The Vice-Chancellor recently encouraged academics to consider making their own short videos for social media to raise awareness of our research impact and encourage student recruitment. We need to get great stories out about Sussex – stories that engage, inspire and intrigue our audiences on the social media platforms they use every day. With this in mind, the University has published new guidance for creating video for YouTube and TikTok.

Creating YouTube Shorts

YouTube Shorts are vertical videos, typically 60 seconds or less, designed for quick, mobile-first viewing – the perfect format if you have a great research story to tell.

If you are an academic with a research story to tell, we encourage you to get in touch with the Digital and Creative Media team. Their in-house video unit have a wide range of experience in producing videos quickly and professionally. Some recent examples include: 

In addition, the Digital and Creative Media team has published new guidelines on how to create your own short-form video content for YouTube Shorts. This covers the practical issues of how to achieve the best sound and picture quality, as well as how to make your content accessible for the widest possible audience.

Creating TikToks

TikTok videos are between 5-90 seconds long and designed to inform or entertain without demanding too much time or attention. They are especially useful for reaching a younger, potential students who prefer quick content, and can showcase expertise and personality in a natural way. 

Most viewers are quick to scroll on to something new if their curiosity isn’t piqued within the first few seconds, so the new guidance covers how to identify a hook for your video. It also gives information about using hashtags the right way, and working with your School’s Marketing Manager to reach the right channels.