TikTok Has A New Competitor
Written by Courtney Raguso, Social Media Content Creator
TikTok has caused Instagram to introduce its similar version, reels, and now YouTube is testing their newest feature, YouTube Shorts. With an audience of more than 2 billion people, it makes perfect sense for them to tap into that new market, especially with Gen Z and Millennials with consuming more short-form video content. User-generated short form video isn’t anything new. In fact, the video sharing platform’s first upload was only 18 seconds long. As we advance in this digital age, creators, consumers and brands depend on their phones more to consume and create interesting content. New apps are arising and established apps are offering new custom features that allow more creativity with less effort, which can all be enjoyed right from the convenience of a phone. So, of course YouTube had to step up their game and bring something new to the table.
A YouTube Short is essentially any video that lasts up to 60 seconds. Anyone can make a short video, but what’s new here is the added camera feature. This latest tool being the Shorts camera, operates similar to TikTok and makes it easy to create vertical videos that lasts up to 15 seconds long. As of now, the new feature is being tested in India and is only available for Android. However, YouTube will slowly expand testing and availability to more areas over the next few months. This new feature isn’t just for the younger generations, although they make up over half of the country’s consumer base. They are also targeting creators, viewers, subscribers and brands. The point of this feature is not to make better content, but to offer more available forms of content to take advantage of obtaining a larger audience. From tutorials to short fun clips, YouTube is making sure to take full advantage of the younger community and offer them new ways they can create and share content. YouTube is a video-first entertainment platform, so it should be more successful than Instagram where you will literally see TikTok videos being re-uploaded. The company is hoping that considering people already come to YouTube for short video entertainment, Shorts will be another way to keep people engaged for longer and continue uploading content. Although Shorts can’t be monetized and won’t generate YouTube Premium subscription revenue directly, the new subscribers you bring in using Shorts will monetize as your channel grows. When testing these different versions of short-form videos, the data revealed that it wasn’t so much the length of the video that mattered, but the value of content. Viewers are putting their interests first when it comes to their preference for watching content while they are putting less thought into how they are viewing that content. Having personal relevance was prevalent in all nine countries, but with 85% of India’s YouTube consumption being on mobile, they realized it was obvious to start testing there. Seeing this new feature rollout in the United States will take some time, but the app is encouraging creators to upload short form videos with the hashtag #Shorts in the title or description to be seen on the homepage Shorts shelf.
YouTube Shorts isn’t the only new thing coming. The app plans to expand their capabilities into adding more creation tools as they receive feedback from testing. Creating content should be fun and engaging, so it’s smart to test these features yourself and see what works best for your brand. By taking advantage of these new features, you are opening more avenues for opportunities that can bring brand awareness and add value to your brand. Video is one type of content that is increasing in popularity and the demand for it is blowing up, so make sure to take advantage of the opportunity. You never know what works best for your brand until you test it yourself. If you are unsure where to start, that’s what we are here for!
At MSM DesignZ, we put in the time and energy needed for success, so you can ensure you are using every dollar for maximum return. With over 20 years in the business, we have watched marketing evolve from traditional to digital. Whether you need a website refresh, more attractive email, or a quality online presence, we can do it all. We’re here to help you stay ahead of the competition and stand out from the crowd. When we take on a client, we put in 110% and treat every brand as if it’s our own. We will always continue to place our clients’ needs at the heart of our operations. From web development to social media management, we’ll work directly with you to build a personalized strategy to not only retain but also gain business. We are assisting in all areas for our clients. Visit our contact page at https://www.msmdesignz.com/contact/, and we’ll work with you to devise a custom plan that will keep your brand alive and well. We look forward to working with you!
Sources:
https://blog.youtube/news-and-events/building-youtube-shorts/
https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/10059070?hl=en
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/youtube-shorts-guide/382267/