By KIM BELLARD
OK, I admit it: I’m on Facebook. I still use Twitter – oops, I mean X. I have an Instagram account but I don’t think I’ve ever posted. Although I have written about TikTok many times, I have never actually participated in it. And when I’m on YouTube, it’s more for clips of movies or TV shows than for videos of creators as MisterBeast.
So forgive me if I’m even late to the short-form video revolution.
As is often the case, a few articles related to the subject caught my attention: that of Caroline Mimbs Nyce. Twitter’s demise goes far beyond Elon Musk In Atlanticand that of Jessica Toonkel Wall Street Journal article Your child prefers YouTube to Netflix. This is a problem for Netflix. I invite you to read both.
Ms. Nyce argues that while Elon is doing a very good job of damaging Twitter, much of his woes are actually due to microblogging’s fall from grace. His opinion :
In the age of TikTok, posting your two cents in two sentences for strangers to consume is starting to seem more and more unnatural. The lasting social media footprint of 2023 may not be Twitter’s self-immolation, but rather the fact that short-form videos — on TikTok, Instagram and other platforms — have tightened their grip on the internet. Text messages as we’ve always known them simply can’t keep up.
She notes that Twitter remains, by far, the dominant platform for microblogging, but cites a prediction from data.ai: “While platforms like
“Short-form videos have become an attention vortex,” reports Ms. Nyce, citing figures from Sensor Tower that users spend an average of 91 minutes per day on TikTok and 61 minutes on Instagram.
Indeed, Privileged information estimates the share of this video on average daily social networks exceeded 50% in 2022 and will reach 60% by 2025. He predicts that the “craze” for short videos will die down, but admits: “platforms must do facing the reality that consumers still like short videos.” videos.”
In the meantime. Ms. Toonkel cites the father of an 8-year-old who stopped watching shows like Thomas and his friends: “Now all he wants to do is watch basketball players, clips and highlights on YouTube.” She adds: “The Levy family has learned what has become clear in the media industry: When it comes to children’s entertainment preferences, YouTube trumps all. »
She reports: “Netflix’s share in Streaming audience in the United States among children ages 2 to 11 fell to 21% in September from 25% two years earlier, according to Nielsen. Meanwhile, YouTube’s share increased from 29.4% over the same period to 33%. Michael Hirsh, co-founder of WOW Unlimited Media, confirmed: “These viewers are watching on their iPads or other platforms that have moved to shorter and shorter segments, and that’s a real problem for streamers. »
Ms. Toonkel counts an animation studio that released a new children’s film on Roblox and another that premiered on YouTube instead of a streaming service. In both cases, streaming services were a secondary priority. “It’s really about following the consumer,” the studio’s global marketing director told him.
Two weeks ago, Pew Research published a study directly on this point: Teens, social media and technology 2023. YouTube, unsurprisingly, is the number one platform for teens ages 13 to 17, with 93% users. TikTok (63%), Snapchat (60%) and Instagram (59%) followed. Facebook (33%) and Twitter (20%) are barely an afterthought.
Seventy-one percent of teen YouTube users do so daily, including 16% “almost constantly.” For TikTok, the corresponding figures were 58% and 17%.
Of course, YouTube’s popularity isn’t just among teenagers. THE Social Shepherd compiled some fun facts about YouTube, such as:
–It has some 2.7 billion monthly users, including 1.5 billion on YouTube Shorts;
–There are 122 million daily users;
–98% of American Internet users consult YouTube monthly, 92% weekly and 62% daily;
–American children spend 77 minutes per day on YouTube;
– The aforementioned Mr Beast is YouTube’s biggest earner, raking in around $82 million per year;
–70% of viewers made a purchase after seeing the brand on YouTube.
Businesses better pay attention. Ms. Nyce warns: “In a recent survey by Sprout Social, a social media analytics tool, 41% of consumers said they want brands to post more 15-30 second videos than any other style of posting on social media platforms. social networks. Only 10% wanted more text content. »
Krystal Scanlon from Digiday believes: “The latest shift to video is in full swing and unlike previous occasions, agencies now need to master the art of short-form video rather than just focusing on specific platforms. She clarifies that not all platforms’ versions of short videos are the same, contrasting TikTok’s “short, engaging, creative videos” with YouTube Short’s “informational or tutorial-style videos.”
His bottom line: “Simply put, video content needs to be native to the platform because consumers are tired of seeing ads. » Like TikTok said during the presentation of TikTok for Business, “Don’t advertise, create TikToks”.
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Earlier this year, Monigle published his Report on Humanizing the Brand Experience. Among other things, this suggests a decline in consumers’ interest in “watching/reading health and wellness topics” and an increase in their distrust of healthcare providers. Neither result is dismal yet, but they highlight that in a world of short-form video, even healthcare companies need to rethink their branding and content strategies.
Detailed health advice web pages? Who reads ? Eye-catching TV commercials? Who is watching ? Helpful videos with health information from respected doctors? Too long. Health is complicated, health care is idiosyncratic, so in short, anything is not natural, but it may now be necessary.
Those of us of a certain age may not really understand or appreciate short-form videos, but it’s not something we can ignore. Ms. Nyce’s final thoughts are worrying:
Perhaps the biggest stress test for our short-form video world has yet to happen: the 2024 US presidential election. Elections are where Twitter and microblogging have thrived. Meanwhile, in 2020, TikTok was much smaller than it is today. Starting next year, his real reign could finally begin.
And, might I add, in an age of vaccine skepticism and widespread health misinformation, misleading/simplistic short-form videos pose an existential threat, unless countered by equally effective.
It’s time to improve your short video game, everyone.
Kim is a former e-marketing manager at a major blues plan, editor-in-chief of the late and much-missed Tincture.ioand now a regular THCB contributor
