This September is marked with a significant change on YouTube that bursts in very soon. Google company has decided to get their piece of the pie and introduces YouTube Shorts – the form of content that resembles TikTok videos and Instagram Stories. It will be a whole new feature that will offer the possibility to enter the platform for creators who prefer short films. The interface of the app and web version will also be adjusted to the favor of this new feature. This way YouTube will expand its influence because since the beginning of the world quarantine short and catchy videos are walking in and grabbing the attention of users all over the globe. TikTok was the first app that changed the focus from Stories, and now YouTube is going to do the same. In this article, we will highlight what is known about Shorts by this time. Will it be a possibility to gain more subscribers for a cheap price on sites like videosgrow.com? What are the benefits of a short format entering this platform? Let’s find out together!
MORE INTRIGUING DETAILS
Now Shorts are being beta-tested on a few markets, particularly in India with further expansion, and the company notes that this product is not yet finished and they have a lot to do and refine before it will be available in all the world. However, Google encourages mobile entrepreneurs to start producing relevant content and upload it to the platform already.
By now, Shorts are having such features:
- Upload of videos that last 15 seconds or less
- Variety of creative tools for editing the video
- Combining short clips together
- Countdowns and timers
- Adding musical materials from the YouTube library
- Slowing down/ Speeding up the videos
On the Android version of the app, the icon that will initiate the Shorts mode is placed in the center of the Home menu. Obviously, the IOS version of the app will have it the same way. The Homepage will have a renewed interface with a special Carousel for Shorts. Unlike Instagram Stories, to switch a video user will have to swipe up. This Carousel will still include other short videos that are uploaded on the platform otherwise than through the Shorts feature.
THE EVOLUTION TWIST OF YOUTUBE
YouTube Shorts is a comfortable decision for creators who already nailed networks like TikTok or Snapchat and are used to produce content with the help of the smartphone only. While YouTube usually serves as a storage of longer videos of higher quality that require better gear, Shorts is a fresh breeze. And at the same time, it is a step towards what a modern user wants – fast consumption of content, easy quick gags, and entertainment on-the-go.
It is natural that the company wants not only to retain existing audiences but to attract a fresh one. Younger generations prefer this form of content because it suits their lifestyle best. They travel a lot, hang out in different places, do stuff at home, and they want to share it immediately. As they are moving all the time, long videos on YouTube that need to be watched more attentively, are not comfortable for them. To become popular and interesting to young people, one must be fast as a bullet and sharp as a knife.
YOUTUBE IS A COPYCAT?
Shorts look quite similar to TikTok videos. You may wonder why did Google need to create a copy of the format that already exists? The key to this riddle is one interesting fact. Beta-testing was started in India, and this location was not chosen by random. TikTok was recently banned in this country, which makes it a perfect trampoline for a successful launch. Instagram did the same trick with its newest feature called Reels. Both these are now tested in India, and as TikTok is now having trouble in other countries too, it is obvious that YouTube shorts are a giant leap of faith aimed to catch the former audience of TikTok.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENTREPRENEURS
The reason why short format creators should turn to YouTube is the numbers that it operates, no other video platform can beat. In comparison to Instagram with it’s one billion users and TikTok with a humble 700 million, YouTube crushes them with two billion users monthly active. The audience to gain is twice as big. This makes YouTube much more productive as a place for promotion. And let’s not forget the profit one gets on YouTube. Unlike Instagram or TikTok, monetization on this network is far more developed. This sounds like quite a bonus if we would note that Instagram Reels won’t have a direct method to monetize the content. The date of launch is not set yet, but the team works hard, and the feature is expected to be released quite soon. Here is a short summary of what to do now.
- Start gathering and refining ideas for content.
- Test some unusual genres and topics to see how the audience you have reacts
- Watch carefully what are the last trends on TikTok and be ready to catch up at any moment
- Monitor if your country is banning TikTok or it is losing popularity in your region
- Collect information about Shorts that reveals its functions and tools
- Wait for the launch.
WHAT SHOULD ADVERTISERS EXPECT FROM YOUTUBE SHORTS
For advertisers, this feature is also a sweetie pie. It will definitely be a bomb that will drop new methods and opportunities to promote products and services. With the overall trend of ads to resemble memes and viral videos, the short and flashy form that YouTube Shorts is offering is quite a productive tool. Another hot trend in advertising is the native form and influencer marketing strategy. It can be performed flawlessly with Shorts. Also, it is a bunch of new faces that were concentrated on YouTube. For marketers, it is a vast expansion of the audience that is not yet spoiled with these tactics. So, for now, advertisers have to put some effort into the following:
- Time to discover new faces! Find YouTube celebrities and influential personalities, which have a relevant target audience
- Dig in the latest trends that are popular among young adults
- Work on designs and slogans that will be short and bright, so it will be easy to make them memorable and squeeze into 15 seconds format
- Look through what your colleagues are doing on TikTok – find what methods are getting the most fruitful result.
Introducing this feature, YouTube and Google are demonstrating their willingness to expand their audience, as the short format of videos would definitely attract a younger audience. Although longer forms of filming, that are traditional to YouTube won’t be forgotten and disappear, because they have other purposes. Probably, longer content will change focus from entertainment to education. It is not clear yet, how YouTube Shorts will be monetized. But this newborn feature is about to do a great competition to short-form platforms that already exist. It also remains to be seen what options will be attached to Shorts when it will be released. So for now both entrepreneurs and advertisers have to collect all information they can find and wait for news about the feature.
