Ryan Lopano Blog

Short-formed content has taking over social media. For the past five years, it has seem like most platforms have pushed or introduced some sort of short-form content. The rise seem to started with TikTok around the time of COVID-19. After that, several other platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat, introduced their own form of short-form content, Reels, Shorts, and Spotlights respectively. It seems like these platforms are incentivizing influencers to create short-form content as thats what these apps are pushing. Forbes talks about how “these platforms offer a dynamic and captivating way for brands to engage with their target market, capturing their attention and leaving a lasting impression. It’s not just a fleeting trend; it’s a powerful testament to changing consumer behaviors and the effectiveness of concise, engaging content.”

The idea of short-formed content is great for creators as it is an easy way to share information or entertainment with others while needing less effort compared to a long term video. From here, you can expand your audience and create other forms of media, like long form content or music. “A viewer may discover a 30-second explanation on TikTok, become interested in the topic and then click through to read the full article. Another viewer may watch several short videos on YouTube Shorts before encountering the longer written piece (Finelight Media) .” This shows how you can grow an audience on apps like these and then transition them into other forms of content. In addition, the algorithm seen on these apps reward short-form content. I have discovered several music artists and comedians exclusively from short-form videos. This discoverability is massive for small creators as the algorithm promotes the content rather then creators.

The advantage of short-form content for the platforms is how consumers interact with it. Short-form content is different from everything else as the content is being fed to you rather then the viewers needing to go out and search for it. This constant stream of content is a very easy way for a user to stay on an app for a while, which is a major goal for the platform. The longer you stay on the app the better. Dr. Nancy DeAngelis, CRNP, Director of Behavioral Health, says, “Social media platforms drive surges of dopamine to the brain to keep consumers coming back over and over again. The shares, likes and comments on these platforms trigger the brain’s reward center, resulting in a high similar to the one people feel when gambling or using drugs.” Despite it being bad for the consumers, the companies benefit on you staying and scrolling.

Overall, social media is very beneficial and short-formed content is becoming just as crucial to the platform. Finelight Media sums it up perfectly, saying “as video platforms continue to evolve as search environments, the ability to transform written research into short, searchable visual content will become an increasingly valuable skill in digital marketing.”