When TikTok first launched, many of the other platforms were not utilizing short-form content. Nowadays, most platforms have specific places for short form vertical videos. From TikTok to Instagram Reels and Youtube Shorts, most influencers are now starting to be active on all platforms to ensure they stay universally connected. In this installment of the webinar series “The Short Forum: Creators, Content & Culture,” we discuss the topic of F***, Marry, Kill: Youtube Shorts, TikTok, and Instagram Reels.
The speakers for this webinar are content creators active on all three platforms. The Hines Family has been active on TikTok for over 2 years; they do a lot of family content mixed with dances and comedy. On TikTok, they have garnered over 10 million followers across their family and individual accounts. Mena Han-Lalime describes herself as a “casual content creator.” With 58.3K followers on TikTok, Han-Lalime’s content revolves around her hobbies, such as crochet, fashion, and hair. Sam Murphy has 33.9K followers hooked on his music-related content. With a background in music journalism, Murphy has reviewed music and given his opinions regarding the music scene on TikTok for over a year. Jay Pitts is a musician that started on TikTok by posting music-related content and storytime. With 890K followers, Pitts sells himself as a whole personality instead of only a specific niche.
The first topic of discussion is their favorite short content platform. The creators first started through TikTok, so all of them have the biggest audience there, and they ranked it first as their most preferred platform. Pitts explains that he has a “love-hate relationship with TikTok because the highs are high and the lows are low”; when content is boosted by the algorithm, the engagement and attention are great; on the other hand, when they are shadow banned, they barely get any traffic on their content. Hynes family also added that they usually get the most brand inquiries on TikTok, and they prefer the platform because “you can be yourself” on there. Instagram Reels takes second place in most of the speakers’ ranks. Pitts explains that he likes Reels because “you can tell a cohesive story there because you are not trying to catch a moment, unlike on TikTok.” Murphy says that when it comes to Reels, you can gather a more loyal following, and Han-Lalime said that she likes Reels because she is able to make more niche content. On the other end of the spectrum, most of the speakers rank Youtube Shorts the lowest. Youtube Shorts is relatively new, so they still need to familiarize themselves with how it works and the algorithm. However, the Hynes family ranked Youtube Shorts at second place because they have posted on the platform for a while, and they believe that if you post consistently, you will get good engagement rates.
The second thing they discussed was features of each platform that they like and dislike. Murphy answers with his most favorite feature, which is the TikTok editing system. He explains that he used to edit on a 3rd party platform, CapCut, but has recently edited his videos on TikTok, which he now prefers. On the other hand, Murphy dislikes the Reels editing system because it does not work and flow as well. Some features in there are hard to work with, such as adding sounds to videos, which as a music reviewer, is an important part of Murphy’s content. Although he had high praises for TikTok, he still believes that there is room for improvement. One feature that he likes to see is the ability to stitch sounds together, which will enable more creative videos to arise.
One of the last topics they discussed is the potential for TikTok being banned. The creators give a good insight into what their plans for the future are. Murphy says that if TikTok gets banned, he is interested to see if Instagram Reels can make up for it, but he is sure that it definitely will open up the opportunity for Reels to be the leading short-form content platform. The Hines Family has started preparing for this potential future since the first time the rumor of TikTok being banned started. They “pivot to Reels” and explained that when it comes to social media, “you shouldn’t put your eggs in one basket” and that it is important to branch out and find audiences on different platforms.
Watch the complete discussion on this topic on-demand here, and follow us on @songfluencer and @genniapp for announcements of future webinars.
Author: Jasmine Theodore
