The Ultimate Guide to Short Form Video Content

Statistics show, 68% of the audience today prefers to watch short-form video content as it is not time-consuming. Hence businesses are shifting towards this marketing tactic to market their products and services with more impact.

If you want to boost the dwell time of your consumers and engage better with them, then you need to make a move too. Social media sources such as YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels have revolutionized how brands host marketing campaigns. 

It’s your turn to take a step closer to your viewers with short-form video content marketing. 

Learn its importance, the best platforms, and more in our comprehensive guide. 

So, without further ado, let’s get started.

What is Short Form Video Content?

Short form video content is a bite-sized video format that allows you to provide information creatively, invoking the interest of your viewers within a short period. 

As the name suggests, short-form video content typically wraps up in only a few seconds. It can range from 15 seconds to 60 seconds short but can be up to 3 minutes long. This nature of short-form videos is a brilliant way to hook the viewers, encouraging them to watch the video on a loop! To make the most of this format, consider using user-friendly video editing software to add captivating effects, transitions, and music to your videos, enhancing their appeal and shareability. Whether you’re a business looking to market your products or an individual sharing your creativity, mastering the art of short-form video content with the right video editing tools can set you apart in the digital landscape. Consider using an online video editor to clip your long-form videos into short-form video clips for enhanced engagement and accessibility.

Invest your time and strategies wisely around this short-form video content format, as this trend is here to stay.

Importance of Short-Form Video Content

With the increased usage of social sources for marketing and engaging with the audience, short-from video content are an excellent way to get on top of the competition and succeed. 

Read the following short-form video statistics to acknowledge the importance of short-form video content to help your business in effective marketing:

Audience preference: In today’s hustle culture, 73% of consumers prefer to watch short-form video content to expand their knowledge.

Used to learn about products: Not only does short-form video content offer easy access to knowledge and is trendy, but 72% of the audience prefers it over text to understand a new product or service.

Boost your ROI: According to statistics, 30% of all short-form videos are watched, and 81% are watched until the end; hence, this can help you increase your ROI and your audience’s dwell time.

Marketer’s choice: According to research, 36% of marketers plan on investing more in this form of video content, and 45% are strategizing to market through short-form of video content for the first time.  

With time, this short-form video content format for providing information about your brand and its products will likely go higher in the market as more and more marketers plan on creating such content and engaging better with their audience.

Top 5 Short-Form Video Content Platforms

Here are the best social media short-form video content platforms that have sustained in the market through thick and thin.  There are multiple customizable video templates you can use.

Learn more about them in this section:

1. TikTok

Being the first major short-form video network, TikTok has exclusively dedicated young creators and audiences. The app was introduced in 2016 and has gained immense popularity among its users by offering its users to watch TikTok on TV.

@micahbrosch #movie #tiktok #foryou ♬ Love You So – The King Khan & BBQ Show

TikTok offers options to watch videos posted by their ‘following’ (people they follow) and ‘for you’ (which offers them video suggestions ). Search for other users and watch their content through the search engine in the Discover section and learn about them.

With time, TikTok has become one of the most used short-form video content platforms today.

2. Instagram Reels

Instagram was launched in 2010 and has shown drastic changes, from features to its expansion. At first, it was just a picture-sharing app, but it has gradually grown and evolved. Like TikTok, Instagram has also set the short-form video version called Reels in motion.

For marketers, it is one efficient way to promote their brand, products, and services in under one minute or less. 

Instagram reels also show recommendations based on algorithms and allow users to scroll down and discover new creators and their content with this feature.

3. YouTube Shorts

Similar to TikTok and Instagram, YouTube has also initiated its YouTube shorts. It is one of the networks for video content, allowing users to share a wide range of content.

You can find YouTube shorts on the home page screen and scroll up after finishing off with one. Users can learn how to make YouTube shorts and create up to 60 seconds of short-form video content, edit it directly on the app, and share it on the platform.

4. Snapchat Spotlight

To compete with social media platforms like TikTok, Snapchat has also launched its very short-form video feature- Snapchat Spotlight. With Snapchat’s Spotlight feature, users can create content and earn monetary incentives based on the views their content receives.

As of now, this feature is barred for brands while creators generate their creative content, but eventually, to get along with its competitors, Snapchat will offer brands this opportunity.

Snapchat is a social media network for the younger generation, with 65% of users between the ages of 18 and 29. Similar to TikTok, the use of AI voice generators is becoming more popular, as it can attract more interest from younger crowds.

5. Triller

Triller users can create short-form videos and synchronize videos in seconds. Triller has gained increased popularity with so many creators and influencers on the platform for boosting their networking and showcasing their video content with a larger audience.

Advantages of Short Form Video Content Marketing

Here are some plus points that can convince you better or your team that this short-form video marketing format, particularly in the realm of YouTube marketing, is worth your investment.

1. Increased engagement

One great advantage of short-form video content is that people prefer this format of content to learn about new products and services rather than reading or watching long and detailed videos. 

Not only this, but short-form video content is also easy to share on social sources and less time-consuming. You can also share a sneak peek of upcoming events or new product and service launches.

2. Better consumption of content

With the help of short-form video content, you can create and share only vital information about your products and services, which is more likely to be remembered by the viewers and helps you avoid all the extra fluff. This helps you make an impact with your content and ignite the interest of your viewers. Showcase your short-form video content on social walls at live events.

3. Higher SEO

Short-form videos are one of the best attention-grabbing techniques. They allow you to share only limited and intriguing information that can help you improve your video SEO. 

Take your ranking to the top by catching the attention of your content viewers through short-form videos and motivating them to share your content. Post content that helps you increase the dwell time and decrease the bounce rate of your users on your page.

4. Better ROI

By creating and sharing short-form video content, you can increase the dwell time of your audience, gain higher views, and expand your reach as the viewers share your content. 

Not only this, but short-form video content has a greater chance of boosting your conversion rate, hence resulting in better ROI benefiting you.

5. Better content creation

Short-form video creation allows you to combine all the time-consuming content into creative short videos that your audience prefers, which also helps you increase your visibility.

You can also share the same short-form video content over various social media platforms and attract customers from multiple sources to your brand.  

Apart from these advantages, there are much more that you can incorporate to maximize your advantage, such as adding background music and editing with edge-cutting technology and sharing content through the Instagram wall at events.

Share your short-form video content, personalize it, and make it resonate with your brand message.

Best Practices for Short-Form Video Content

Learn these best practices to remember when creating your eye-catching short-form video content:

1. Showcase user-generated content

Flaunting user-generated content on your stories and posts is a fantastic way to catch and stop people at your short-form video content.

Short-form video content can boost brand awareness and engagement, with all the hype that gets built up. Share your customers’ reviews, testimonials, and stories on your page. This encourages them to generate more content for your brand, its products and services, and events.

2. Do your research

If you want to outperform your competition, create content that is liked by your audience. Stay updated on new trends, which can help you increase your brand success. 

Remember to update your viewers with the latest information about the brand, products, and services. Share news about upcoming events that you are hosting in a way that ignites excitement. 

Alternatively, you can start hashtag campaigns around popular trends and display all the generated content at events or conferences on digital screens.

3. Be unique

As a brand, to be different and get access to the benefits of short-form video content for your business, you are required to be unique in your approach and provide something new and fresh to the viewers. 

Generate content that resonates with your brand and its messaging. Be relevant and moderate any unnecessary content that does not match your brand. 

Harness the power of short-form video content and show your product in action, sharing industry tips and fun facts; you can also post reviews and testimonials generated by your customers.

4. Cross-channel sharing

The best thing about short-form video content is that you can reshare the same content on various social media platforms and benefit from the cross-channel promotion of your brand and its products and services. 

With social media sources like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, you can easily repost the same short-form videos and expand your customer and viewer reach.

Across platforms, marketing is not limited to that, but it also allows you to share Instagram stories, Facebook stories, and much more.

5. Be consistent

To get effective results from your short-form video content on your multiple social media platform accounts and other sources, you must be consistent in your posts. 

Schedule your posts and be regular, as this helps your brand to have an active presence and maintain a positive image. You can follow the latest trends and stay on top of your competition. 

But remember to be relevant and interact with your audience. This will help you stay connected and build stronger relationships. You can even make this a more engaging experience with the help of a dedicated interactive video platform, allowing short form clips to encourage audience participation combined with personalization, while retaining control and consistency.

6. Repurpose content

A fantastic way to get you started is by repurposing content in short-form video format while still setting strategies. Crop your long-form video content using a video trimmer and enhance your image content to spice things up for your short-form video content.

If you recently had a product launch event, share a glimpse of that with your audience through short-form content. This trick is quite helpful when you want to excite your customers.

Top Short Form Video Trends to Watch Out in 2024

Whether you are an expert in short-form video content upping your game or just starting, here are some short-form video trends to use to level up and get a great head start.

1. Share UGC

Remember to involve your community in your content. Host hashtag campaigns, ask your audience to participate, and share all the community-generated content or UGC campaigns. This shows transparency and builds a solid and authentic image of your brand among all the viewers.

People like to see testimonials and demo video content by other existing customers of your brand, that is, UGC creators, so show them that and lean into your client base.

2. Short-form videos in stories

Social media platforms allow you to share short-form video content on your account through stories that expire after 24 hours; hence, they get more attention. These stories are much more engaging as they appear in the feeds of everyone and the discover new accounts button.

3. Behind the Scenes

One of the many things that always stay in style is sharing your behind-the-scenes with your audience. This improves your relationships with your viewers and helps you show a different side of your brand. Show how the product comes together and various team-building exercises at the company.

4. Product sneak peek

Another short-form video trend to follow is by displaying and attracting more eyes to your brand is by releasing product teasers on your social media pages. This can be done for new product and service launches to create excitement for your product. Share only the required and limited information through short-form video content and increase engagement.

5. Influencer ad

As a brand, you can have many goals to achieve; if gaining visibility and higher engagement are on your list, you need to display influencer ads.

Influencer marketing can speed up your process of reaching new and potential customers for your brand as they have a community that follows them enough to get influenced in their purchase decisions and trust their content because of their expertise and knowledge.

6. Educate your audience

Create well-crafted short-form video content explaining your product and give it a personal touch that influences the buying decisions of the viewers. Remember not to sell hard; educate and clear your audience’s doubts and queries and build stronger bonds with the new visitors. You can also show your customers content on your page to create a transparent environment.

Harness your short-form video strategy

This guide blog can help you strategically maximize the benefits of short-form video content marketing, which is here to stay. Embracing this communication technique and building social relationships can help your business enter new avenues and achieve goals.  So, use the power of a short-form video strategy and make a long-lasting impact on your audience.