Here’s why a #TikTok ban would make short-form video MORE important — not less.
TikTok demonstrated the power of authentic short-form vertical video for brand discovery, but no platform has an exclusive claim to this form of content.
YouTube Shorts, Facebook Reels and Instagram Reels are the competition’s answer to TikTok. Even Pinterest has a short-form video component in story posts.
Short-form video is an increasing part of how people consume content because it is …
- Shareable (DM, text etc)
- Aligned with dwindling attention spans
- Accommodating of all learning styles (visual/auditory etc )
- Easily created on-the-go
- Closer to in-person interaction and how we see one another (authenticity)
- The most easily repurposed form of content (one 30-second video can be the foundation for dozens of posts)
Resharing of Reels doubled on both Facebook and Instagram in six months as of September 2022.
Users across Facebook and Instagram now play more than 140 billion Reels daily.
On Instagram alone, people reshare Reels one billion times a day through DMs.
Right now, TikTok is keeping the biggest consumers and creators of short-form video siloed. If you think of it like an election, then TikTok has split the ticket.
If consumers and creators no longer have a functioning TikTok, they will soon realize that all that old content has a second life in YouTube Shorts. The growth potential in Shorts is impossible to exaggerate because it’s backed by the worlds’s largest search platform.
Skyrocketing shorts creates a new pressure that Meta cannot ignore. Meta may spin off Reels as its own app — in addition to continuing to favor short-form vertical video on Facebook and Instagram.
At Yellow House we are ruthlessly platform agnostic — platforms come and go, and they have no loyalty to you. Invest in audience. Invest in community. Invest in content. But be sure to diversify that content investment across several platforms.
Short-form video has the highest multi platform payoff and is the best way for brands to tell their story. TikTok doesn’t own short-form content, creators do.
Start prepping now for smart repurposing of your short-form video content and lean in to a strategy that prioritizes audience over platforms.
Reach out if you’re interested in learning more: info@yellowhouseconsulting.com.