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Without any doubt, people are consuming more content than ever before. Therefore, videos are gaining popularity among creators and brands as a strong marketing tool for modern customers. Videos are more engaging and easy to understand than text content, so more and more businesses consider video content as the key source of relevant traffic.
While long-form content has long been prevalent for describing tools and services, the market now sees a swap to short form video content. The dramatic rise of vertical short videos, also known as Shorts, on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram has changed the way businesses pursue social media advertising and content reuse.
Since 2022, we have been noticing the shift from long-form videos to catchier short vertical videos. Although it isn't something new to social media platforms, statistics show that this video format is gaining momentum only now. For example, TikTok has become not only an engaging platform but also an easy way for businesses to attract free traffic to their website and other social media sites.
In addition, modern people prefer to consume video content on mobile devices rather than from laptops or TVs. So naturally, the video format should adjust to the changing needs, and vertical short form videos are a perfect solution to make content more accessible from mobile devices.
We created this article to help you learn how to reach a global audience by introducing Shorts into your marketing and localization strategy,
Let's dig in!
When Do You Need Localization?
The short answer is when you want to expand your target audience. And the earlier you start preparing for takeoff, the easier localization could become.
However, localization also requires translation and internationalization in order to be successful. These two processes act as the foundation. Essentially, internationalization is when developers prepare the codebase of the app or website to support different languages and formats.
What is Localization?
Localization is the process of adapting a business for a new region. Localization also covers website content, marketing elements, translation, associated imagery, and cultural elements that affect how your content will be perceived by the new audience.
Fully localized video content is not only translated but also fully resonates with the chosen locale.
Here is a quick breakdown of what the localization of content should look like:
Language
As it could be expected, translation is a key to content localization. However, when we talk about video content, the process becomes more challenging than text translation. Translating videos by adding subtitles isn't enough - successful localization always means voiceover and dubbing.
Tone and Brand Message
Localization of video content should take care of every aspect of the language, covering the cultural nuances of the chosen target audience. You also should modify, if not change, the tone of voice and brand message depending on the country in which you want to launch your content. This is crucial since a brand message that works great for the US won't do the same job in Spain or Japan, for example.
Imagery and Color
Pictures used throughout social media marketing and in short form videos may be appropriate and even selling for one country. Some countries may find specific pictures offensive.
TikTok, Instagram Reels & YouTube Shorts
When we talk about short form vertical format videos, we ultimately talk about these three platforms. With such hype around TikTok for business and the short attention spans of modern consumers, YouTube and Instagram are also entering the domain with their recently launched features: Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts. Let's quickly go through these three platforms for a better understanding of the trend.
TikTok
The TikTok app now has over 1 billion active monthly users. In addition, it also has 3.5 billion installations with 167 million TikTok video views in an internet minute. Calculating the average, an average user spends 1.5 hours a day on this app.
This app has gained popularity as one of the leading video-sharing apps. Although TikTok was designed for mobile, it allows users to watch shared videos using the web app.
This app makes it easy for every creator or business to share short form videos using filters, sound effects, visual elements and background music, going viral by choosing trendy music or video topics.
YouTube Shorts
YouTube Shorts were introduced in India right after the TikTok videos ban. Based on this Statistica report, YouTube Shorts gained 1.5 billion monthly logged-in users by June 2022, reaching more than 30 billion daily views from global users.
Shorts has the same idea as the TikTok app. These are short vertical videos similar to those that could be created by YouTube users on any chosen topic. Shorts were designed to offer creators an easy way to make engaging content and share it with a large YouTube audience.
The popularity of short form video content did not reduce the meaning and benefit of traditional long-form content on this platform. Instead, it made it possible for creators to reuse long content to create Shorts that are more likely to go viral and, thereby, transfer viewers to the creator's channel to watch other videos or raise brand awareness.
Traditional long-form YouTube videos require more dedication and polishing. Some could even be up to 7 hours in length, which we all can agree is often too much for modern people who like to get all the information quickly and easily. YouTube Shorts, in contrast, are 60 seconds in length and often contain story-type elements like music, lyrics, or effects.
Instagram Reels
Instagram has been here since 2010, though Reels have been launched only recently, inspired by TikTok's short form content popularity. Instagram statistics show that users spend more time on Reels compared to stories or regular newsfeeds.
Instagram Reels are very similar to TikToks and YouTube Shorts in terms of format - vertical, short video content designed for quick digestion. On Instagram, Reels can be up to 90 seconds in length.
In 2020, Instagram decided to prioritize video content because of its growing popularity across social platforms, and Reels have quickly become a strong rival to TikTok, which has seen mass success and popularity, especially amongst Gen Z.
It's been shown that 1.2 billion people now interact with Reels every single month, and Reels gain 22% more interactions than traditional video posts, so they have become a crucial part of social media marketing.
As Instagram continues prioritizing video content over traditional photo posts, trying to attract more users, the platform works on a new full-screen feed experience that was designed with Reels videos in mind.
Benefits of Adding Short Videos to Your Marketing Strategy
In a world where content is king, creators and businesses must include short form videos in their marketing strategies. These vertical, engaging, and easy-to-understand videos have the potential to power up your marketing strategy, increase traffic, and allow you to reach a global audience when using AI editing software.
These are the key benefits of adding short form videos to your marketing:
1. Increased Organic Reach
The key to thriving on social media is organic reach. Vertical videos, like Shorts, Reels, and TikToks, have become a useful tool in content marketing, acting as a cost-effective solution for different businesses.
These short, engaging videos fit all algorithm requests, so they naturally give your content a better chance of appearing on users' news feeds without investing in traditional ads.
2. Promotion of Vertical Videos
Meta is the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. Meta founders made it pretty clear that vertical short form videos are now their top priority.
The platform promotes vertical short videos since it wants to compete with the most popular vertical video-first platform, TikTok. This means that just creating short videos means you automatically get free promotion from Instagram and have much higher chances to reach more views than when working with traditional content.
3. Increased Viewers Attention to YouTube Shorts
Instagram Reels and TikTok are perfect for reaching a wider audience; but don't overlook YouTube Shorts. This platform has long been known solely for long form content in different domains. However, the introduction of YouTube Shorts made it possible for the platform to successfully compete with other popular platforms that use short videos.
In addition, YouTube Shorts can be titled for search, which is not possible in any other app with the vertical videos. Considering the fact that YouTube is the world's second-largest search engine after Google, creating short videos specifically on this platform means giving videos a longer shelf life and increased reach.
4. Boosted Brand Visibility
One of the biggest reasons for adding short form videos to your marketing campaign is their ability to naturally and easily increase your brand visibility. As we mentioned, short videos are easier to understand and consume, so viewers don't have to watch the entire 2-3 hour videos just to get to know your brand.
Short videos act as a business card that quickly describes your business in an engaging form, motivating users to check out your social media profiles and explore other services or products you have to offer.
5. Cost-Effective Brand Promotion
In contrast to paid ads, short form videos are cost-effective. They don't have to be as polished as longer videos since they are designed for engaging rather than educating the audience.
In addition, they can be easily created from your existing long videos taken from YouTube using tools like Rask AI video editor. As a result, they save you money and time for creation while also not requiring investment for promotion.
6. Ease Content Creation
Irrespective of whether you need a short video for YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok, these videos can be easily created. For example, Shorts can be created and edited directly within the YouTube app. As we mentioned earlier, you can use AI-powered tools that can take your long video and generate numerous short form videos that are later published on YouTube or other social media platforms.
AI tools can also offer a variety of video templates and identify the most interesting parts within the long video and deliver you ready-to-use short form video content within minutes.
7. Allow for Global Reach
Lastly, short form videos help companies and creators reach a global audience. That is because short videos do not have language barriers. Most of these videos don't even have a person speaking; they may show images, be animated, or be filmed using trendy music. And even if you need to translate the video or add captions, you can also use AI tools.
How to Make a Short Video?
Now that you know the benefits and reasons for including the short video element in your marketing campaign, let's explore some useful tips you can consider to make the most of this trend.
1. Get to Know Your Audience
It might sound obvious, but we are talking about a new format for video content. People who watch your long-form content might not enjoy short videos. While some may want to watch both formats, exploring the audience that is more keen on short video is a worthy move. Here are some questions for you to answer before considering the topic and themes for these short videos:
- What is their age?
- What do they like and don't like?
- What keeps the audience engaged, and what can distract them?
- What are their buying patterns?
- What type of short video content do they engage with?
2. Prioritize Storytelling
As mentioned above, short form videos are designed to tell a story, not to educate. In fact, statistics show that storytelling is a powerful tool in video marketing, and it has become a crucial element of short form videos. Considering the limited time you have to capture the attention of your audience, focusing on strong, compelling stories can make a big difference.
3. Less is More
It could be hard for a creator used to working with long-form content to master the rule: less is more. But it is also essential if you want to make the most of short videos. Modern people love it when you can provide useful information in a quick and engaging way.
You need to convey the message as quickly as possible without sacrificing the video quality. We recommend focusing on the most vital elements of each video, reducing any unnecessary information that doesn't add value.
4. Benefit From Platform-Specific Features
Each social media platform has its own features that creators should consider when creating and sharing short form videos. As we already said, Instagram automatically prefers and promotes vertical videos, so there is no need for paid ads. YouTube, for example, allows creators to create short form videos directly within the platform.
TikTok has music trends that should be taken into consideration for those videos to go viral. Invest time in researching the features of each tool so you can ensure you benefit from its unique characteristics.
5. Use AI Tools to Create, Edit & Share Short Form Videos
There is no need to invest a lot of resources and money in creating, editing, and sharing your short form videos. The tech world evolves rapidly and now offers a variety of solutions suitable for different business needs, including video marketing.
For example, AI editing tools are designed for video creation and editing. Some of these tools allow you to translate videos, others to generate many short video clips from one long video. You can find a tool specifically for your needs so you can automate the process and streamline video content creation.
Create Short Videos and Reach Global Audience with AI
AI-powered video editing tools are powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI), Natural Language Processing (NLP), and Machine Learning (ML) algorithms. These technologies, working together, automatically identify and extract the most relevant parts of raw footage, like people, certain objects, and backgrounds.
Once AI identifies these parts, other technologies can assemble the footage into a coherent and engaging video. AI-powered tools can also take one long video and generate numerous short video clips without requiring human help.
AI tools are a perfect solution for any creator or business that wants to save time and effort since they no longer need to manually sift through hours of footage to find the right moments for their project. Depending on your needs, AI tools can be used for video translation, voiceover, and dubbing as well.
For example, Rask AI is a go-to solution for video translation and localization. This tool can also create videos for a YouTube channel, TikTok, and Reels, but it is mostly used to translate videos to over 130 languages and generate human-like voices in more than 29 languages.
AI tools use advanced filters and equalizers to improve the voice while also being able to remove all unwanted sounds and music. Significantly speeding up the video creation and editing process, AI-powered tools have the power to improve your digital marketing results with less investment and effort.
Last Thoughts on the Short Video as a Marketing Trend in 2024
Including short form videos is a must for companies and creators looking to stay relevant and reach a global audience in 2024. By covering the latest consumer needs and ensuring your content is available in different formats, you can increase brand awareness, expand the audience, boost sales, and create a video marketing campaign that generates the expected ROI.
