TikTok leans towards long-form video formats

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After battling for popularity with Instagram, TikTok is taking on YouTube with its pivot towards 10-minute videos. Find out all about the Chinese company's new feature and the opportunities video essays offer to marketers here on Kolsquare.


The news broke on January 28, 2022, when Chris Stokel-Walker, a tech journalist and author of TikTok Boom, tweeted a spokesperson’s response to a question about the platform’s video length limit. The tweet came after Matt Navarra, a UK-based social media consultant and commentator, tweeted a screenshot of an update to TikTok’s account. A spokesperson for the short-form video giant has confirmed: Users will be able to upload 10-minute videos, “which we hope will unleash the creative possibilities of our creators around the world.”


In July 2021, TikTok last extended the length limit for its videos. Users were then allowed to upload videos up to three minutes long. The platform, owned by Byte Dance, started with short videos of 15 seconds. This time extension is now being done to attract more creators and older users to the platform.

What are TikTok's reasons for promoting longer-form videos?
With this new strategy, the company is trying to compete with YouTube. In addition to attracting different creators and users, longer-form videos allow for more advertising and potentially more time spent on the app per user . However, it could go against what users expect from TikTok.

The potential for more revenue isn’t the only reason – longer videos might be necessary to grow beyond its current market share. TikTok’s move to a longer format contradicts other popular platforms’ efforts to attract short-video audiences. In 2020, YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels were introduced to compete with the Chinese giant.

According to Cloudflare data, TikTok emerged as the most popular domain in terms of inte finance directors email database list rnet traffic at the end of 2021, surpassing all US Big Tech companies.

Longer-form videos and video essays are an opportunity for marketers
According to the 2021 Social Media Marketing Industry Report , most social media marketers are not using videos longer than one minute for their campaigns and strategies. Creating content and running ads with longer videos can be a macro trend that benefits marketers.

TV viewing trends may answer why. As of June 2021, one in four people will adopt streaming services like Netflix, YouTube, and Hulu, making it the second-largest category of TV streaming behind cable. As the pandemic has taken hold, people are drawn to digital video on demand, which will only increase in the coming years. Broadcast and cable TV will most likely become obsolete in the coming years. In fact, by 2023, we will spend 15% of our waking time watching digital video, according to eMarketer .