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title: Social and short-form video (TikTok, Reels, Shorts, vertical) applies_to: [video, social, short-form, tiktok, reels, shorts] version: 1.0.0 last_updated: 2026-05 stability: stable

Social and short-form video

Short-form vertical video has its own rules. The 30-90 second YouTube product demo doesn't translate to a 15-second TikTok. Different aspect, different pacing, different audience expectation.

Read video-fundamentals.md first.

Platforms

Platform Aspect Length Audience
TikTok 9:16 (1080×1920) 15s, 60s, 3min, 10min Gen Z + Millennial; KR usage growing
Instagram Reels 9:16 15s, 30s, 60s, 90s Millennial + Gen Z
Instagram Stories 9:16 15s per clip; 24h ephemeral Existing followers
YouTube Shorts 9:16 up to 60s All ages; Korean default for video
YouTube (long-form) 16:9 unlimited Default everywhere
NaverTV / Kakao TV 16:9 varies KR primary
LinkedIn video 16:9 or 1:1 up to 10min Professional
Twitter / X video 16:9 or 1:1 2:20 max Public-square content

For Korean B2C marketing in 2024+: Instagram Reels + YouTube Shorts dominate; TikTok growing; LinkedIn for B2B.

The vertical video reality

9:16 isn't 16:9 cropped to 9:16. It's a different format with different rules.

Difference 16:9 (landscape) 9:16 (vertical)
Subject Often centered or rule-of-thirds Larger; closer to camera
Background Wide; lots of context Narrow; minimal
Text overlay Optional, top or bottom Often, mid-frame
Captions Bottom 10% Mid-frame, away from edges
Pacing Steady; longer takes Faster cuts; first 1s critical
Sound Often expected on Often muted; captions critical

Hook in 1 second

For social video, the first second decides everything. The user is scrolling. Stop them, or they're gone.

Type Opening 1s
Question hook "How do you save 4 hours a week?"
Bold claim "I cut my expenses in half."
Surprising visual Action shot; counterintuitive scene
Pattern interrupt Loud sound, sudden cut
Direct address "Stop scrolling. Watch this."

Don't use: - Slow burn intros (90s YouTube intro = scroll past in 1s). - Logo first (anti-hook). - "Hi guys" greeting. - Subtitle title cards.

Korean short-form conventions

  • 자막 dominant — Korean short-form almost always has subtitles burned in (sound off → sound on) with playful styling.
  • Brand color text + white outline — common subtitle style for visibility.
  • Vertical first — Korean creators design vertical, then crop landscape if needed.
  • Music: K-pop instrumentals + trending TikTok / Reels sounds; copyright considerations.
  • Pace: faster than Western (Korean attention to dense info).
  • Mascot integration for B2C: Kakao Friends, brand characters appear.

For Korean short-form B2C: - 첫 1초 hook + 자막 - Music or sound effect - 브랜드 노출 (logo / product) within first 5 seconds - CTA in last 2-3 seconds (link in bio / 채널 / 사이트 URL)

Composition for vertical

Safe areas

┌─────────────────────────────┐
│   ───── Top UI (10%) ─────  │   ← username, follow button overlay
│                             │
│                             │
│                             │
│                             │
│        SAFE AREA            │   ← put main content here (60% of height)
│                             │
│                             │
│                             │
│                             │
│   ──── Bottom UI (15%) ───  │   ← like/comment/share buttons + caption
│                             │
└─────────────────────────────┘

Top 10% and bottom 15% are platform UI. Don't put critical content there.

For text overlay: position between 25-65% of height for visibility above bottom UI without competing with top UI.

Subject framing

Vertical video subjects fill more of the frame: - Single person: chest-up to head-and-shoulders. - Product: closer than landscape would be. - Action: subject's path of motion fits within narrow frame.

Don't shoot a wide group shot in vertical — bodies get cut off awkwardly.

Pacing

Length Approximate cut count
15s 5-8 cuts
30s 8-15 cuts
60s 15-30 cuts

Short-form expects pace. Long takes (5+ seconds) feel slow.

Exceptions: - ASMR / cooking / craft videos: longer takes are the point. - Storytelling videos: medium-paced. - Product demos: brisk; show the result fast.

Subtitle styling for short-form

Burn-in subtitles (open captions) for short-form because: - 80%+ watch muted. - Algorithm boosts videos with text on screen. - Accessibility.

Common styles:

Style Look
TikTok native White text, black drop shadow, 1-2 lines
Highlight word One word highlighted in brand color per phrase
Karaoke-style Word-by-word reveal
Captioned with emoji Text + emoji for emphasis
Minimalist Small white text, bottom

For brand-aligned: pick ONE style and stick with it across videos.

Korean subtitle styling

  • Pretendard / NanumSquare / SB 어그로체 commonly used (bold, condensed).
  • Yellow / brand-color highlight on key words.
  • White text + thick black outline (visibility on any background).
  • Smaller than English subtitle (Hangul reads bigger at same size).

Music and sound

Music sources

  • Platform-native trending sounds: TikTok / Reels surface trending audio. Using them boosts algorithm reach.
  • Royalty-free libraries: Epidemic Sound, Artlist, Musicbed.
  • Custom composition: for brand-defining campaigns.

Korean music

  • Korean production music: Audionetwork KR, Pond5 KR.
  • Avoid K-pop: copyright strikes; commercial use rights are expensive and sometimes unavailable.
  • Brand jingle: short 2-3s sting at brand logo reveal.

Voice

  • Korean voiceover: for KR primary.
  • AI voice (clone or generic): increasingly common for short-form; pre-generated with services like ElevenLabs (Korean voice support exists).
  • Subtitles always even with voiceover — sound-off viewing.

Frequency / consistency

Short-form is volume-driven. Posting weekly < daily for algorithm reach.

For brand presence: - 3-7 short-form videos per week is typical for active brands. - Repurpose across platforms (Reels → Shorts → TikTok). - Don't crop randomly — re-edit per platform if budget allows.

Production budget tiers

Tier 1: Phone shoot (DIY)

  • Phone with stabilizer / tripod.
  • Capcut / InShot / Canva for editing.
  • Auto-captions + manual review.
  • Royalty-free music or platform-native sounds.

Cost per video: < 100,000 KRW (mostly time).

Tier 2: Influencer / creator

  • Hire a content creator who specializes in short-form.
  • They handle shoot + edit + posting.

Cost per video: 500,000 - 5,000,000 KRW depending on creator size.

Tier 3: Agency

  • Full short-form video agency.
  • Strategy + production + posting + analytics.

Cost: 5,000,000 - 50,000,000+ KRW per month for ongoing campaigns.

Repurposing long-form to short-form

If you have long-form video (60-min webinar, 5-min product demo), extract short-form clips:

  1. Find moments — quotable lines, surprising moments, big reveals.
  2. Crop to 9:16 — re-frame manually; subject often needs to be re-positioned.
  3. Add subtitles — burn in.
  4. Add hook — first 1 second is critical; usually need a new opening.
  5. Trim to 15-60s.
  6. Brand the end — logo + CTA in last 2-3 seconds.

Tools that help: Opus Clip, Vizard, CapCut Auto-clip — AI-driven re-cutting.

Analytics that matter

For short-form: - View-through rate (% who watched to end). - Average watch time. - Engagement rate (likes + comments + shares / views). - Algorithm reach (impressions / followers). - CTR to bio link / website.

Don't obsess over total views. View-through rate is the leading indicator of whether the content works.

Common short-form mistakes

  • Slow first second — algorithm penalty.
  • Landscape video posted vertically (with black bars) — looks lazy.
  • Watermark from another platform (TikTok logo on Reels) — Reels deprioritizes.
  • No subtitles — 80% miss the message.
  • Logo first — kills hook.
  • Long intro — anti-hook.
  • Recycling without re-editing — captions / aspect / pacing wrong for new platform.
  • Talking-head only — visual variety needed.

Don't

  • Don't post landscape video vertically with bars. Crop or reframe.
  • Don't skip the hook. First second is everything.
  • Don't post without captions.
  • Don't reuse a TikTok download (with watermark) on Reels — algorithm penalizes.
  • Don't ignore platform-native sounds — using trending audio gives algorithm boost.
  • Don't post once and call it done. Volume + consistency drive reach.
  • Don't put critical content in top 10% or bottom 15% — covered by platform UI.
  • Don't use copyrighted music for commercial brand — strikes.

Cross-reference