Douyin account or video account, which one is easier to become popular?

Throughout February, I was busy operating my two new accounts, one is Douyin and the other is Video, as a series of short video cold start projects. After 3 weeks, the Douyin account had more than 40,000 followers and received more than 100,000 likes, while the highest number of views for a single video on the video account exceeded 50,000.

This achievement is not anything to brag about, nor is it outstanding, but it does reflect that the short video industry has a lot of hot traffic. Compared with graphic and text content, operating short video content is really like flying a helicopter. You can feel the experience brought by fission the fastest! Recently, I will summarize more relevant operation experience for everyone. In this issue, Xiaodai wants to share with you, what are the differences between Douyin account and video account? Which one is more worthwhile?

1. They are both short videos, what are the differences?

Unlike Douyin videos that can fill the entire screen, Video Account currently adopts a half-screen size with a maximum aspect ratio of 10:12.

Taking Apple X as an example, the video size of the video account is 1080×1240. This design is to facilitate users to watch through waterfall flow. At the same time, the video account also has a 9-picture browsing and playback setting similar to the Moments. Overall, it really looks like a castrated express version of Weibo.

Differences in video content size

This results in the fact that the sense of immersion when watching videos on Video Account is far less than that of TikTok. The pace of Video Account is obviously slower, and the advantage is that such a slow pace is more suitable for the vertical output and dissemination of knowledge-based content. However, Video Account is currently limited to a maximum length of 60 seconds. Unlike TikTok, ordinary users already have the authority to post 5-minute long videos.

When it comes to short videos, one wants it to be bigger, faster, and more exciting, while the other wants it to be smaller, slower, and more stable. This is also determined by the tonality of the two products.

2. Which one is better, Video Account or Douyin Account?

Tik Tok comes with a variety of filters, special effects, and music template libraries, which give a flashy and refreshing feeling right from the start. However, the backend of the video account is surprisingly white when opened, with nothing at all. It is very much like a “simplified video version” of Moments. It is probably simplified to emphasize the importance of daily recording and sharing. It is hoped that more ordinary users will record their lives in a more realistic way, thereby differentiating themselves from Douyin.

Comparison of the background operation of Douyin and Video Account. Video Account does not have any plug-ins

However, considering that the field of short video creation has entered a period of prosperity, various big V players have emerged. After they moved into the video account, they saw such a blank background and were not clear about the platform rules. They could only move a large number of Douyin short videos and turned the video account into the WeChat Douyin version. This is also the reason why WeChat recently restricted the application for internal testing of video accounts. Due to the lack of guidance, the pre-production product ideas were directly led astray by the creators, and WeChat was completely confused.

Xiaodai believes that no matter what the starting point is, WeChat Video Account should still add music and components for users, especially relevant encouragement and prohibited content regulations, to guide users to create content in the direction that the product wants to show, and give more recommendations to creators who are in line with the content creation direction.

Tik Tok creator guidelines

Currently, the backend of the video account is really weak. It can be said that it is tailor-made for transferring content. It has no functions at all. How can it not be used for transferring content? What can I do?

3. Are fans more important, or are platform recommendations more important?

Friends who have used Douyin know that Douyin’s content recommendation mechanism is based on four major parameters: completion rate, like rate, comment rate and sharing volume. The completion rate, in particular, is the most important of the four parameters.

On Douyin, what determines the traffic of your account is not the number of fans, but the parameter performance of your individual works and the overall weight of your account. Therefore, the value of Douyin fans is far less than that of official accounts.

This is also the difference between the decentralized algorithm thinking of short videos and the centralized user thinking of public platforms. So does the video account also adopt the same algorithm recommendation?

As far as Xiaodai’s current user experience is concerned, there are definitely algorithm recommendations, but they are definitely different from Douyin. Taking into account the product characteristics of WeChat, the manual review component will currently have a higher proportion in the early stages, which will also cause the review speed to be too slow and the video to be slow to heat up. My recommended video only received traffic recommendation after a week.

At present, as far as video accounts are concerned, are fans more important or platform recommendations more important? Based on my three-week trial experience, it is obvious that platform recommendation is more important. Although, unlike TikTok, Video Account combines following and recommended content together, increasing the exposure opportunities of the followed hosts, at the same time, the hosts of Video Accounts cannot interact with fans at all. You can only see the avatar and name information. Apart from leaving messages, fans cannot have any interaction with the account owner. The number of fans is as unreal as an imaginary backend number. Apart from leaving messages, no effective interaction can be carried out.

The top differences between Douyin and Video accounts

Xiaodai fully agrees with this recommendation mechanism, but as of now, it seems that the value of video account fans is lower than that of Douyin fans, which are recognized as having low value. I hope the official version can be improved.

4. If I want to make money and become famous, who should I choose?

Based on the comparison of the above three points, it is obvious that the Douyin short video platform has a clearer positioning, richer content, and clearer rules than the WeChat Video Account. It seems that everything about it is more advantageous. But if you look at TikTok from the backend, you will find that TikTok has almost no backend.

Douyin does not have a user plaza to retain users. All the big Vs are directing traffic to WeChat, and its own Duoshan platform is still a difficult nut to crack.

Douyin does not have its own product backend and relies entirely on cooperation with other e-commerce platforms to sell goods. The only two businesses that can generate a large amount of cash flow are selling traffic and live streaming, and its business model is very simple.

It can be said that WeChat's backend system and advantages are something that Douyin cannot copy even if it wants to. The large number of active users and user communities, including the support of Moments, official accounts, mini-programs and other formats, can bring strong support to the future video accounts, with more monetization paths, more opportunities and greater operability.

If you just want to make some money , you can go and try Douyin. But if you want to build an ecosystem and make long-term plans, the opportunities with Video Account are obviously greater. Although the current trial version has many shortcomings, as long as the direction and ideas are clear, more opportunities will emerge in the gradual iteration.

V. Conclusion

Douyin accounts are more inclined towards entertainment and theater content, while the current video accounts are more inclined towards light knowledge and information content. You can choose relevant fields according to the specific situation.

Author: Xiaodai

Source: Xiaodai said