THE APPEAL OF SHORT-FORM VIDEOS:
A Digital Media Project

The project began in late 2021, where we had to choose out of four digital media topics. From there, we were given free reign of our project topic and its aims and objectives. I chose the subject of short-form videos, due to my curiosity on how it’s recently surged in popularity. As someone who watches longer videos YouTube, and occasionally the Shorts that it recommends me, I was intrigued as to how the experience on TikTok or Instagram would compare.

From here, I conducted a literature review, finding out all the basics of the topic, including general info about each of the three apps and the demographic for my project. I also delved into the topic of user experience, looking at how apps design their features to keep users engaged and have a smooth, pleasant experience.

The data collection stage came next. The questionnaire seemed straightforward enough. I pilot-tested the questions before setting up the real thing and posting it online. The usability study required more time and effort. I had to utilise my organisational skills to set up each session, and then be able to work collaboratively. One aspect that could’ve gone better was the sampling. Out of the 4 participants, 3 of them primarily used YouTube and the other used TikTok. It would’ve been ideal to have included someone who used Instagram Reels so the results would've been more well-rounded.

Taking on a research project of this scale and only having 3500 (+10%) words to sum up the whole process and findings was a lot more difficult than expected. Many of the points didn’t make the final cut, though most of these were about interesting outliers in the results. In the end I managed to successfully contribute to each objective and fulfil the research aim.