Short-form video dominates with the Gen Z crowd. From dance-off competitions to popular music covers, and now how users discover products and services. What’s the best way to step into this trend? Can it work for your small business? Short-form videos prove to work for marketing many businesses.
What is a Short-Form Video?
Short-form video is being used across a variety of platforms. It all began with TikTok and spread quickly to Instagram (Reels) and YouTube (Shorts). User-friendly with a low barrier to entry and engagement, short-form video showcases instant and short videos that give a snapshot into the creator’s life. This teen-savvy engagement opportunity may be the golden ticket for your small business ‘word of mouth’ promotion. Tap into your preferred audience and tell your story on this new platform. Small business owners can give potential customers a look behind the scenes at operations, a day in the life of product design or food creation, and interview customers that are raving about their products and why. The opportunities are endless to catch a user’s eye and potentially make a repeat customer.
Short-form provides a “short” between a 30 – 60 seconds in duration. With those parameters, you have to get creative and concise with what you are sharing. You’ve seen it, text overlaying the video/photos of step-by-step directions on how to make the best frittata, a trending dance move, or a quickened-paced story to tell a story, make a point, or share a laugh. It’s an entertaining way to capture your younger audience. Still, images are not always going to be cut to capture the younger demographic.
Short-Form Video and Small Business
Still skeptical about how short-form video could work for your business? According to USA Today, 81% of users use short-form video clips. This type of engaging content, utilized across all social media platforms, helps users discover new products and brands. This shows just one example of a short-form video being a marketing professional’s dream. This type of exposure is critical for small businesses that want to tap into and influence specific demographics that are looking for the content you have to offer.
With the onslaught of content available with short-form videos and reels on social media, find what items are providing the most hits in search results. By doing this, you can cater your marketing to those items. If you are targeting a certain age group, you can discover trending audio/music clips and tack them onto those trends to capture your audience. There is a low cost for starting ads on Instagram, Facebook, and Youtube, as well. They can be catered to your location, a perfect solution for the young crowd that constantly surfs the web looking for something new and interesting to try out.
Are Short-Form Videos Right For Your Business?
I always want to insert the skeptic into trends. Ask yourself: does short-form video suit my business? There are downsides to jumping in feet first with just about any new trend. Much of what short-form video drains time and energy from running your business. If you are small enough and curious about specific trends like this one, consider recruiting help in this department like a social media marketing expert.
Watch some videos that your competitors and allies are threading together. Observe for yourself if this is the platform/method for your business. Also, remember that followers and/or likes don’t equal sales/revenue stream. However, some of the most successful videos are informing, educating, and entertaining. Viral videos follow similar formulas to grab attention and evoke an emotional response that does spark more interest that generates more clicks, more followers, and more shares.
When using new techniques, you want to align with your messaging, stay consistent and sustain the activity. I say, stay curious, try it, and see if you like it and if it aligns with your vision for your business.
Conclusion
In summary, short-form videos can help small businesses increase engagement, promote their products or services, increase brand awareness, and create a connection with their customers.
Overall, the mystery behind the short-form video trend is starting to fade. This type of engagement is here to stay and continues to influence consumer behavior every day. Keep in mind those that will do business with you will come through trust they have in your expertise. Trust can be built in many ways and that doesn’t necessary mean short-form video but it sure draws more eyes to your content and that’s not a bad thing.
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Contact Transcend Ideas today to discuss how we can make short-form video work for you!
