With the human attention span decreasing and the demand for easy-to-understand content rising, short-form videos are taking over the digital marketing world. But, like any other type of content, you need to find the right fit for your brand.
“Which content format should we use in our next campaign?” You’ve probably asked this question countless times, right?
While answers may vary by industry and audience, one format applies to all: short-form videos. A quick scroll through any social media platform will confirm what many modern marketers already know—short-form videos are dominating the social media space.
From TikTok to Instagram Reels to YouTube Shorts, bite-sized clips have completely redefined how brands engage with customers and what audiences expect. But with trends seemingly popping up overnight and disappearing just as quickly, staying relevant can feel a lot like chasing a moving target you can’t seem to catch.
The good news? We’re here to dive into short-form video styles, covering everything from the most popular options to why and how to use them.
Why short-form video matters for modern social media strategies
Short-form videos are ruling the modern social media space, and there are quite a few reasons why:
- The human attention span is decreasing: With the average human attention span down to just 47 seconds, people prefer videos that cut to the chase over lengthy ones.
- People want easy-to-digest information: Short-form videos are easier to follow and understand than text-heavy posts, so they typically get more engagement.
- Some algorithms favor short-form videos: Algorithms typically push content that people enjoy and engage with. So short-form videos often perform well.
- Short clips are more cost-effective: Short-form videos demand fewer resources and less time than long-form videos, making them a top choice for marketers working with limited budgets.
While they’re generally considered effective for nearly any type of marketing campaign, it’s worth noting that short-form videos aren’t all the same. You’ll see different results with different formats because they each engage unique audiences. Every video content platform also has its own style preferences.
To find the best fits for your brand, you’ll need to A/B test different formats, monitor their performance, and adapt your content strategy to align with algorithm preferences, current audience behaviors, and short-form video trends.
11 Types of short-form video content to test
You know the value of short-form videos, but which ones will have the biggest impact in your next campaign? Here are 11 options worth considering.
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1. Trend-driven Reels and TikToks
You’ve probably come across this video style on your For You Page (FYP) on Instagram and TikTok. Trend-driven short-form videos tend to go viral quickly because they get people to join in challenges. The more people participate, the broader the audiences these videos reach.
Take Chipotle’s “#GuacDance Challenge” short-form videos. What started as the brand encouraging TikTok users to create avocado-themed dances in honor of National Avocado Day resulted in over 1.1 billion hashtag views, putting Chipotle in front of a broader market.
But success with this video format isn’t guaranteed. To maximize engagement, you need to identify trends quickly: Check hashtags, trending sounds, or scroll through your FYP to see what people are doing and talking about. You also need to respond just as fast and tie the trend to your brand.
Just make sure you distinguish between quick-passing trends and lasting ones to determine when to create related videos. Split-second trends are typically meme-like, while lasting ones tend to address real issues.
2. Behind-the-scenes clips
These videos are your opportunity to build deeper connections with your audience. They’re most effective when they humanize your brand and show audiences what goes into providing your products, services, or content. For example, BMW’s “How do you get such clean shots?” Instagram Reel gives audiences a snippet of what goes into creating the brand’s content.
If customers have been asking questions about your processes (or direct competitors’ processes), it may be time to create this type of video. Just make sure it’s authentic, showcases your brand beyond its products or services, and addresses audiences’ questions.
3. How-to and tutorial videos
These videos provide step-by-step instructions for using products or scheduling services. They work because they provide quick solutions, which can optimize customers’ experiences with your brand.
Wix’s “Designing a travel agency website” TikTok video is an excellent example of this video format. It gives audiences a quick walkthrough on how to leverage the platform, potentially making work easier for travel website owners.
To boost engagement with this video style, focus on audience pain points and provide clear, easy-to-understand instructions. The last thing you want is to leave customers even more confused than you found them.
4. Day-in-the-life or mini vlogs
We know what you’re thinking—this sounds like something influencers, not brands, would create. While they’re primarily popular among individual creators, brands can make them as well. Duolingo’s “Duo’s Work Day” video is proof.
You could post something creative like Duolingo’s video or ask one of your team members to record their typical day at the office. The goal is to capture candid moments that humanize your brand.
Alternatively, you can partner with content creators and ask them to showcase your product as part of their “day in the life” videos. This can work particularly well if you’re a fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) brand, as they can showcase products like personal care items, cleaning products, or beverages as part of their daily routines.
5. User-generated content and duets
With modern consumers connecting more with authentic content than brand ads, user-generated content (UGC) is one of the most valuable tools in marketers’ arsenals.
These videos are usually created by actual users and based on their experiences with the product or service, but you can also do them in collaboration with employees or brand partners. For example, Estée Lauder’s “#NightDoneRight” videos on TikTok featured both influencers and customers using the brand’s product.
UGC videos serve as social proof and can help foster brand trust, but only when you play your cards right. To encourage participation and drive engagement:
- Offer participation incentives like discounts or free products.
- Ask original creators for permission before reposting their content on your page (legally important!).
- Use a tool like Sked Social to easily repurpose the short-form videos—you can search for your brand’s Instagram UGC through Sked’s library and save it instantly for future use.
6. Voiceover and B-roll
This type of short-form video blends storytelling and visuals to tell your brand story or introduce a product. Starbucks ReserveⓇ New York’s “Ube Coconut Cold Foam” Instagram Reel is a perfect example.
This video format works because it combines narration and supporting visuals, which capture and hold audiences’ attention. To successfully use it for your brand, be sure to include a strong hook and use high-quality B-roll shots.
7. Quick Q&As and mythbusting
These are brand videos that focus on answering FAQs and busting common myths or misconceptions. The mythbusting videos could be about brand products, related experiences, trending topics—anything that audiences are confused or misinformed about.
To successfully leverage this video style, research common customer questions or myths and have an industry or brand expert answer and debunk them. But don’t be afraid to get a little creative with it.
For example, Oktainc brings a fresh take to Q&As in its “Pushing boundaries on the track and in the cloud” video by having multiple people in front of the camera answering the same question to showcase different perspectives.
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Get Started for FREE8. Time-lapse or process videos
These are fast-forward clips that compress complicated processes or behind-the-scenes content into short videos. They work because they spark audience fascination and quickly fulfill their curiosity about brand processes.
Carlywiggersart’s “painting time-lapse” video, for example, condenses hours of work into a few seconds, giving her audience a glimpse into her process without taking up a lot of their time.
To create this type of video, find out what your audience wants to see, record it from start to finish, and use Hyperlapse or time-lapse tools to condense your recording into a few seconds or minutes.
9. Man-on-the-street and micro-interviews
This video format is exactly what it sounds like: people on the streets conducting interviews about your products or brand. It works because it typically feels unscripted and authentic, things modern consumers love to see from brands. Plus, it can feature unexpected responses, making your content more entertaining and engaging.
To successfully use this type of video, film in real-world environments (like an actual street corner), ask simple questions relevant to your brand, and get interviewees’ permission to post the videos on social media.
But first, check out some brands or content creators that publish this type of content to get a feel for the kind of interview styles that work best. MeetCutesNYC, a popular TikTok page, would be a great place to learn how to engage interviewees.
10. Teasers and promos
These are your typical promotional videos, except they’re short and designed to grab attention quickly. They work because they highlight product benefits before potential customers scroll away.
With this video format, you don’t need to go too in-depth into your product. Cover your value proposition just enough to capture audience interest and showcase your offering with high-quality visuals.
Samsung’s “Glare Free” Instagram Reel does just that. Even without narration, it effectively highlights the TV’s value proposition by using high-quality, creative visuals.
11. AI-generated content
While short-form videos are easier to create than long ones, they can still take up a lot of time and resources, especially for social media managers juggling multiple brands or campaigns. That’s where artificial intelligence (AI) comes in.
AI video generators like Runway can help you create short-form videos from text prompts or still images—no need for extensive video production. Coca-Cola’s Masterpiece video is an ideal example of what brands can accomplish with well-executed AI-generated content.
But you’ll need to make sure your prompts and images align with your brand and follow social media platforms’ disclosure guidelines to avoid penalties (TikTok requires an “AI-generated” label). Depending on your audience, brand, and industry, you may also want to be careful not to over-rely on AI-generated content, since some people see it as lower-quality media.
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How to choose the right video styles for your brand
Not all short-form video styles will work for your brand, so before you start creating, think about:
- Your objective: Do you want to build trust, capture attention, or enhance brand awareness? Define your objective and choose a video style that helps you achieve it. For example, if you want to get audience attention, consider creating eye-catching, trend-driven Reels on Instagram.
- Your audience: Different audiences like different types of videos. Gen Z audiences tend to prefer UGC videos and micro-interviews because of their authenticity, while mature professionals typically appreciate deep dives from industry experts.
- Your video engagement metrics: The truth is, you may not get your ideal video formats right the first time around. So don’t be afraid to play around with different styles and monitor video engagement metrics like comments, shares, and likes to identify what resonates with your target audience.
- Your chosen platform: See what works on different platforms and go with the flow. You could do duets on TikTok, behind-the-scenes videos on Instagram, and how-to videos on YouTube.
It’s tempting to find a format that works and stick with it, but it could cost you engagement. Video trends and audience expectations are constantly changing, so it’s best to work with a variety of content styles instead of focusing on just one.
Planning, scheduling, and measuring short-form video
How do you maximize the value of short-form videos? Through effective content planning, scheduling, and monitoring.
Create a balanced video content calendar
One of the most effective ways to keep audiences engaged is to regularly give them new content. So find out what they like and plan a mix of evergreen and trend-based videos that span a variety of content types, like product tutorials, BTS clips, and time-lapses.
Beyond helping you optimize engagement, planning your calendar takes the headache out of maintaining a regular posting schedule.
Take advantage of Sked’s social media planning tools to create an easy-to-follow, balanced content calendar. With Sked, you can easily pull UGC content into your library, label and categorize by format, and visualize and reshuffle your content before it goes live with a simple drag-and-drop feature.
Schedule and repurpose with a social media management tool
Scheduling and repurposing content with a social media management tool like Sked ensures you never miss a beat, even when handling multiple campaigns. With Sked, you can select when you want your short-form videos to go live and they’ll auto-publish across your chosen platforms.
You can also edit and repurpose content to use across other channels and track each video’s performance all from the Sked platform. Our analytics and AI tools provide valuable audience and engagement metrics, as well as custom reports, making it easier for your team to identify and refine what works.
Video content is just one element of your social media strategy
There’s no question about the value of short-form videos in digital marketing—they capture audience attention, are easy to digest, and take much less work to produce than longer videos.
That said, they’re not the only content type you need to integrate into your social media marketing strategy. Successful campaigns typically involve a mix of content formats, so find a marketing tool that helps with more than just video content.
Whether you want to use social media videos, images, or even carousels, Sked Social has you covered. Our platform can help you plan and schedule all types of social media content, eliminating the need for multiple tools.
Plus, you get complete performance analytics across channels, so you can see what works and continuously optimize for your target audience. It’s an all-in-one platform that helps you plan, manage, and execute your entire social media strategy.
Need a social media management tool that does it all? Book a demo with Sked today!
