In recent years, video content has become a hot topic on the Internet and on TV.
Under such circumstances, “short movies” are being introduced and becoming popular on SNS and websites.
Short movies are very short, ranging from a few seconds to several tens of seconds, so they can be created easily, and because they require less time and effort on the part of the viewer, an increasing number of companies and brands are using them for business purposes.
In recent years, when corporate accounts on SNS have become commonplace, we would like to provide a detailed explanation of short movies, which are attracting a lot of attention as an effective approach to reach young people.
What is a short movie?
Short movies have become popular among young people in recent years, but there may be some who don’t know much about them.
There is no clear definition of a short movie, but it refers to a short video that leaves a lasting impression on the viewer.
The playback time for YouTube shorts and other social networking sites is generally less than one minute, and even when published on a company website, it is often less than two minutes at most.
It is attracting attention in the marketing industry because it allows you to convey messages that leave a lasting impression on viewers in a short period of time, and more and more companies are starting to adopt it.
This time, I will mainly explain the definition as “short movies used by companies for marketing activities.”
Characteristics of short movies and differences from short films
The most notable feature of short movies is their short playback time.
In order to be able to condense the message you want to convey in about one minute, you need to first clarify what you want to convey when creating it. Because it can be viewed in a short amount of time, it is less of a burden to the target user, and its ease of use is also appealing.
Furthermore, since it condenses the message you want to convey, it will leave a strong impression on your audience.
The most typical difference between the short movies introduced here and short films is their length. Originally, short movies refer to short films, which are also called short films, and short films are usually about 20 minutes long.
Although they are similar in the sense that they focus on the message you want to convey in a short amount of time and leave a strong impression on viewers, they have a different meaning from short movies used for business and marketing.
How can you use short movies in your business?
In business, short movies are mainly used for corporate branding purposes, increasing the value of companies and their brands.
By creating a story about a company’s philosophy and the feelings behind a product, and having the story be viewed by the target audience, you can gain sympathy and emotion from the target audience, and get them interested in the product. Additionally, interested users may actively research the company or product, and users who sympathize with the company may become fans of the company or brand.
Furthermore, since the playback time is short, there is a tendency for less resistance to viewing.
Since the purpose is corporate branding, creating a video ad that directly introduces and appeals to a product or service can have the opposite effect, as it may end up making the target user feel disgusted.
If you are reading this explanation, have you ever seen a video ad that forces information on you one-sidedly and skipped it, thinking it was annoying?
To avoid such things, when creating and publishing short movies for corporate branding purposes, it is important to keep the story in mind and make the videos so that viewers will want to watch them themselves.
Increasing awareness of our products and services
As a direct benefit, it can be expected to increase awareness among consumers (=target users). Because short movies can be easily posted and viewed, they are often spread on SNS, and you can aim to increase awareness among more consumers.
If you can create an attractive short movie, there will be more opportunities for it to be spread, attracting the attention of more consumers, and encouraging those consumers to become your company’s fans and actively promote your products. There will also be an increase in purchases.
Can also be used for recruitment activities
The theme of the short movie you create is not limited to your company’s products and services, but can also focus on your company’s management philosophy and way of thinking. As explained in the previous section, users who watch and sympathize with your short movie may become fans of your company.
If such users are job-hunting, they may decide that they want to work for this company because they can clearly communicate the company’s philosophy and attitude.
Increase your brand value
Among short movies, those that are not created as advertisements but mainly convey the image of a company or brand are called “branded movies.” With the spread of smartphones, marketing using the Internet is becoming more active, and many companies are starting to distribute video advertisements with the aim of spreading the word on SNS.
Branded movies are short videos distributed by the same company that are created primarily to improve the company’s brand value, rather than to explain products or services.
The difference from video ads is that video ads are “one-sidedly shown” to users, whereas branded movies are often viewed “on their own.” When users actively watch videos themselves, the value of the video content increases among users.
When viewers watch branded movies on their own, the value of the video content increases, which means that the image of your company improves, and the trust and favorability of your brand increases. This is a major benefit of creating and publishing short movies.
Before making a short movie
We will explain three points to keep in mind when creating a short movie that can be used for corporate branding.
These three points are very important as you will be able to create a more attractive short movie by being aware of these three points.
First, clarify the purpose
The short movies explained this time can mainly be used for corporate branding, but I think there are various purposes for creating short movies, such as what the main message is ultimately conveyed and what situations you want to use the short movie in. .
The objectives often set are
- Increase awareness of products and services and lead to purchases
- Mainly disseminate the company’s management philosophy and way of thinking to appeal to students who are job-hunting.
- Increase your company’s brand value and make your company known
and so on.
This time, the main explanation is about short movies, but is it really necessary to create short movies to achieve that purpose? Could other methods yield greater results? It is also important to think carefully.
If there is another method that yields better results than short movies, consider using that method.
Also, even if a short movie is the best method for your purpose, by delving into the purpose before creating it, it will be easier to select the media (company website, SNS, etc.) to publish it after creating it.
Clarify your target
By clarifying the purpose of using short movies, you can narrow down your target users.
For example, if the purpose is to increase awareness and purchase of the company’s cosmetics products, female consumers, if the purpose is to use it for recruitment activities, students who are job hunting, etc. By clearly identifying your target audience, it will be easier to create content and stories that will leave a stronger impression on your target audience.
In order to get viewers to actively watch your content, it is very important to clarify your target. If you broadcast without knowing the target audience, the number of views will not increase, and you may end up incurring costs.
For that reason, if you were the target, what kind of videos would you be interested in? When setting a target, think about it from the target’s perspective.
Narrow down to one thing you want to convey
Due to their characteristics, short movies have a playback time of about 2 minutes at most.
On Twitter and Instagram, which are more likely to spread, shorter videos of around 45 to 30 seconds are sometimes recommended as more effective.
In order to create a short movie that leaves a strong impression on viewers and resonates with them even with a short playback time, it is important to clarify the purpose and target mentioned above, and then narrow down the message to just one. is.
If you can clearly express only the important messages you really want to convey within the short playback time, your short movie will resonate with more viewers.
Be careful not to include too many pieces of information, as this may result in a video that doesn’t convey what you want to convey.
Actually produce a short movie
So far, we have explained the basic knowledge of short movies, how to use them, and the points you should consider before creating them.
From here, I will explain what tools you should use when actually creating a short movie.
Create with smartphone
The easiest way to create a short movie is to use a smartphone app.
Let’s create it using video editing apps, photo processing/editing apps, etc. Many apps are free, so even individuals can easily create one.
Not only branding movies, but most of the personal short videos posted on SNS are created using smartphone apps, so it might be a good idea to try it out for practice.
Created on a computer
If you want to create a more professional short movie, you can also create it on your computer using photos and videos taken with a smartphone or digital camera.
Although it takes more time and effort than creating with a smartphone app, you will be able to create a higher quality short movie.
Furthermore, if you want to achieve the quality of a short film, the lowest risk is to first practice using distributed free software, and then purchase and use paid video editing software after getting used to it. I can say that.
One option is to outsource to a professional.
If you don’t have the knowledge or time to create it yourself, but still want to create a high-quality and more effective short movie, consider hiring a professional.
When making a request, it is very important to clearly communicate the purpose, target, message and information you want to convey, and to have a thorough discussion with the producer.
By clearly conveying the image of the short movie you want to create and having the producer understand it, you will be able to work with professionals to create a more attractive short movie. However, it does come at a cost, so please consider this carefully before making your request.
summary
This time, we have explained short movies that are mainly used in business.
With the spread of smartphones, many companies are starting to use short movies as an effective method for corporate branding. By having your target users play your content on their own, you can increase your company’s brand value among users.
This is an innovative method that can appeal to even more users by appealing to the hearts of the target audience.
If used well, short movies can not only increase the value of your company or brand, but also gain a sense of trust and affinity. It will continue to be used as an effective marketing method in the future.