Open Access

Ellen Winterer

• This paper examines the potential of short videos within the organic marketing of startups. Through a case study, this research looks at the company Choosy UG (haftungsbeschränkt) (henceforth “Choosy” or “Choosy UG”) on the platform TikTok. Firstly, the relevance of short videos in marketing is presented and the specific strengths and possible uses of TikTok are shown in comparison to other platforms. Afterwards, quantitative and qualitative analyses are used to examine what an effective TikTok presence looks like and how the use of short videos affects the organic reach and engagement rate of the Choosy account. In the context of this work, it is elaborated how a good short video content strategy is developed for the platform TikTok and what it looks like particularly for Choosy. The results show that short videos can be an effective tool in organic marketing for startups, especially on platforms like TikTok. However, it is important to develop the right content and consider the specific strengths and weaknesses of the platform in order to realize the full potential of short videos. This paper provides valuable insights for startups looking to use short videos in marketing and shows that using TikTok can prove useful, especially for companies that do not allocate a large budget for marketing activities.