By Tamilore Oladipo

With more than 50 billion daily views, YouTube Shorts offers a unique opportunity for content creators to reach a wider audience, promote longer videos, and even increase subscribers.

For content creators and small businesses, Shorts can be a game-changer. Whether you're repurposing old content, sharing clips from live streams, promoting exclusive content, or hopping on the latest trend, Shorts provide a versatile medium to engage viewers and potentially go viral.

Five characteristics of high-performing short-form videos

Before we get into the ideas, however, it's important to know what makes a short-form video successful. After all, an idea is only one part of a published piece of content.

Here are the five key characteristics that set high-performing short-form videos apart, ensuring they resonate with viewers and achieve their intended impact.

• Engaging storytelling: High-performing short-form videos often have a compelling narrative, even if they're only a few seconds long—an engaging hook to capture attention with a middle and end that keeps them watching.
• High-quality visuals & audio: Crisp visuals and clear audio are essential. Whether through professional equipment or smart editing apps, high-quality sounds and visuals can significantly enhance the viewer's experience and, in turn, the video's performance.
• Relatability & authenticity: Viewers tend to engage more with genuine and relatable content. There’s no formula for authenticity – it’s a broad keyword that means different things depending on your goal for content creation. What’s important is showcasing what is true to you in your content to build trust and connection with your audience.
• Clear call-to-action (CTA): Especially for business-oriented content, having a clear and compelling CTA is vital. Whether it's prompting viewers to visit a website, purchase a product, or like and share the video, a well-placed CTA can drive desired actions and increase engagement rates.
• Optimization for platform & audience: Each platform has unique algorithms, and YouTube Shorts is no exception. Consider what you can always include in your content to increase the chances of high performance.

As you create your own videos, consider these characteristics and how your content can better tick each box.

18 YouTube Shorts ideas for your next video

If you’re looking for inspiration for your next short video, here are 18 creative ideas to help your content stand out and engage viewers in bite-sized bursts.

Repurpose content from your other short-form video platforms

Content repurposing is a strategy that can amplify your reach without crafting entirely new material. If you create short-form videos on other platforms like TikTok or Instagram Reels, you already have a bank of content for your YouTube Shorts.

Take your best-performing videos from one platform to another – you can tap into a nevw audience segment with content that already appeals to your target audience.

It’s important to note that repurposing doesn't mean merely reposting; it's an opportunity to tweak, refine, and adapt your content to the nuances of each platform. For instance, you can share the behind-the-scenes of making a recent long-form video through short-form content.

Embracing this strategy maximizes your …read more

Source:: Buffer Blog

Author: Aaron