There’s something curious about YouTube Shorts: many brands are using it… but very few truly understand it. And no, it’s not just another format that you “have to test because it’s trending”. It’s far more uncomfortable than that: it’s changing how the relationship between brand and user begins (and, many times, how it ends).

For years, digital marketing has lived quite comfortably inside its neat funnel: first awareness, then consideration, then conversion. Everything measured, everything controlled. The problem is that this model still exists… but the entry point has completely changed. Now it starts here, in a 6, 10 or 15-second video that appears between endless content while someone is on the sofa, on the tube or waiting for a coffee.

And of course, at that point you’re no longer competing against other brands. You’re competing against absolutely everything.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Shorts is not awareness (even though many still treat it that way)

The first classic mistake: using Shorts as if it were just a simple awareness channel. A “let’s upload some short-form video to generate reach and then we’ll see”.

Shorts is acting as the gateway to the entire YouTube ecosystem. It’s where the user discovers, where they connect for the first time and where brand perception starts to take shape. But what’s interesting is that it doesn’t stop there. When done well, it impacts the entire funnel.

Imagine this: a fashion brand launches a new collection. Before, the journey was quite predictable: branding campaign, then retargeting, then conversion. Now something much more direct can happen (and much harder to measure if you don’t know what you’re doing):

  • You see a Short with a strong look
  • You stay because the video hooks you (not because it’s an ad)
  • You search for the brand on YouTube or Google
  • You end up on the website… or on TikTok… or on Instagram
  • And you buy two days later

Where do you attribute that? Good luck.

That’s why, more and more, the conversation has shifted from attribution to incrementality. What matters now is not so much “which click generated which conversion”, but “what part of the business would not exist without that previous impact”.

This is where many strategies break down.

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The real challenge is not creating Shorts. It’s measuring them properly

If you keep measuring Shorts the same way you measure display or search, you’re going to reach the wrong conclusions. Basically, you’re going to underestimate their impact.

Because:

  • The effect happens before the click
  • The user doesn’t convert immediately
  • And the journey is chaotic (multi-channel, multi-screen, multi-everything)

The brands that are really getting value from it are combining several layers of measurement:

  • Brand Lift to understand whether the content is remembered
  • Search Lift to see whether it generates real interest
  • Conversion Lift to detect incremental business impact
  • And, in more advanced scenarios, Marketing Mix Modeling to see everything together

This is not theory. It’s what separates “this seems to be working” from “this is generating real growth”.

The content that works doesn’t feel like advertising (and that stings a little)

Here comes another uncomfortable truth: the problem for many brands on Shorts is not the budget. It’s the content. Because they’re still thinking like advertisers.

Users do not go into Shorts to watch ads. They go there to be entertained, to discover quick things, to feel identified. If they notice you’re trying to sell them something in an obvious way… swipe and move on.

That’s why things like these work better:

  • A “how to style this piece in 3 looks in 10 seconds”
  • A quick behind-the-scenes of a campaign
  • A micro-storytelling piece with rhythm and well-chosen music
  • A creator using the product without it feeling like an ad

And here comes a key point: the initial hook. You have less than 2 seconds to decide whether someone stays or not. Not 10. Not 5. Two.

If you fail there, it doesn’t matter how good the creative is.

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Real case: when you stop adapting and start designing for Shorts

A good example of this is the Stradivarius case (industry: fashion retail, market: global, vertical: fashion ecommerce), where the challenge was not to “make more noise”, but to remain relevant for a Gen Z audience saturated with content.

Here they did something that seems obvious… but hardly anyone actually does: they didn’t adapt creatives. They designed content specifically for Shorts.

  • Native vertical format
  • Fast pace and storytelling built for retention
  • Integration within Demand Gen campaigns (not as an isolated channel)
  • Use of qualified audiences instead of going for volume

And then came the interesting part: measuring beyond the click.

The results were not just “more views”, but better quality of attention:

  • +200% in VTR
  • -20% in CPM
  • +100% in views at 25% of the video

Translated into human language:
 more people stay, more people actually watch the content… and it also costs less.

This is not a tweak. It’s a change in logic.

Stradivarius_chiringuito

Trends that are no longer trends (they are the new standard)

If you’re thinking about how to scale Shorts, there are several moves that are already making a difference:

First, the shift from reach to credibility. Micro and nano creators are gaining ground because they generate something brands alone cannot: real trust.

Second, Shoppable Shorts. The funnel is compressing. You discover, evaluate and buy practically in the same environment. No jumps, no friction.

Third, AI as an accelerator.
 Not to replace creativity, but to scale it: adapting assets by market, testing variations, optimising retention… This is where solutions like Adsmurai’s start to make real sense (not as a buzzword, but as an operational lever).

And fourth, serialised storytelling. The brands that win are not making one-off videos. They are building repeatable formats. Series. Habits. Because in an infinite environment, consistency wins.

So… what do we do with all this?

The conclusion is not “make Shorts”. Everyone is already doing that.

The difference lies in how you integrate them:

  • As a real entry point to the funnel
  • As native content, not adapted content
  • As part of a full-funnel strategy
  • And with measurement that understands incremental impact, not just clicks

Because here is the real shift: Shorts is not a format. It’s a growth infrastructure.

And if you keep treating it as “short-form video for awareness”… well, you’ll keep making videos that people skip in half a second. Which, fair enough, happens. But it’s not exactly what you’re investing for.

   



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