If you're tired of hearing the words "small but mighty" to describe everything from bootstrapped marketing teams to dwindling budgets, strap in — we're here today to tell you that this phrase can also describe an emerging type of B2B video.

That's right: Micro-videos are here. If you've spent some time on social media platforms like TikTok, you're probably well aware that short-form videos reign supreme, but you may not have connected the dots between that type of video content and B2B marketing. After all, B2B marketing is all about building trust via in-depth content and resources.

Right?

Well, in 2023, B2B marketers reported that TikTok provided the second highest ROI across social platforms, coming in just after Facebook. That means these tiny, bite-sized videos are packing quite the revenue punch!

If you're feeling skeptical about using micro-videos in your business, we totally get it. The idea of disseminating complex B2B info into mere seconds can feel stressful and overwhelming. The good news is that creating micro-videos doesn't have to tap your current resources too much; in fact, you're probably already sitting on a ton of micro-video opportunities in your video library.

In this guide, we'll cover:

• What is micro-video content?
• 3 micro-video examples
• Why should you do micro-video marketing?
• How to nail your micro-video marketing strategy: Goldcast's tips
• Making snackable videos is a snap with Goldcast's Content Lab

Ready to learn how these "small but mighty" micro-videos can work for you? Let's get started.

Micro-videos are ultra-short video clips designed to hook attention within the first few seconds. There's no universal standard for how long a micro-video is, but we think 30 seconds or less is a good barometer.

Back in 2019, as attention spans continued to decline, WARC found that viewers watched Facebook brand videos for an average of 4.57 seconds. That means that if your video was shorter than 30 seconds, less than one-third of the video was watched.

We'd be willing to guess that that average number has gone down even more over time, with the rise of videos across B2B brands. If that's true, and people are watching your videos for less than four seconds, why not experiment with micro-videos to get the most important stuff out of the way up front?

When planning your video marketing strategy, consider these different types of videos for your B2B micro-video content:

• Quick product feature demos and action shots
• Customer testimonial snippets
• Teasers from a highlight or sizzle reel to promote an upcoming event
• Short clips from interviews, panels, or other standout moments from your live events
• BTS looks at your company culture, teambuilding, and other moments of connection

If you want to use micro-videos, the thing to remember is that yes, your content needs to be short — but it still needs to have a purpose. Create micro-videos with your goal and intended CTA in mind so that every millisecond works toward that.

You can also use micro-videos to grab people's attention and funnel them toward more extensive content on your channel or homepage.

Apple's "Pay the Apple Way" is a great B2C example of micro-video content:

The total video clocks in at 31 seconds, and within the very first second, you're aware of what's going on. You can relate to this person's challenge, as many of us have been there — standing in line, trying to quickly check out but being held up by technology.

The emotional resonance of this dilemma makes you want to keep watching, and then you're rewarded with a solution to this common issue: Apple Pay.

In the B2B world, here's one of our examples — a 25-second video featuring LaShanda Jackson, Director of Lifecycle Marketing at Intuit Mailchimp, explaining how her team uses content personalization to speed up the sales cycle.

And we'll close this section with another B2B example from Salesforce, a 30-second ad featuring legendary actor Matthew McConaughey assuring customers that their data is safe with Salesforce.

You might be surprised to find that these videos are considered micro-videos; they contain a good amount of content!

Remember: Even if you aren't creating micro-videos, you only have a few seconds to make an impression on your viewer. This should push you to focus your energy into those first moments of your video content — and micro-videos are perfectly suited for that purpose.

Here are some other reasons to try micro-video marketing:

• Micro-videos are a key part of multimodal content strategy, which combines visual and text assets to boost brand awareness and reach your target audience.
• They're a lower lift than longer, more resource-intensive videos.
• You can fuel your content strategy with videos by repurposing existing content into super-short clips.
• If you've been wanting to try your hand at TikTok, having some micro-videos to share can be a good way to enter that market.
• You'll reach busy B2B folks on the go and hopefully make a lasting impression.
• Micro-videos are super versatile for your marketing campaigns, whether you're sharing them on LinkedIn, Instagram Reels, or YouTube Shorts. As you saw with the examples, you can get quite a lot of info across in just 30 seconds, so micro-videos can be used for a range of purposes.

If you're wondering how to pull this off, AI has totally transformed video marketing, including the world of micro-videos. Try a tool like Goldcast Content Lab to transform existing content into micro-videos in just seconds. (PS: It's 100% free!)

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Creating effective micro-videos is about being snappy and strategic. Whether you're repurposing existing content (trust us; this is the move!) or creating some new micro-video content from scratch, these tips will help you maximize impact.

These steps build on each other and should be read in order for best results. When you finish, you should have a comprehensive understanding of what it takes to build a micro-video strategy. First up: figuring out your objectives!

It's time to get granular. What are your specific goals for reaching potential customers and improving conversion rates? (Note: "Going viral" does not count!)

Do you want to drive more people to sign up for events? Are you hoping more leads visit the website? Do you want folks to book a product demo? Is there a piece of long-form content you hope viewers will engage with after the video? These are just a few goals you might have for your micro-video.

When you know your objectives, you're able to measure the success of your video marketing efforts and determine if you actually accomplished what you set out to do. Focus on one objective since the content is so short, and then see how your micro-video performs against that criteria.

Maintaining brand consistency across all of your videos is important so that viewers can instantly recognize your content — no matter how short it is! Plus, if you're going to ramp up micro-video content, you might end up with a ton more videos than you have now, which makes branding even more critical.

In general, keep color schemes, fonts, and logos the same across your videos. You can experiment with one element at a time if you want to change things up a little, but you don't want your micro-videos to seem SO different that people can't tell they're from your company at all. Things should always feel cohesive.

While you might think you can just wing it since micro-videos are short, you actually need to put a lot of thought into the script, making it as tight as possible so you can convey the right message in the first few seconds.

Remember that 4.57-second watch time! People keep scrolling fast, so you want to give them a reason to stick around. Hone in on your hook — the thing that will make people keep watching to find out what you have to say. This might be a hot take, a shocking statistic, an unexpected visual, or something else.

From there, move from your hook into the core part of your micro-video before ending with a CTA, if you have one. Stick to one main message for each video, and don't worry if your script is longer than you want it to be at first. It's a good idea to write out all of your ideas, and then keep cutting until you're in micro-video territory.

There are platform-specific practices for metadata optimization, but in general, be sure to include relevant keywords in your micro-video titles and descriptions. Add closed captions or subtitles for accessibility and viewers who watch without sound, and include hashtags on platforms that use them.

Your existing B2B video content contains tons of micro-videos, just waiting to be created. Use Content Lab, our intuitive video platform, to streamline video production and automatically scan existing videos for the best moments. You might also take notes during events for key times that stood out to you in terms of content value or emotional impact.

The strongest video moments tend to be:

• Sound bites featuring thought leaders and industry influencers
• Moments of genuine human connection
• Discussions of compelling statistics or data points
• Customer testimonials, as your audience relates to their peers more than you (sorry, but it's true!)

Content Lab also allows you to repurpose for each specific platform, changing video aspect ratios, moving text overlay around, and snipping clips if you want to go even shorter.

If you walk away from this guide with anything, we want it to be that creating micro-videos doesn't have to be a monumental undertaking. Modern AI-powered tools streamline almost every aspect of video production; all you have to do is review and refine!

Here are some video-related tasks you can automate:

• Transcript generation
• Clip generation
• Captions, translations, and subtitles
• Basic video editing

Content Lab is built specifically for B2B marketers, and you'll find that value prop built into every part of the micro-video creation process. Whether it's finding the best clip from your event to helping you develop your brand voice before writing video descriptions and social media captions, Content Lab does it all.

Working with your customers to create micro-videos can boost your brand profile and lead to authentic, relatable content. If you've got raving fans, ask them to participate in your videos. Typically, people are happy to help!

Specifically, partner with customers to film short testimonials, product demos, quick tips, and success stories you can share to build social credibility and drive more people to check out your brand.

Finally, as with all content marketing initiatives, measure how your shareable micro-video content performs across different social media platforms.

Here are some basic video metrics to track, though you may include other ones, depending on your goals:

• Watch time (keep that 4.57-second benchmark in mind, and try to surpass it)
• Engagement rates
• Click-through rates on your CTAs
• Platform-specific engagement (likes, comments, reposts, etc)
• Conversion metrics related to your goals

As you collect data on your micro-video performance, continue iterating based on what you discover. You can try different types of hooks, experiment with different micro-video lengths, or post at different times — the options are endless.

Pay attention to what's working well for other brands in the space, too, and try to replicate what's working for them (while still creating original content, of course).

We've learned so much about micro-videos! We hope you can see how Content Lab helps you create micro-videos in micro-time.

With Content Lab, you can cut high-impact clips, customize branding, format for different platforms, and so much more. The entire Goldcast platform is designed for B2B marketers like you, and your needs and audience expectations are factored in at every touchpoint along the way.

Ultimately, you don't need a ton of video editing experience or an expensive agency to help you get started with micro-videos. Content Lab is intuitive to use, and you can get started creating professional micro-videos today for absolutely free!

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PS: If you want to take your event marketing strategy to the next level, check out the Goldcast Core platform as well. We'll show you how you can create, host, and repurpose incredibly engaging event content that drives results.

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