The Psychology Behind Short-Form Videos

With the average adult’s attention span being only 8.25 seconds, short-form video is one of the best ways to grab your audience’s attention. TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube shorts are continuing to grow in popularity and keep audiences coming back for more. With so many different forms of content, what is it about short-form videos that captivates our attention? As it turns out, there is some psychology behind the appeal. Having a basic understanding of why short-form videos are so engaging can help you use them to your advantage with your own marketing strategy.

Social Validation:

Short-form videos, especially on TikTok, often follow some kind of trend. These trends are usually quick, easy, and accessible to most people. They can include using a certain sound, doing a little dance, or getting ready for the day together. These trends are not only entertaining to the people watching them, but they are easy to join in on, making users feel included. Short-form video trends also boost engagement, as other users will “like” or “share” videos of the trend that they enjoy the most.

Visual Learning:

Short-form videos are a quick and easy way for audiences to learn more about certain topics. Many people are visual learners, and while reading about topics can be helpful, seeing them for yourself often makes it easier to comprehend. Short-form videos cover many different topics- makeup tutorials, cleaning tips, do-it-yourself projects, recipes, and much more. Being able to see these things done and view the outcome is a huge draw over traditional written guides.

Emotional Attraction:

Short-form videos are more likely to evoke an emotional reaction from those watching. No matter what emotion your audience gets from your video (joy, surprise, sadness, inspiration) they are more likely to remember it because of how it made them feel. Aside from boosted engagement, this also helps you build a solid relationship with your viewers.

Instant Gratification:

One of the best things about short-form videos is that you have to get to the point pretty quickly. Audiences love instant gratification and do not want to sit through several minutes of a pointless backstory or explanation before they finally see what they came for. Short-form videos force creators to focus on the point of the video and cut the less important information. Being able to consume content without having to carve out time to commit to the content makes it very appealing to your audience.

Easy To Fit In:

Since short-form videos take very little time to watch, it is easy to squeeze them in during small pockets of downtime. Because of this, there is really no bad time to post, and audiences are consistently getting new content. People frequently squeeze in a short-form video or two in between daily tasks, so no matter when you post, someone is going to see it.

Short-form videos are easy to create and consume and are easy to squeeze into your daily life. Understanding what your audience wants and figuring out how to entertain them while giving them information is the best way to short-form video success. Have you created short-form videos? What is your favorite platform on which to watch short-form videos? Let us know in the comments!