Short-form videos have changed online content consumption patterns. Platforms like Instagram Reels, TikTok, and even YouTube Shorts are now creative spaces for engagement, creativity, and content virality.

As these short-form video platforms grow, people and businesses are capitalising on the power a short video brings to reach wider audiences.

Crafting a short-form video for these platforms is a challenging feat. However, these strategies will help your brand get itself out there, capture the audience’s attention, and start conversations.

1. Know Your Audience

Before conceptualising and shooting your video, you should know who your target audience is. This will help you create engaging short-form videos that impress your viewers.

Here’s how you can do it:

• Research Audience Demographics: Use tools to look into the age group, interests, and behaviour of Instagram and TikTok users. The former has a more diverse audience, while the latter has a primarily younger audience, namely the Gen Z.
• Understand Platform Culture: TikTok and Instagram have two distinct cultures when it comes to short-form video content. TikTok’s content is playful, authentic, and sometimes irreverent, while Instagram’s is polished and trendy.

Spend time studying the platforms to know how to create content for them and hold your audience’s attention with a single short-form video.

2. Use Popular Trends and Sounds

Trends drive TikTok and Instagram Reels, and using them to your advantage can improve your content’s visibility. Using trending music and participating in challenges can push your video and make it visible to millions of people.

Browsing the feed allows you to stay up-to-date with the trends of each short-form video platform. Use any hashtag that aligns with your branding and message. Stand out from the crowd by using the same trends and challenges and putting your own twist on them. This helps you have your own memorable and unique style.

3. Grab Attention in the First Few Seconds

Unlike longer videos, the short-form video format has limited time to captivate an audience. It often just spans two to three seconds. Failing to catch the people’s attention right away will make them scroll to look for other videos.

These are some handy tips:

• Start with a Hook: Your video content should have an opening that hooks viewers in. A bold statement, an exciting visual, or an intriguing question can set the tone. You should make your audience want to see what happens after.
• Head Straight for the Action: Don’t waste time on long intros. Start with the most engaging part of the video to save time and lure more audiences. Give it your best shot by getting into the meat of your video.
• Use Text Overlays: Engage your viewers through your short-form content by putting text from the first second of the video to provide context. Headlines or questions that set the video’s premise can be effective.

4. Keep It Short and Focused

Short-form videos tend to be concise. Even if TikTok’s videos reach ten minutes and Instagram Reels go up to 90 seconds, the most engaging videos are usually under 30 seconds. The attention span of viewers are getting shorter, so it’s important to deliver the message right away.

Unlike long-form videos that can have many ideas, focus on a single idea for your short-form video marketing. This makes your content more digestible and easy to engage with.

Cut out all the fluff during video editing. Remove unnecessary parts of the video that don’t contribute to the message or the video’s entertainment value. Make every second of the video count.

5. Use Captions and Call-to-Actions (CTAs)

In a short-form video strategy, captions can ensure that your video is accessible to a broad audience. Some people watch videos with the sound off, and some have hearing impairment.

Provide on-screen text and subtitles that match the words in the video. Between TikTok and Instagram, each social media platform has automatic captioning features. However, it pays well to review and edit the text to make it accurate.

End with an urgent, clear, and concise CTA to get conversions. Whether you want viewers to follow your account or share videos on their social media channels, an effective CTA can help your audience do a specific action.

6. Engage with Your Audience

Respond to comments on both TikTok and Instagram to show your audience that you care and notice their remarks. It also allows you to build a loyal following and getting your videos seen by more people. You can create a sense of community in these platforms by just answering to comments.

7. Optimise for the Platform’s Algorithm

A part of the marketing strategy for making short videos is to optimise each one for the platform’s algorithm. Follow these steps:

• Use relevant hashtags to improve discoverability. It could be a mix of general, niche, or trending hashtags.
• Publish videos on each platform consistently. Aim to post videos at least three times a week. You can also post daily, but plan your content ahead of time. If you can’t do daily posting, engage with your audience to keep your account active.
• Like, comment, and share videos of other creators to engage with them and boost your profile in the algorithm.

Final Thoughts

Creating videos for TikTok and Instagram Reels may be nerve-wracking at first, but it’s possible with the right strategies. Learning trends and knowing your audience are always the basic steps that will help you create content. Give your short video a good concept and focus on it to captivate your audience.

Work with social media video production Melbourne professionals to grow your brand and nurture your unique voice on the two platforms. They know what kind of content currently resonates well with the public and help you create videos out of it. They have the necessary skills and knowledge to position your business as a market-worthy brand.