With TikTok's rapid growth and the countless videos uploaded daily, one question remains: Does video length matter? Is a short, snappy clip more effective than a longer, more detailed one?
Like most major platforms, TikTok empowers users to analyze their own performance data directly, providing valuable insights into their marketing strategies. At That Random Agency, we leverage this capability daily to optimize our campaigns.
So we were curious - could we use performance data to analyze what video lengths on TikTok provide the best metrics?
Let’s put on our lab coats and dive into our first Random experiment.
Video length has been a prevalent topic of discussion for TikTok videos over the years. Specifically, is length a variable that may impact content performance?
The general recommendation? Shorter videos tend to perform better in terms of views.
However, the issue with general recommendations is that they often pool results across a broad range of accounts. These vary significantly in terms of audience type, audience size, content strategy, industry, and more.
We have evaluated how consistently results vary across different platforms based on individual accounts. To better understand this general trend, we will compartmentalize our analysis of TikTok video length by industry. This will help us assess video performance more accurately.
Here are five different industries sampled among clients anonymously who have seen some marketing success in the platform.
(Disclaimer: These results are samples of larger industries and are not meant to guarantee improved performance for your personal accounts.)
We'll begin with an industry which we happen to be rather passionate about: marketing. We randomly selected a large sample of our own TikTok video performance data and chose to eliminate extreme outliers due to the platform's viral tendencies. We generated the following output when plotting average video view performance (in seconds) in relation to video length at different intervals.
Nothing in this output came as much of a surprise to us. A video length of 30 seconds is a recommendation we consistently hear. Most of our video analytics from the year to date show a central tendency of video length between 30 and 90 seconds. Additionally, the relatively higher average for videos between 0 and 10 seconds is a key observation for future analysis.
We output a similar chart utilizing video performance for TikTok accounts within the food or restaurant industry.
We observed a similar pattern in the video data for this industry, noting that the average number of video views increases beyond the 30-second threshold. While the maximum interval in seconds can still be classified as a “short” video at around 80 seconds, we noticed a larger increase in average video views even beyond a minute long. We can consider the storytelling nature of food preparation that could keep viewers engaged as a potential element for this pattern.
Another industry in which we are well-versed is the keynote speaking industry. If you're specifically involved in the keynote speaking business, feel free to check out our upcoming SPEAKR event to amplify your speaking career!
In terms of video length to video views performance in this industry, we are once again observing consistent behavior with a moving average once videos exceed 30 seconds. However, there is a significantly higher increase in average video views for videos within the 0 to 10-second range. This variation may be attributed to the nature of keynote speaking videos, which often include short, memorable quotes or soundbites in brief clips, or longer videos that expand on compelling or educational topics.
We also work with clients in the automotive industry. Some immediate observations when evaluating video performance data for this category reveal a tendency for videos to skew towards shorter lengths. This is likely due to the nature of the industry. Automotive videos are often action-focused and visually dynamic, making shorter content more common and effective.
We account for the natural tendency toward shorter video lengths in this industry by analyzing 5-second intervals. Interestingly, a more positive linear trend emerges as videos approach 30 seconds, likely due to these shorter intervals. Videos reaching at least 30 seconds continue to mark a significant threshold for increased average views.
The final industry we will evaluate in this analysis is the Health industry, specifically in the non-profit sector. We see a bit more variability in the ranging video views in the chart due to some difference in the video quantity as well as audience size.
Relative to the other industries we have analyzed so far, we are still able to depict a consistent pattern when we key into the 30 second threshold for video length. Including the 30 to 40 second intervals itself, 3 of the top intervals by average video views were apparent for videos that extended beyond this half minute threshold. Content wise, videos under this industry can use a combination of educational, attention-grabbing research along with a versatile range of visuals.
After evaluating the TikTok video view performance from the five different industries, we are able to conclude some insights.
Most notably, for all industries, average video views were significantly higher for video intervals longer than 30 seconds as opposed to the first 30 seconds. 30 to 90 seconds seems like a general sweet spot based on our data. This aligns with multiple general recommendations that we have observed.
In a few industries, videos shorter than 10 seconds had a notably high average view count. This could be due to a systematic reason: video replays are automatic and contribute to view metrics. As a result, videos of this length are more likely to loop repeatedly, boosting their view counts.
In summary, although video length on TikTok showed some significance in view differences, it shouldn't take priority over other important aspects such as crafting engaging content, relevance, sounds, storytelling, and more. Additionally, like other major platforms, TikTok is constantly evolving, with longer-form content and new content types (such as carousels) emerging. Staying updated on new trends, alongside analyzing the best performance strategies tailored to your account, will be crucial.
Need a data-backed strategy to grow your TikTok? Chat with our team today!
