Digital Shift: How People Interact with Movies Online Before and After They Watch It in Theatres

Modern film critics still have an important place in the moviegoing decision-making process.

According to Nielsen’s 2013 American Moviegoing report, 41 percent of Millennials said they check the average critic rating on websites, such as IMDb, before attending a movie. And eight out of 10 moviegoers still refer to movie reviews at least some of the time when they’re considering what films to see.

Before heading to the movies, about 44 percent of moviegoers say they trust trailers as a source of information when deciding whether or not to see a film. At nearly the same level, 40 percent say they value recommendations they see posted by their friends or family on social media.

And a movie, moviegoers are turning to social media to give their own thumbs up… or down. About 81 percent of moviegoers said they used Facebook, while 34 percent used Twitter, followed by Pinterest (21%), Google+ (20%), and Instagram (18%).

Twitter users who go to the movies are 25 percent more likely than all social network users to attend a movie on its opening weekend and 55 percent tweet or comment about movies regularly. Twitter users are also the most frequent moviegoers, attending about nine movies a year.

“As movie studios plan their marketing budgets for next year’s blockbuster movies, they should consider that most moviegoers are using social media to get their information,” said Kathy Benjamin, SVP, Nielsen National Research Group (NRG). “Taking advantage of the potential that social networks provide will be important to connect with their audiences.”