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Short videos are increasing their presence on various video platforms. With Youtube, the largest video platform, starting to monetize short videos in February 2023, many people are aiming to make a buck in this genre.
We asked two people who actually produce short videos to talk about whether it is possible to make money from short videos, how difficult it is, and how companies should utilize short videos.
Today we have gathered two people who actually make money from video production and would like to ask them about short videos, a hot topic these days. To begin with, please tell us your definition of short videos.
Mr. A: Thank you very much. Short videos are short videos that can be posted on Youtube and other platforms. There are some differences from platform to platform, but the duration of a video can be from 15 to 90 seconds.
Mr. B: It is said that the short video boom started when TikTok was released in 2017 and quickly became popular around the world, especially among young people. In Japan, it already became popular in 2018 and was chosen as the new buzzword of the year.
Mr.A: When TikTok started to become popular, the short video market was almost exclusively teenagers and early 20s, both in terms of viewers and contributors. Later, Instagram added a short video posting function in 2020 under the name “Reels,” and Youtube also released a short video function in 2021, which completely established it as a segment of the video market. Even today, these three services almost dominate the short video market in Japan, don't they?
Mr. B: In the early days of TikTok, it was something for students to post their memories and inside jokes for fun. Later, it grew with the birth of influencers who posted interesting things in short videos, and with the entry of Instagram, I think it began to reach a wider audience.
In terms of audience and contributors, TikTok has a younger audience, Instagram's Reels has women in their 20s and 30s, and Youtube has men and people of all ages as its main audience.
Why did short videos become popular all at once?
Mr.A: The number one reason is that anyone can create videos easily. However, with short videos, for example, a student can ask an interesting classmate to do a one-liner and post it as it is.
In the case of TikTok, the app also had functions for adding effects and music, so even amateurs could create videos that looked somewhat “realistic,” which I think is what attracted young people to TikTok.
Mr. B: In the early days, TikTok was a platform where people could post their own inside jokes. However, influencers who created and posted well-crafted videos started to emerge one after another, and the video content gradually shifted from the inside joke to the mass audience.
The subsequent release of Reels, which is not like TikTok in that it does not feature interesting videos, but instead focuses on female-oriented content such as beauty information and posts by celebrities.
Mr.A: The user base that the app originally has is directly reflected in the short videos. Youtube has been popular as a side business for several years, but short videos have made it even easier.
I see. By the way, how do you monetize your short videos? How does it work?
Mr.A: Each platform has its own way of earning revenue. As many of you know, when you post a regular 10-minute video on Youtube, advertising revenue is distributed to the contributor based on the number of times the video is viewed.
Short videos did not initially have this revenue sharing, but since February of this year, they have been earning revenue based on the number of views.
Mr. B: TikTok and Instagram do not earn revenue based on the simple number of views; both Reels and TikTok have started such a system on a trial basis in the U.S., but not yet in Japan. There are several ways to earn revenue on these two platforms, including taking on corporate projects, receiving money for live-streaming, and directing people to external sites.
For example, a company that wants to promote a certain cosmetic product asks you to post a video in which you talk about your impressions of using the product. Also, if I want to lead viewers to an external site, I send them to an affiliate site or LINE@, where they can buy some kind of product.
Mr. A: Maybe it is because I am mainly active on Youtube, but I have an image that TikTok and Instagram are difficult to monetize. In order to get corporate projects, you need to have a certain number of followers, and you also need to post videos that match the corporate image.
In this respect, Youtube is easier for anyone to start, as long as you can earn views.
Mr. B: Youtube also has conditions for monetization, right?
Mr. A: Yes. In addition to “more than 1,000 channel subscribers,” the conditions are “4,000 hours of total views of active public videos in the last 12 months” or “10 million views of active public short videos in the last 90 days.
In fact, this requirement may be quite difficult for beginners. According to some statistics, more than 90% of people who start posting videos on Youtube give up because they cannot achieve this monetization condition.
Mr. B: Still, I think it is easier to clear the monetization requirement on Youtube than on Instagram or TikTok. You have to have about 10,000 followers to clear the screening process.
On Instagram, too, you basically need to have more than 10,000 followers to be able to receive corporate projects and expect to get paid for them.
In other words, on these two platforms, the minimum requirement is not to have a short video, but to have gained a certain degree of popularity in the first place. The short video is just a feature to assist with this.
▶Corporate projects
A company requests an influencer to introduce a specific product or service. In recent years, however, the majority of requests have been made through intermediary companies.
By the way, how much profit can you expect to make by taking on a corporate project?
Mr. B: It varies depending on the number of followers and other factors, but basically it is estimated to be the number of followers x 1 yen to 5 yen. In other words, if a person with 30,000 followers accepts a project with a unit price of 3 yen, he/she can expect to earn 90,000 yen. If you receive several projects like this per month, you can make a living from Instagram alone.
However, if you only post corporate projects, you will be unpopular with your followers, and your credibility will decline, so it is necessary to continue posting non-corporate projects on a daily basis. Also, if you accept a corporate project, of course you must not have any conduct problems, so you must refrain from posting daily content that might antagonize your followers.
Mr. A: Some people earn money by taking on a large number of corporate projects, but I think it is easier to earn money by directing people to external sites. For example, you can recommend a product in a short video and sell it on your affiliate site.
Mr. B: I introduce corporate projects to influencers, and I also produce short videos for corporate projects.
Influencers who take on corporate projects are more likely to pay attention to their daily posts, and they are more concerned about their credibility. For example, if they want to work in the beauty industry, they will post only beauty-related posts in their daily life so that they can get jobs in genres where there are many projects.
On the other hand, if the goal is to lead people to external websites, some people prefer to avoid accepting corporate projects because it would put restrictions on their usual activities. If you are going to monetize on Instagram as an individual, it is a good idea to clarify what direction you want to take your activities.
Do you make money with short videos on Youtube?
Mr. A: To be honest, it is quite tough.
The earnings from short videos are quite low, ranging from 0.003 yen to 0.01 yen per play. A typical Youtube video of a few dozen minutes costs about 0.05 to 0.2 yen, but short videos are less than one-tenth of that. Even if the unit price is 0.01 yen, it will only generate 10,000 yen per million views. Therefore, I use short videos as a conduit to get people to watch regular videos.
Mr. B: I don't recommend monetizing short videos alone on any platform. I think it is more realistic to try to monetize by combining videos and websites.
Mr. A: If you look at monetization alone, it is tough, but even so, short videos are a very good service because you can post short videos and check the response. For beginners who are thinking of posting videos on Youtube, I recommend making short videos first to accumulate know-how on video production and buzz-worthy videos.
What are the genres of short videos that tend to get buzz?
Mr. B: The genres that tend to get buzz are different for each platform: on TikTok, the most popular videos are the ones that are interesting and planned by influencers; on Instagram, it's beauty and health-related videos.
However, popular genres are already full of contributors, so I think niche genres that are not yet popular have more potential.
Mr. A: In the case of Youtube, all genres really have the potential to become a buzzword. Just to give you a few examples, funny videos, videos about dogs and cats, videos about great people and Japan, videos of couples making out, magic videos, etc., anything that can attract viewers in the first few seconds has the potential to become a buzz.
So, if a beginner is going to enter the market, what genre would be best for them?
Mr. A: If you want to be out in the world yourself, I would say the fun type. There are plenty of stories that can be adapted from what other contributors are doing or what has been popular overseas. On the other hand, if you don't want to appear yourself, it would be relatively easy to create videos summarizing celebrities, fortune-telling, psychological trivia, or Internet message boards.
Mr. B: For Instagram, I would recommend beauty-related content. However, beauty-related influencers are really overflowing, so unless the appearance of the performer is above a certain level, they will not be looked at. There are rare influencers who do not show their faces and receive a large number of corporate projects, but they are easy to explain, knowledgeable, and outstanding in their ability to convey the appeal of products.
Personally, I think that Instagram influencers are not something you aim for, but people who love beauty-related information and transmit it naturally.
Mr. A: In this respect, with Youtube, there is a possibility to succeed in any genre. My advice to beginners is that it is better to make videos of things you like and know a lot about, rather than aiming for “genres that might get buzz”.
If you are good at guitar, make a video of you playing the guitar; if you know a lot about trivia, make a video summarizing it; if you like idols, make a video introducing idols; and so on.
According to Mr. A, there is an ironclad rule for making short videos that generate buzz.
First of all, you must attract viewers in the first second of the video. If you want to make a visual impact, show a good-looking guy or a beautiful woman. If that is not possible, then state the question that is bothering you or the conclusion that you did not expect first.
This will increase the probability that viewers will watch the video to the end. Even if the final conclusion is not interesting, the beginning is the key. Beginners of short videos should think about “whether or not the first second has an impact” when creating their videos.
Incidentally, the title of a short video on Youtube is displayed, so the impact of the title is also important. The title of the video should be something like, “After this, your cat will be Fat! or “If you are not interested in health, please do not watch this video.
Are there ways for companies, rather than individuals, to take advantage of short videos?
Mr. B: As I have explained, short videos themselves are not something that should be done for the purpose of monetization. Especially if a company does it, it would be better to do it completely for promotional purposes.
Mr. A: Recently, the number of short videos made by companies has been increasing. For example, Shiseido has uploaded a short video introducing makeup tips, and ATOM Legal Counseling Center has uploaded a video answering simple legal questions.
Other examples include a real estate agency introducing rental properties and a staffing agency providing video advice on changing jobs and job-related issues.
Mr. B: When a company makes a short video, the key is not to introduce their services in a straightforward manner, but to make a 60-second video that the viewer can enjoy or feel refreshed. Sometimes, the video will start with an introduction, “This time we will introduce this product! but of course, viewers will not watch such a video.
Mr. A: Also, I feel that videos that introduce a certain aspect of a company or industry are relatively easy to attract viewers. For example, in the case of a restaurant, it could be something like “A part-time job is a certain way” or “A customer is a god you'd be happy to see”.
Mr. B：What kind of video depends on the creator's sense of style, so if it is difficult to make in-house, I recommend outsourcing. I belong to a company that makes such commissioned videos (laughs).
By the way, how much of a budget do you need if you outsource the making of a short video?
Mr. B: If it is just video editing, less than 100,000 yen is sufficient. However, when it comes to planning, shooting, and editing, we often estimate 300,000 to 500,000 yen. In most cases, it takes a number of short videos to achieve the desired promotional effect, so we often receive requests for a total of several million yen for 10 videos.
Mr. A: What Mr. B is talking about is a case where a company of a certain caliber wants to make a video of solid quality, isn't it? If it is an individual video production like mine, the budget is much lower because I ask individual creators through crowdsourcing sites or social networking sites.
I can often get a contract for 10,000 yen for just editing, or 100,000 yen or less even if I do everything from planning to filming. However, I think it is better to make short videos yourself than to go to the trouble of outsourcing.
So, finally, what do you think will happen to the short video market in the future?
Mr. A: Since the length of videos is inevitably short, I don't think advertising revenue will increase any more than it is now. Therefore, the trend of individuals making short videos as a side business will disappear soon. I think the best way is to use them as a lead-in to other videos and sites.
Mr. B: I agree with you. I also think that companies, rather than individuals, will make more use of short videos. Videos have a great promotional effect, so I think we will see an increase in videos like TV commercials featuring celebrities. Short videos are more flexible than TV commercials, so I expect to see an increase in the number of interesting videos.
◉Mr. A.
Mr. A is a 29-year-old male freelance video creator. As a freelance video creator, he posts “slow commentary” videos of various genres on Youtube. His favorite genre of videos is historical and historical figures, and his highest monthly income on YouTube is 600,000 yen, but he has been struggling recently due to the increase of rival channels.
◉Mr. B
Mr. B is a 38-year-old man who works for a video production company. He works for a video production company. He works for a company that produces promotional videos, assigns influencers, and manages social networking sites on behalf of his clients. His favorite genre is videos of dogs and cats. He also manages a personal VTuber clip channel.
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