What is "Micro-Content"? (aka Short-Form Content)
With the rise in popularity of TikTok, and many other social media apps, such as Instagram and YouTube, have all been capitalizing on short-form video content. These bite-sized videos are exploding across the online world, and content creators have to adjust their strategies accordingly. With this increase in popularity comes the introduction of a new concept called “micro-content.” In this article, I want to explain WHAT micro-content is, WHY people should produce micro-content for social media, and HOW to do it properly.
What is micro-content?
As stated before, micro-content is short-form video content that can be posted on social media, usually under 15 seconds long. Sometimes, this short-form content is derived from longer videos from YouTube or podcasts. The “micro” part of the name is a little bit misleading, because despite the short length of these videos, they have the potential to reach a very large audience. Most people believe that TikTok started this type of short-form video content, however, it has actually been around for a long time. Remember Vine? That was actually one of the earliest examples of micro-content! TikTok just gets the claim to fame because of the app’s recent popularity.
Why is micro-content so powerful?
When it comes to social media growth, micro-content is a creator’s best friend. I mean, this stuff is blowing up on the internet right now! TikTok’s explosive growth has forced other social media platforms to respond by creating their own versions of micro-content feeds. Two examples that come to mind are Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts. The reason why this content gets so much attention is simple: since the videos are shorter, it’s easier to engage a social media consumer. The average person scrolling through social media can consume many more pieces of content when they are shorter in length, compared to longer-form videos viewed in the same amount of time. To demonstrate this, if someone is on their phone for 5 minutes, they can either watch one 5-minute YouTube video, or they could watch 20 15-second TikTok videos! Think about that: 1 video, versus 20 videos! This means that an individual person can consume more content in a smaller amount of time, which is how micro-content reaches such large audiences. This also means that people will turn towards apps like TikTok more often than YouTube when they are looking for a quick burst of content while standing in line at the coffee shop, or sitting in the waiting room for a doctor’s appointment.
Platforms like YouTube and Instagram know this, which is why they have developed Shorts and Reels respectively. Posting short-form videos to these platforms is becoming very effective in reaching a large audience because their algorithms are rewarding micro-content. YouTube and Instagram want more people to post micro-content, so when users do, the social media algorithms boost those posts higher than standard photo or long-form video posts.
As the owner of a video production company, I can provide more value to my clients by producing micro-content in addition to long-form videos. I’ll talk a little more about how I do that in the next section below!
How to create micro-content
So now that you know why micro-content is skyrocketing, how do you actually make it for yourself? Here is a very brief guide on creating micro-content for social media:
Film in vertical format: Apps like TikTok and Instagram display these videos to fit the full vertical screen of a mobile phone, so make sure you film in 9x16 format so that your content fits and doesn’t look out-of-place!
Follow trends: TikTok and Instagram allow the option to add audio from other user’s posts to your videos. Some of these audios are more popular than others, and some of the more popular ones are labeled as “trending.” Using trending audio tells social media algorithms that your video is relevant, and therefore your video is more likely to be seen by more people.
Get to the point: With micro-content, you have a very short window of time to engage a viewer before they scroll on to the next video! Make sure that the first 1-3 seconds of your video grabs the attention of your audience if you want the most engagement possible!
Consider repurposing other content: If you produce longer content on other platforms, repurposing it for micro-content can be a good strategy to reach audiences on multiple social media platforms. For example, if you have a funny moment from a recent YouTube video or podcast, see if you can make that into a quick 15 second video for TikTok or Instagram. You can also use the micro-content as a “call to action” for people to watch your long form content.
I mentioned before that I can provide more value to my clients by producing micro-content in addition to long-form content. I can use content repurposing to allow clients to reach more people on different platforms, or use micro-content as a call to action to visit their websites or watch long-form videos.
Where is micro-content going in the future?
It’s always difficult to predict what the future holds, but for right now, micro-content is king! I personally don’t see micro-content fading away anytime soon, so I suggest that you start making micro-content NOW! Currently, micro-content is best for organic growth, rather than direct advertising. People will most likely scroll right past ads in micro-content feeds like TikTok and Instagram because they do not capture their attention right away. With that being said, businesses still can and DEFINITELY SHOULD pursue micro-content within their marketing. It is better for “brand-awareness” marketing and building the voice of a business than it is for direct advertising of a product or service. Businesses should use micro-content at the top of their marketing funnel to capture their target audience’s interest in their brands, and then actually sell the product later in their funnel.
Social media platforms are constantly changing and evolving, so micro-content could look very different even just a year from now. Business owners, marketers, and content creators should keep up to date with these platforms, and quickly adapt when changes or new trends arise. Social media is an ever changing platform competing for our attention. Watch closely, and brainstorm how YOU can play the algorithm.