Why TikTok is Pushing Creators to Make Videos Longer than One Minute
TikTok
Users are spending half of their time on TikTok watching content that's longer than a minute, according to TikTok in a new report by The Information. In October, TikTok hosted a dozen creators in its New York office, where it told creators that creating longer videos can help them make more money.
In addition to revealing that users are spending a significant amount of time on one-minute-plus videos, it was also mentioned that, over the past six months, creators who have posted videos longer than a minute experienced a 5x increase in the follower growth rate compared to those focusing solely on short-form videos.
The Information
TikTok's Ongoing Initiatives for Long Videos
TikTok continues to make concerted efforts to encourage creators to produce long-form videos, such as extending video upload lengths and offering incentives through the Creativity Beta Program.
While its latest direct outreach to creators emphasizes the value of longer videos for revenue and audience growth, convincing the broader TikTok creator community to change their behaviors may require additional measures.
Why Experimenting with Longer Videos Could Be Valuable for Creators and Brands
For creators seeking a breakthrough on TikTok, experimenting with longer videos for a period is worth considering, especially if they focus on content such as vlogs, tutorials, how-tos, recipes, news, unboxings, and more—anything that typically requires more in-depth storytelling.
It's also an opportunity for brands to explore partnerships with creators already producing content over a minute on TikTok, testing whether it affects the performance of their overall influencer marketing campaigns.
The Importance of Long-Form Videos for TikTok's Advertising Business
TikTok has not yet disclosed its specific motivation for prioritizing longer-form content on the platform, but it is likely related to the future of its advertising business.
Increasing its advertising revenue has been a major focus, evident in moves such as expanding Promote to grab dollars from creators and small businesses, and the recent launch of Out of Phone to bring TikTok ads to larger screens.
Getting longer videos on the platform can strengthen its advertising suite. Longer-form videos provide TikTok with the opportunity to develop more robust advertising formats, similar to what YouTube offers. Encouraging advertisers to run ads across short-form videos has been a challenge across all platforms, not just TikTok.
Traditional video ad formats like pre-rolls and mid-rolls aren't suitable for short-form videos due to their limited duration. However, videos that exceed a minute in length could accommodate these types of ads without significantly hindering the viewer experience.
Social Media Evolution: From Exclusive to Inclusive
TikTok's persistent expansion into longer-form videos and diverse content formats, including photos and text, reflects a broader trend in the evolution of social media platforms.
Platforms, once associated with specific content types (TikTok for short-form videos, Instagram for photos, and YouTube for long-form videos), are gradually moving away from their initial focuses. They are becoming less exclusive and more inclusive by embracing a variety of content. This shift is driven by the demands of all parties — creators, everyday users, and advertisers — who respectively want to share, consume, and advertise across different types of content in one place.
What It Means For Creators In The Long Run
Looking ahead, creators will have even more flexibility in choosing where to share their content.
As features, tools, and formats become more standardized across platforms, key differentiators of where creators spend their time will be even more rooted around their earning potential—from the platforms through ad revenue and funds, the brands through sponsored content and partnerships, and their own fans through subscriptions, paywalls, and tipping.
