Gen Z Values Personalized Content Over Viral Videos
Do you remember the video of the fox that everyone was talking about? How about that one guy who did the Harlem Shake? Chances are, if you're over the age of 25, you don't remember either of those things. That's because they were both viral videos that quickly lost their appeal after a few weeks. Gen Z values personalisation over virality, and that is reflected in their online behaviour. In a recent study, it was found that 65% of online 18-24-year-olds agree that content that is personally relevant to them is more important than the content that is popular among other people. This means that individual viral videos are becoming increasingly less central to trends on social media.
The latest report from Youtube
A new ‘Culture and Trends' report from YouTube has appeared, which includes data from 10 different nations to shed light on what's driving the latest Gen Z video trends and how they fit into digital strategy.
The study focused on three prominent themes that emerged from YouTube's data set, as seen in the headlines below.
Community Creativity - Communities are using the web's connective resources to build niche interests into bigger, collective experiences.
Responsive Creativity - According to YouTube, emotional cravings - such as "soothing makers," vibe content, and ASMR - have grown more popular during the epidemic. “During the survey, it is discovered that 83% of Generation Z have watched soothing videos on YouTube to unwind, up from when we did our study a year ago.”
Multi-format Creativity - The increased popularity of short-form videos has also, somewhat predictably, driven more producers to post a wider range of material to capitalize on popular trends while also maximizing the social and financial benefits of long-form videos.
The success of Youtube shorts
This report provides valuable insights for marketers who want to understand how to better reach Gen Z audiences. It is clear that personalised content is key, and that marketers should focus on creating content that is relevant to their target audience. With this in mind, we can expect to see more niche content being created, as well as a continued rise in short-form videos.
The more important issue is how creators can produce both short-form and long-form videos without lowering the quality of either. As per the analysis, about 4.5 billion YouTube Shorts videos; which have excluded channels with fewer than 10000 Shorts views over 30 days, zero subscribers or the focus on music or kids content; a lot of approaches that work on long-form will also work for short-form.
It's best to upload at least one video every day (if possible) for both formats, but uploading hundreds of videos per day can harm a channel's overall efficiency. Videos don't need to be long on both YouTube platforms, although the most effective Shorts videos were at least ten seconds long. It also offers some cause for optimism for long-form producers wanting to apply tried-and-true methods to the short form. Quality over quantity should still be the primary concern and even the shortest Shorts need to tell a complete story.
Whatever optimization a channel does to its Shorts, some topic types perform better on TikTok than others. Short-form satire videos attract considerably more viewers than long-form comedy films, as jokes may easily be deconstructed and reduced to a 30-second clip. For gaming and animation material, however, that is a little more difficult, so long-form videos are ideal for those categories.
However, this does not imply that every creator on YouTube should aim to amuse the Shorts community. Channels must continue to deliver material their subscribers are accustomed to. Some producers attempt to work around the barrier by uploading their Shorts productions to new channels.
Four different types of creators
Creators who have channels with short-form videos and long-form videos are similar on the youtube page. In these cases, all of a channel's videos provide the "same value proposition."
Channels where long-form videos are a series of “dopamine hits.” The steady stream of thrilling moments in the long-form material allows those videos to simulate the sensation of scrolling through a collection of short-form clips.
Creators built the channels around a personality on the youtube page. Subscribers will be open to any medium as long as the material is personality-driven if they are coming to appreciate a creator's vibe rather than a specific sort of video. Brands should employ this strategy sparingly.
Creators to use short-form videos to provide “updates” on long-form projects. The main project might take weeks to complete, but short-form quick-hits can keep your audience interested during the gaps between long-form uploads. “Something to let your audience know 'hey, we're still here, we're still working on things,'” is how the creator sums it up.
Given the massive variety of formats to choose from, it's clear that each has advantages and drawbacks. Perhaps creators should follow YouTube's advice and give the multiformat approach a shot.
After all, the platform seems to be designed to support that sort of content strategy. And with any luck, the multiformat approach will lead to more viewers finding and appreciating a creator's work.
What do you think about this trend? Let us know in the comments below!
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