Our company has focused on video marketing, primarily on TikTok and YouTube, supporting not only our own brand but also other companies. Through this experience, we've seen numerous cases where efforts fail because “posts that get reactions easily end up being inconsistent.”
Of course, efforts to improve content are important, but the most effective approach is to build a consistent account aligned with a core concept and appeal to viewers' emotions through storytelling.
Among the current trends, there's a particularly effective PR method suited to today's landscape: linking your company's narrative to the growing use of TikTok short dramas. This allows you to positively promote your brand through relatable stories.
Therefore, this time, we'll introduce the effects of TikTok short drama accounts and how to create them. Understanding these will help you evoke emotional resonance with your audience, making the account itself more likable. This approach will help you move away from posting only for fleeting buzz, which often lacks consistency.
＜Key Points＞
・Understand the impact of using TikTok short dramas
・Learn what types of short dramas are most likely to capture viewers' attention
・Discover how to create short dramas that truly resonate with audiences
・See real-world examples of successful TikTok short dramas
TikTok short drama accounts represent a new approach on the TikTok platform, using short drama formats to unfold stories and provide information to viewers.
This method can be utilized not only as a means to spark interest in main drama series and other video content, but also when companies promote their brand's products or services.
Particularly, rather than direct promotion of products or services, it serves as non-intrusive advertising by naturally conveying the brand's appeal and message through storytelling.
A new strategy for online PR
In online PR activities, social media platforms are particularly competitive spaces for capturing consumer attention. With traditional advertising methods, it's common for viewers to easily skip content or block ads.
However, using TikTok short drama accounts allows brands to deliver compelling stories that viewers genuinely want to watch. This naturally fosters interest and favorability toward the brand, leading to deeper consumer relationships.
These short dramas, despite being only a few minutes long, are highly relatable, making them effective at ensuring the brand stays memorable. Furthermore, as viewers are naturally drawn into the story, the brand message is effectively conveyed. This allows consumers to develop interest in the product or service without relying on aggressive advertising.
This new online PR strategy enables brands to create situations where they are more likely to capture interest, helping them differentiate themselves from competitors.
Moreover, by presenting information in a relatable and easily understandable format for viewers, it simultaneously enhances brand credibility and recognition.
Two key elements for TikTok/YouTube short drama accounts
When utilizing an account to post TikTok short dramas, it's crucial to maintain a consistent concept across the entire account. Simply posting eye-catching content repeatedly won't make viewers find the account appealing, and their motivation to follow will fade.
Especially on platforms like TikTok, it's the overall narrative and thematic coherence of the account, rather than individual pieces of content, that truly draws users in.
In other words, it's crucial that each post aligns with the account's overarching concept and story, rather than being a collection of disjointed posts chasing trends.
Are short drama accounts unsuitable for consistent messaging?
TikTok content trends change rapidly, so you might be thinking, “I understand the importance of a clear concept, but since TikTok trends shift so quickly, wouldn't sticking too rigidly to a consistent concept backfire?”
However, by developing multiple short dramas under a consistent brand concept, you can effectively convey your brand's worldview and message without being swayed by fleeting trends.
While TikTok trends do shift rapidly, it's possible to adapt by skillfully blending your brand's consistent concept with current trends.
Specifically, this means posting content that incorporates trends while staying true to your core concept, delivering appealing content that resonates with the times.
For example, imagine a fashion brand operating a TikTok account centered on the concept of “embracing freedom and enjoying your authentic self.” By posting short dramas that propose trendy fashion based on this core concept, the brand can successfully balance its worldview with current trends.
Why reduce sales pitches and build long-term relationships
However, many social media managers overlook the importance of storytelling, focusing solely on making each individual post entertaining (to generate buzz) or promoting products and services. While this may attract attention in the short term, it rarely leads to building long-term fans or establishing a strong brand image.
In other words, to effectively utilize TikTok short dramas, before worrying about whether individual posts will go viral, you must consciously build a cohesive story across the entire account and provide consistent, compelling content. Only then can you create an account that viewers actually want to watch.
Furthermore, it's crucial to weave a story through short videos and create mechanisms that naturally make users want to watch the next one. This mindset prioritizes long-term fan acquisition over short-term sales.
Why TikTok/YouTube short drama accounts are effective
The reason short-form dramas are effective on social media platforms like TikTok is that TikTok viewers often watch videos to kill time rather than seeking out content to solve a problem.
Optimal method for storytelling
Storytelling is a technique that appeals to viewers' emotions, evoking empathy and inspiration to make messages resonate more deeply. Using storytelling on platforms like TikTok allows you to convey information quickly while leaving a strong impression on viewers.
This is similar to watching television. And just as people are drawn into and moved by stories in dramas and movies as entertainment, leveraging storytelling is the optimal way to stimulate emotions.
In other words, stories not only convey information but also appeal to viewers' emotions, eliciting empathy and inspiration. This makes it possible to achieve the same effect within the limited timeframe of YouTube or TikTok short videos, prompting immediate viewer reactions. This makes storytelling perfectly suited to the scrolling culture of social media.
Engaging content as the prerequisite
Modern consumers are overwhelmed with information due to the proliferation of subscription services and social media. To capture attention in this environment, a unique appeal is essential.
For instance, viewers may be drawn to or resonate with the creator's personality, the content's entertainment value, or a distinctive angle (concept).
Especially as viewers select content that aligns with their needs and interests, relatable content is indispensable for sparking engagement.
Short drama accounts are an effective means to engage viewers through storytelling, encouraging them to watch videos to the end. Therefore, rather than simply providing information, weaving information into the story to create entertainment appeal enables PR activities that leave a positive impression.
In this way, the short drama format maximizes its effectiveness by presenting information in an entertaining form, creating content viewers can't afford to miss. This heightens awareness of the brand or product and can drive behavioral change among viewers.
Focus on content that isn't blocked or skipped
In online content consumption, users tend to block ads or immediately skip content that doesn't interest them. This stems from the natural user psychology of wanting to spend their time most valuably amidst the vast sea of content.
Therefore, in TikTok marketing, creating an engaging introduction that captures viewers' interest within the first few seconds is crucial. The key here is to focus on “what viewers want to see” and provide content that delivers what they desire—content that meets their needs.
For example, the story of a company's founding can easily capture the interest of brand fans and aspiring entrepreneurs, encouraging them to keep watching.
Additionally, stories incorporating humor or surprise elements can make viewers want to see what happens next, enabling them to watch the video all the way through.
In this way, storytelling on TikTok helps brands build deeper connections with their audience and create situations where resistance to product or service pitches is reduced.
Creating positive impressions and reduce resistance
Short dramas are crucial for reducing resistance to product and service pitches by creating a favorable impression among viewers.
By appealing to viewers' emotions, the story reinforces positive brand perceptions and increases their desire to purchase products or services. Furthermore, emotionally resonant stories foster an emotional bond—affection—with the audience, ultimately turning them into brand advocates.
Effective short dramas serve not merely as product introductions but also as powerful vehicles for conveying a brand's message and values.
This enables brands to build long-term relationships with customers, going beyond simply selling products or services.
Tips for succeeding with TikTok/YouTube short drama accounts
Here are some solutions for effectively utilizing TikTok short dramas:
Understand your target audience
Have a unique concept
Incorporate relatable stories
Let's look at each one.
Understand your target audience
To create effective short dramas, it is essential to deeply understand the preferences, interests, and viewing patterns of your target audience on TikTok. To achieve this, leveraging existing data analysis, market research, and direct user feedback is highly effective.
Actively gathering feedback from viewers and identifying which content resonates with them is also crucial. With this understanding, plan your content based on the needs and interests of your audience.
Have a unique concept
First, clearly define a consistent concept for the entire account. This concept must reflect the brand's values and message, and resonate with the target audience. The clearer the concept, the easier it becomes to determine the direction for each post.
Define the core values and message of the brand, ensuring all content aligns with this identity. This fosters consistency while making it easier for viewers to understand the brand's true value.
Incorporate relatable, resonant stories
To plan and produce consistent content across your account, it's important to keep the following points in mind:
Posts that are relevant enough to make viewers want to watch the next video
Posts that depict the growth of stories or characters
Posts that explore a single theme in depth from different angles
It is crucial to incorporate these continuous elements to create content that weaves a story.
In other words, rather than standalone content, stories should unfold through series or campaigns. As viewers follow the story through each post, it fosters a deeper emotional connection and promotes attachment to the account.
How to Produce TikTok/YouTube short drama account posts
When creating short drama posts for TikTok, effective storytelling is essential to immerse viewers in the narrative within a brief timeframe. It's particularly important to design an engaging opening to capture viewers' attention and develop a plot with emotional peaks and valleys, even in a short format.
Because short dramas are brief, it's crucial to convey characters and settings concisely while presenting realistic conflicts that viewers can relate to.
Isn't it hard to tell a story in short videos?
We often hear concerns like, “It's hard to tell a story through short videos like TikTok,” or “It's tough to come up with engaging stories for business accounts that include promotions without boring viewers.” Breaking your message into smaller parts and developing it as a series (like a drama) makes it easier to approach.
Simple stories viewers can relate to
Build one story across multiple videos
On short-form video platforms like TikTok or YouTube Shorts, assuming the content is engaging, keeping it concise and not overloading viewers is crucial for encouraging casual viewing.
Additionally, it's effective to include a call-to-action like “Please follow our account” or “About Us” at the end. Another good idea is to naturally incorporate products or services within the story itself. This reduces the promotional feel while still conveying information.
Break down your concept into simple, relatable stories
When producing short dramas, it's crucial to break down the overall account concept into specific themes. This ensures each post carries a consistent message, allowing viewers to seamlessly watch other videos and providing continuity as a story.
For example, when depicting office romances with different characters each time, maintaining the consistency that they all occur within the same company creates cohesion across posts.
Furthermore, since short videos are brief and not typically rewatched like text, breaking themes down to a simple, easily digestible level makes them more effective.
Subdividing themes also allows for customization to specific target audiences. It enables adding different perspectives or new story developments to the same narrative.
Create one story across multiple videos by mass-producing short clips from longer footage
To effectively tell stories on short-form video platforms like TikTok and YouTube Shorts, one approach is to break down longer content into a series of short videos. With free content, the key is first to get viewers interested enough to watch. Therefore, rather than cramming a lot of information into one video, it's more important to convey a single small discovery or message and build trust.
In this sense, designing the content to gradually draw viewers into a single, longer narrative, where each short video ultimately functions as part of a larger story, allows viewers to feel a connection with your account throughout the series. This sustains their anticipation, making them eager to watch the next video.
Specifically, start by creating a long-form video. Extract key scenes or messages and edit them so each point functions as an independent episode. Crucially, consider the narrative flow and adjust each episode to connect naturally with the preceding and following content.
For example, you could divide the story into episodes based on each small obstacle the protagonist faces before achieving the ultimate goal, building toward that single objective.
To sustain viewer interest between episodes, it's effective to include elements at the end of each video that heighten anticipation for the next one. This technique, known as a cliffhanger, creates a sense of curiosity about the next development at the end of each episode, compelling viewers to watch the continuation.
Strategies to scale your TikTok/YouTube short drama account
Short drama accounts on TikTok require more than just consistent accounts and posts. You need to strategically ensure your content reaches viewers and scales effectively.
To scale your account, maintaining content quality and achieving virality are fundamental, but the following methods are also effective:
Expanding reach through collaborations
Creating memorable concepts that spark imagination
Gaining attention with unique expression methods
Let's explore each one.
Expand reach through collaborations
Collaborations with other creators and brands on short-form drama accounts increase opportunities to reach each other's followers—new audiences.
Collaborations with creators from different fields or genres, in particular, produce fresh content that remains appealing to existing fans.
Make a lasting impression with concepts that spark imagination
Another crucial element for scaling a short drama account is presenting a concept that allows viewers to visualize the story. When an intriguing story can be imagined from a unique concept, it sparks viewers' curiosity and keeps the content feeling fresh.
For example, using unique characters or settings can attract viewers and encourage shares and views.
Having such a concept makes the content memorable to viewers. When they see another post, they're more likely to stop and watch again, ultimately creating a situation where they're more likely to follow.
Both TikTok Profiles are unavailable
Grab attention using unique expression methods
TikTok features many live-action posts, with users frequently filming themselves to share content. Precisely because of this, expressions like animations using characters are less common, making them a key differentiator.
Animation offers high expressive power, appeals to a wide audience beyond language barriers, and can reach global viewers. Particularly, utilizing characters allows for creative storytelling while maintaining consistent visuals.
Through these methods, short dramas on TikTok can be loved by more people and function as an effective communication tool.
Success Stories of TikTok/YouTube short drama accounts
“We Who Blush Every Day” is a vertical short drama account jointly produced and operated by Nippon Television Network Corporation and the short drama creator collective “Gokko Club.”
We deliver vertical short dramas centered around the concept of “those blush-worthy moments.”
This is the short drama account “Drama-like,” planned, produced, edited, and operated by studio15. Within approximately 10 months of its launch, it has garnered over 150 million total views across TikTok and YouTube, and actively conducts promotional collaborations with companies.
Additionally, it collaborates with TikTok creators to expand its reach.
Summary of TikTok/YouTube short drama accounts
Let's summarize the key points so far.
By providing information to viewers through storytelling, you can convey your brand message without being blocked.
Effective short drama production requires an engaging introduction and content that appeals to viewers' emotions.
In today's world where social media users can easily skip ads, the pushy sales pitch common in traditional advertising is fatal.
Maintaining a consistent concept across the entire short drama account is crucial for keeping viewers engaged.
By utilizing TikTok short drama accounts, you can appeal to viewers' emotions and leave a deeper impression than direct sales-oriented ads. This allows you to convey brand information in a way that is less likely to be resisted.
Furthermore, consistent storytelling enables the building of long-term relationships with viewers. Consider incorporating TikTok short drama accounts into your future online PR strategy.
Effectiveness of vertical short-form videos as entertainment
Today's viewers can access content for free and easily hide what they don't want to see, so traditional advertising methods that force content upon them no longer work. Especially on short-form video platforms like TikTok, you must instantly capture viewers' attention.
So, how can you create posts that grab viewers' attention?
Animated videos actually possess an entertaining quality that makes viewers want to keep watching. Furthermore, animations can easily convey stories and abstract messages that are difficult to express through live-action.
The effect is amplified even further by featuring characters in these animated videos that stimulate viewers' emotions.
But creating animated videos for TikTok is tough, right? That's where our “TikTok Anime” service is perfect for you. First, grab the report below and check out its appeal.
Marketing Perspective in Japan: Beyond Just Creation
NOKID provides creative planning and production for PR using characters, events, and video content. Effective videos balance business and creative perspectives, e.g., short clips optimized for TikTok, designed to capture attention in the first 2–3 seconds.
For first-time animation or PR-focused content, feel free to consult with us.
Tokuma Kanna
Founder and CEO of NOKID Inc., a premier creative studio specializing in short-form animation and graphic design. With a focus on narrative-driven visual storytelling, he has spearheaded high-profile projects across the global entertainment landscape. His portfolio includes the acclaimed VALORANT: YORU TYPICAL DAYS cinematic, the Hatsune Miku x Seven Premium 15th Anniversary campaign, and Koda Kumi’s music video "100 no Kotoba-tachi e." As a leading producer in the PV and MV sectors, Tokuma continues to redefine the intersection of animation and contemporary digital media.
