply. Application conversion rates, quality of applicants, and offer acceptance rates show whether they're effective.

When you match metrics to video type, measurement becomes clearer. Think about it—you're not expecting a brand video to drive direct applications; you're looking for awareness and engagement. You're not hoping a bio video goes viral—you're focused on whether it's helping qualified candidates take the next step.

What to Measure If You're Just Starting

If you're thinking about producing your first video project, starting simple keeps you from drowning in data. Pick 2-3 metrics you can actually track—one quantitative metric (like application rates on pages with video) and one qualitative signal (like candidate feedback during interviews). That's enough to get directional insight without overwhelming your team. Too many metrics means you have to consider too many variables.

Establish baseline data before you launch video. You need a starting point: application rates, time-to-fill, offer acceptance rates, the questions candidates typically ask during interviews. You can't measure improvement if you don't know where you started.

Give it at least 6-9 months. Video impact builds over time as more candidates encounter your content. Judging results after three weeks is useless—you'll never see results worth mentioning.

Ask new hires at 30, 60, and 90 days what influenced their decision to apply and join. Keep the questions open-ended—you're looking for patterns, not proving a hypothesis.

The Real ROI Question

Another way of thinking of ROI is to look at the ultimate goal. What problem is video solving for your organization? Are you struggling to attract new applicants? The volume of applications before and after video implementation could tell you something.

If you're getting applicants who don't understand the role, quality scores, interview-to-offer ratios, and early turnover rates show whether video is setting clearer expectations.

If you're losing candidates late in the process, your offer acceptance rates and candidate feedback about decision factors reveal whether video is building confidence earlier.

When you can define the problem clearly, measurement becomes easier. You're not trying to prove video "worked" in some abstract sense—you're tracking whether it solved the specific problem you needed it to solve.

What This Really Means

The candidates who end up joining your team will have encountered dozens of touchpoints—some you created, many you didn't. Video is just one piece of that puzzle, and you'll probably never draw a clean connection from "watched video" to "accepted offer."

But that doesn't mean video isn't making an impact. Combine quantitative metrics with qualitative signals and track trends over time rather than obsessing over the performance of one video. Use A/B testing to isolate video's impact. Listen to what candidates tell you during interviews and what new hires share after they've joined.

Focus on whether video is solving the problem you needed it to solve. Are you attracting more qualified candidates? Are they better informed about your culture and expectations? Are your best hires mentioning video as part of their decision?

The best measurement system is one you'll actually use. Start simple, refine over time, and remember that some of the most valuable outcomes—trust, clarity, connection—are hard to measure and impossible to ignore.