Given TikTok's Short Length, How Should Brand Messaging Be Incorporated?
This article was automatically translated from the Japanese original. Read the original in Japanese
It's effective to narrow the message you want to convey down to just one and present it within the first few seconds. If you try to pack multiple appeals into a single video, viewers are more likely to drop off before reaching the end. Precisely because the format is short, narrowing your focus becomes essential.
Why Should You Narrow Down to a Single Message?
On short-form platforms, viewers decide in an instant whether to keep watching. If there are multiple things you want to convey, each one ends up being explained only halfway, and the result tends to be a video that leaves no lasting impression at all. By focusing on just one point, you can ensure that at least that single point comes across clearly.
What Does It Mean, Concretely, to Present the Message at the Beginning?
As soon as the video starts, include a phrase or visual that makes it immediately clear what the video is about. If you open with preamble or self-introduction, viewers will drop off before ever reaching your intended message. The basic structure is to show the conclusion or highlight first.
What Should You Do If You Want to Convey Multiple Appeals?
Rather than cramming everything into one video, split the appeals across separate videos. By limiting each video to a single message, every video has a higher chance of being watched to the end. Splitting content into multiple videos may seem like it adds extra work, but it's actually a way to increase the total amount of information that gets successfully conveyed.
What Happens If You Leave the Narrowing-Down to the Influencer?
The brand side should clearly determine which message is the top priority and share it with the influencer. Leaving the details of delivery and structure up to the influencer tends to result in a more natural finished video, but if you also leave the narrowing-down of the core message to them, the video may end up failing to convey your intended point.
Scope of This Article
This article covers how to narrow down messaging on TikTok. For a broader discussion of how far script specifications should extend, see How Far Should You Specify the Copy and Cut Structure of a Sponsored Collaboration Post?. For approaches to toning down the corporate feel in TikTok PR posts, see How Can You Avoid Making a TikTok PR Post Feel Too Corporate?.
In Closing
Precisely because the format is short, the basic practice is to narrow your message down to one point and present it at the beginning. When there's more than one thing you want to convey, splitting the content across multiple videos is the standard approach.