TikTok this week made a rather sizable update to its core media format: longer videos. Specifically, it has raised its maximum video length from 3 minutes to 10 minutes. This marks the third change to its video format, after increasing the max from 60 seconds in July and 15 seconds before that.
So why the change? TikTok is angling the move as a way to bring additional value to its creators and users. Reading between the lines, this could boost and broaden the types of videos and use cases for TikTok. The app is all about creativity, so a broadened format opens the door wider.
This move is also demand-driven in some ways, and follows signals from the TikTok community. For example, many creators produce longer videos, then break them up as “part 2, part 3, etc.” Longer videos keep things more cohesive and user-friendly, avoiding friction and finger taps.
What About SMBs?
One question this change raises in our minds (as always) is what are the implications for SMBs and local commerce. This question is top of mind for TikTok as it’s increasingly used by local businesses to tell their stories and gain awareness and visibility, especially among younger proprietors.
As we’ve examined, the name of the game for SMB marketing on TikTok is to lean into the medium’s raw and organic persona. As TikTok’s Rebecca Sawyer told us at Localogy Place 2020, SMBs have done well with things like kitchen walkthroughs, delivery ride-alongs, and even beekeeper hijinx.
Longer-form videos can only help these SMB efforts given fewer restrictions. Anyone who has ever produced video know that the biggest challenge is making them shorter. SMBs can now include more footage to capture their ethos… which is the whole point of TikTok marketing.
In addition to better serving existing SMBs that use TikTok, fewer restrictions coulds broaden the base of SMBs on TikTok. Similarly, will longer videos make TikTok conducive to additional verticals? We’re thinking time-lapsed videos of home renovations projects or salon makeovers.
In any case, expect more features and formats as TikTok continues to “find its voice” in the world of social sharing apps. That will include ways to enhance and evolve TikTok use cases. Today, that’s everything from entertainment to slice-of-life fodder to brand and SMB marketing.
The latter is a key component of TikTok’s monetization, so it could be prioritized in ongoing feature development. Like other consumer media, this will be a balancing act of catering to sources of revenue (in this case, brand marketing dollars) and keeping the UX organic and engaging.
Shifting Ground
Stepping back, this move represents a certain agility for TikTok. As tech and media products evolve, the biggest success stories aren’t afraid to pivot as the ground shifts. Sometimes these changes are larger and more controversial than others – like Twitter expanding to 280 characters.
Perhaps a better example is YouTube (increasingly a competitor to TikTok). You may remember that YouTube once had a 15-minute max on uploaded videos. This could be unlocked for users with certain-sized audiences, but was largely confining, relative to today’s standard.
Meanwhile, expect to see TikTok’s longer format on a smartphone near you. TikTok has been testing this change over the past several months and will now roll it out in a phased approach in the coming weeks for all users. Savvy and camera-native SMBs may already be playing with it.
