I shouldn’t even need to say the app’s name – the one that’s erupted in popularity since the...
I shouldn’t even need to say the app’s name – the one that’s erupted in popularity since the coronavirus pandemic hit in early 2020, and has basically become part of the pandemic itself with over 1.1 billion users reported in February 2021.
People were bored during lockdown, and the quick videos that can be made, shared, and watched on TikTok were a great way around this.
More importantly, though, it’s come alongside and accelerated a massive shift in how other platforms use video content.
So how big is this change? And what should you do about it?
TikTok allows for very brief videos that can be made by anyone, on any topic, and shared really easily across virtually all social platforms.
Instagram, however, effectively decided to mimic this format with a feature called ‘Reels’, which came in August 2020 to over 50 countries – just months after Tik Tok made its splash!
Reels lives on Instagram in its own tab and in the ‘Explore Feed’, which allows it to function in a similar way to Tik Tok by shaping content to user patterns.
You can find out more on how TikTok works here.
What this means is that these apps are able to create a personalised, highly accessible stream of content, requiring virtually no attention span to consume.
This is a really powerful feature for spreading content within its relevant categories – but the spread neither starts nor ends with this quick content.
It’s been a long time coming: in 2018, 54% of people reported that they wanted more video content from brands.
Instagram’s IGTV allows for video on the other end of the length spectrum to – ranging from fifteen minutes on the app, to an hour long on the website!
As Instagram shifts almost entirely to video (something the CEO of Instagram has mentioned directly), its photo-based brand image even seems a bit out of place.
The professional world’s flagship social media, LinkedIn, joined the video race years back with a feature that now gets three times the exposure of text posts.
With this volume of video features available, you’d be missing out by not utilising them.
Whether you’re a content producer, or a marketing head trying to diversify your output, videos have been shown to reach high levels of engagement.
Thanks to our human brains, an average viewer remembers 95% of a message through video form, compared to just 10% through text!
With the huge amount of exposure that videos can get, it’s worth trying to spread to as many areas as you can.
Reels are a great way to spread quick flashes of brand image amidst the content, while longer formats like LinkedIn give you a great way to spread details about your company, whether its ethos or a new product.
No matter how you approach this change, though, professionals will have to upskill, develop, and make sure their business is keeping up with follower interactions.
Whether you’re a candidate looking for your next role in the social media space, or looking to hire talent into your team, then please do reach out to as us at 3Search!
You can get in touch with Chloe at chloe@3search.co.uk, covering roles like social media, social media & content, and influencer marketing.
