Many creators have the need to upload content to multiple platforms. In most cases, the already existing content YouTube can be published as short-form content on TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.
See also: TikTok NewMusic: The new music search function
This guide will help you effectively use your YouTube videos to create short-form content.
1. Use YouTube Remix
In the YouTube app, you can use any video as the basis for creating Shorts with the Remix button. You can use the audio of a video, cut a portion of it, or use a green screen effect to use the video as a background.
If it's a video you uploaded, you have the additional option Edit into a Short. This option is handy but quite limited, as you can only select a limited video interval of up to 60 seconds. And the editing options are quite limited compared to using the normal TikTok, Reels or Shorts creation tools.
You can select a section of a Video and then add additional clips either recorded in-app or from your phone's storage. The main advantages are simplicity and that Short will link to the original video. You can then also save the Short to your device and upload it to TikTok.
2. Adjust your video again using editing software
This process is mainly aimed at people who have already made horizontal videos in editing software such as Premiere Pro and want to optimize this content by converting it into one or more TikToks. You can also edit the TikTok from scratch with Adobe Premiere Rush.
In the editing software, create a new series in the existing video project. In Premiere Pro, simply right-click on the project folder, click New Item and then click the option Sequence. Adjust the sequence settings to 1080×1920 (9×16) or 1080×1080 (1×1) and the same frame rate as your existing video. This way your video will match the vertical projection of TikTok, Reels and Shorts.
For 1080p video (1920×1080) in a 1080×1920 sequence, set the clip scale to 180% to zoom in to fit the frame. Then adjust horizontally to center. If the video source is 1920×1080, consider creating the TikTok sequence at 720×1280 (720p at 9:16) or 1080×1080 (1080p at 1:1) to get a closer resolution match.
In the case of a static download of your entire set of clips, right-click and copy the clip you adjusted. Then select all clips with the same box, right-click and select Paste features.
In the pop-up menu, select Movement to copy the position and scale settings. All clips must have the same scale and position settings as the custom one.
If your video is too enlarged to fit in the frame using the above method, zoom in to fit yourself fully and then add a background.
A fun, more elegant method to fill in the frame is to copy the same video clips below the main ones and add a blur effect. If you're a streamer and prefer to avoid most of the editing process, you can also create preformatted TikToks in OBS while doing stream.
See also: What to avoid to avoid getting banned from TikTok?
3. Create stylized captions using editing software
In short-form content such as TikTok, many viewers watch it without sound or in another way that is more passive than long-form content. Adding subtitles to at least part of the video, if not all of it, can help cater to these silent or passive viewers, making it easier for them to understand the subject matter of the video at a glance.
First, use the speech-to-text to quickly make a transcription of the TikTok sequence. Fix this transcription and then use it to create subtitles. In case they look simple to you, you can apply bulk edits to all of them to make them more elegant.
To do this, select all subtitles in the recently created subtitle track. In the text adjustment window on the right side of the screen, you can find adjustments for the font and position of the text. There are also settings such as drop-shadow for the depth and stroke for the outline.
It's somewhat limited compared to manually compiling and editing subtitles using the text tool, but it's a much faster way to format your subtitles to your liking.
Your specific caption style will vary, but we recommend moving the text closer to the center of the screen via a negative Y value in the Align and Convert setting and making the font larger as well.
4. Create a TikTok thumbnail from your video
The last technical step to consider is to create a TikTok thumbnail in your editing timeline. You can choose any frame from the video to be the thumbnail, but when uploading, the first frame is the default thumbnail, so it's more efficient to make a good first frame.
Keep in mind that in a TikTok user's profile, the thumbnail cuts the top and bottom of the video to a 3:4 aspect, so whatever you want to have should be in the middle 75%. In the case of a 1080×1920 video, that thumbnail frame is 1080×1440, so the top and bottom 240 pixels will be cut off.
It's also worth noting that Instagram Reels have a 1:1 aspect ratio for thumbnails on your main profile and a 9:16 aspect ratio on the Reels tab. While YouTube shorts have a near 9:16 aspect ratio with a slight crop up/down. In any case, framing a thumbnail to fit in the middle 75% of your frame will optimize it for most platforms.
As for creating a thumbnail, add elegant text that summarizes the video's theme and make sure the graphics are eye-catching. Another strategy would be to simply create an eye-catching thumbnail in photo editing software and set it as your first video frame in Premiere.
On TikTok, thumbnails are not the most critical step, as most people discover content through the page For You.
See also: TikTok: £12.7 million fine for data leak
That said, if someone checks your profile after discovering you, your videos should be easily identifiable with clear thumbnails. As critical as these technical tips are, remember to create engaging content! The more engaging your original YouTube video is in terms of shot composition, B-roll, stock footage and audio, the easier it will be to convert it to TikTok.
