7 basics with short-form video

Here are 7 basic problems with short-form videos today!

1. Most short-form videos are meaningless

Even if you don't follow any of the creators who put out these short videos, you still see them on Facebook and Instagram, and (in the case of TikTok videos) shared on social media. And from experience, most videos are just nonsense uploaded to attract attention.

None of our lives are enriched by these videos, so creators are wasting time uploading them and viewers are wasting time watching them.

2. The robot voice added is dull and unattractive

If you're going to upload a short video, please do the voiceover yourself. Sure, this is a bit more efficient than using the robotic voice provided by text-to-speech tools. Otherwise, your video will sound exactly like someone else's. That's so boring!

3. The same funny music and songs are used too much

Even without the robotic voices, these Reels and TikToks sound surprisingly similar. Laugh music and the same songs are used over and over again. Take some time to invest in the videos as there are many audio options for these videos.

The embedded laughs are especially annoying, as they sound like something out of a classic sitcom. These "industrial" laughs are designed to clue you in that what you're watching is funny. But sadly, most of the content is not funny at all. You can count on one hand the number of times you've laughed out loud while watching a Facebook Reel, but 50% of them have a laugh track trying to convince you that something is funny.

4. Tends to lead to annoying clickbait

Although, as discussed, many short-form videos are just nonsense, some are even worse. They are pure clickbait content, designed to lure users into viewing before revealing that they do not contain what was promised. While we are all used to ads and posts like this, it's sad to see it being used in videos as well. Creators will use the format to their advantage, choosing an opening scene or recurring part of the video to hook people.

5. Staged videos pretending to be real events

One of the biggest problems today is staged videos pretending to be real events. It's frustrating to encounter videos that try to deceive and manipulate viewers.

What's worse is that these videos have a huge number of fans. Click on any short-form video that's clearly fake and you'll find hundreds of comments from people who believe what they're watching is real. The inability to detect fake content appears to be on the rise.

6. People will do anything to get attention from strangers

This is not just limited to short-form videos. Content creators and KOLs on social networks are also tending to follow this path. People will do (almost) anything to get attention.

Examples include videos showing animals being rescued from sewers or other difficult situations, when it is clear that someone put the animal in danger in the first place. Another case is that pranksters target strangers who do not want to participate in useless pranks.

7. Misinformation is widespread and people tend to believe it

Finally, but perhaps most egregious, is the amount of misinformation spread through this format. This is also a problem with long-form videos on YouTube, but short videos spread much faster, to the point where an incorrect piece of information contained in a video can be seen by millions of people instantly. Misinformation can be minor or very serious.

Clearly, short-form videos are having a negative impact on society. Not only do they have the addictive ability to make people choose to watch them in their free time, but they also reduce people's attention span to a minimum. Therefore, be careful with this type of content!

Micah Soto

Update 16 July 2024