3 Tips to Grow Your Business With Short-Form Video

The average person’s attention span has decreased over the years — with some experts saying it’s now under 10 seconds — due to the large amount of information constantly vying for their attention. Not only is it harder to keep people engaged, but it’s now also harder to retain their loyalty, as pandemic constraints have increased people’s willingness to experiment with new brands.

This shifting landscape can present challenges for businesses’ marketing efforts, but companies are investing and finding value in short-form video as a tool to gain attention, build community, and differentiate their brand in an increasingly saturated marketplace.

Video has now become a critical part of any modern marketing strategy. More importantly, customers are asking for it. Nine out of 10 people said that they wanted to see more videos from brands and businesses.

As short-from video continues to grow in importance, here are some best practices on how to create engaging video content to grow your business and create value for your customers:

1. Engage your customers in a conversation around your content.

You can invite your community to get to know your brand by filming behind-the-scenes content and interact with them by asking for their opinion and responding to the conversation in the comments. When brainstorming, put yourself in your customers’ shoes and think of what content you’d love to see or learn about from your favorite business.

2. Use audio to excite your customers and inject some personality into your brand.

Select a trending song, try a new sound effect, or experiment by recording an original narration to draw your customers in and hold their attention. At Meta, over 80 percent of Instagram Reels are viewed with sound on, and over 40 percent feature effects. To get inspired, identify and analyze existing content that has resonated the most with your audience by leveraging your business page insights and use that as a creative reference for your next video.

3. Partner with creators to establish trust and credibility.

Creators not only spark new trends and entertain audiences, but they're also a trusted source for recommendations. A recent study by Edelman found that 63 percent of 18–34-year-olds trust what an influencer says about a brand more than what the brand says about itself in advertising. Tap into the creative storytelling power of creators with branded content and branded content ads.

For example, to drive app downloads among young adults, Planet Art collaborated with an experienced Reels creator for branded content ads. The result? A 2x increase of in-app purchases. The more you can do to enable creators to advocate for your brand in their words, the greater your ability to build an authentic relationship with their audience.

As part of the broader shift in viewing habits, people are increasingly embracing video content from brands. Now more than ever, people are looking to connect with brands and creators, all while discovering new things that are relevant to them. Embracing and creating relevant short-form video can help you achieve your goals from discovery, consideration or conversion to creating meaningful connections with customers.

Melissa Oppenheim Lano is director, global content development, global business marketing, Meta Platforms, Inc.