When do you most often consume short-form content? (# of respondents)
UX Research · Client: LinkedIn
Survey research with 137 Gen Z respondents on short-form video habits, informing content and creator recommendations for LinkedIn Video.
I researched Gen Z short-form video habits and developed creator recommendations for LinkedIn Video.
Context & Challenge
Bringing Gen Z to LinkedIn Video
BCEC Consulting Group worked with LinkedIn to understand how Gen Z consumes short-form video, and what it would take for that audience to watch and create on LinkedIn Video.
Preliminary research pointed to a clear preference: Gen Z favors authentic, personal storytelling in professional content, a shift toward relatable, personality-driven narratives that make career journeys feel accessible.
Common themes in Gen Z professional content
Day in My Life
Outfit of the Day
Interview Tips
Get Ready with Me
Research Methods
A survey, two walkthroughs, and real test posts
User survey
An online Qualtrics survey, promoted through our personal networks over one week, looked at Gen Z's short-form content consumption habits, preferences, and engagement patterns.
- Recorded responses
- 137
- Responses from ages under 18 and 18–24
- 126
Respondents by age
Respondents by occupation
Gender: 84 female, 39 male, 1 non-binary / third gender, 1 prefer not to say.
User and creator experience walkthroughs
We walked through LinkedIn Video as a viewer and as a creator, noting what works, what gets in the way, and what to change.
Creator testing
Team members posted short-form videos to LinkedIn Video and reviewed the analytics. One test post's results:
- Views
- 116,173
- Average watch time
- 6 seconds
- Engagement and view rate
- ~8%
- Members reached, from 1.38M+ impressions
- 800,926
Key findings
- Older generations didn't resonate with the tone and format, expressing dissatisfaction.
- The posting process felt unclear, especially for trends.
- Real-time post notifications lagged, so results had to be checked manually.
- Analytics were helpful, especially profession-based viewer insights.
Key Findings
Gen Z watches to unwind, and wants professional content that feels real
Gen Z overwhelmingly prefers Instagram Reels and TikTok for short-form content, with a large gap between those top performers and LinkedIn Video.
What device(s) do you usually use for short-form content? (# of respondents)
Gen Z watches this content casually rather than with direct intent.
Do you create or share short-form video content online? (# of respondents)
Most Gen Z users take part in short-form video as viewers, not creators.
Familiarity with LinkedIn's video feature
- of the most frequent users (open LinkedIn multiple times a day) are very familiar with videos
- 57%
- of users who open the app only once a day are very familiar with videos
- 9%
More marketing needs to reach casual users.
What type of professional content do you most enjoy consuming? (# of respondents)
Gen Z treats professional content as a career discovery tool: a lens into careers and workplaces, and what those roles feel like.
What makes professional content interesting or engaging? (# of respondents)
Despite the professional context, Gen Z wants content that feels real: relatable and practical.
Workplace trends Gen Z would watch
Top 5 from the survey:
My “I don’t get paid enough for this” moment
Come to work with me
My office snack tour
The most unhinged office tradition
What I used to think was normal at work
Career trends Gen Z would watch
Top 5 from the survey:
How to network, without feeling awkward
Say this, not that in your next interview
A career lesson I wish I knew at 21
Unspoken corporate rules I wish I knew earlier
Salary negotiation mistakes
What the walkthroughs found
Viewers: what works
Personalized suggestions help discovery, videos cover diverse topics, expert commentary offers real learning, and returning users know what to expect.
Viewers: what gets in the way
Grid-like swiping is tiring, messages take too long to land, the tone feels overly corporate, and engagement buttons disappear on white backgrounds.
Creators: what works
Instant performance insights, quick access to analytics, a less saturated space, and a built-in professional audience for building a personal brand.
Creators: what gets in the way
Viewers hesitate to engage publicly on a professional profile, tone norms are unclear, thumbnails can’t be edited after posting, and there’s little guidance on joining trends.
Recommendation
Make it easier to watch, easier to post, and more human
Product suggestions
Eliminate swipe fatigue
Emphasize vertical movement for less conscious browsing.
Digestible content
Favor fast-paced, understandable content; Gen Z isn't always familiar with corporate terminology.
Non-corporate content
Introduce professional trends that extend outside the office.
Visible UI
Add shadows or adjust engagement-button colors so they stay visible.
Normalize engagement
Allow private reactions, or make likes and comments less visible in activity feeds, to reduce engagement anxiety.
Clarify content norms
Offer creator guidelines and diverse examples of what “professional authenticity” can look like.
Enable post edits
Let creators edit thumbnails and captions after posting.
Posting guidance
Add a step-by-step posting flow or tutorial on joining trends and optimizing posts.
Creator categories to recruit
We recommended established short-form creators across seven categories:
Career and internship advice
Design aesthetics
Tech and corporate life
Financial and personal growth
Career discovery
Non-traditional voices
Day-in-the-life and lifestyle
Trend concepts for LinkedIn Video
Gen Z values flexibility, self-taught skills, and nonlinear journeys, not a single career path defined by a major. We mocked up post concepts built on that:
Not my major, still my career
Design my desk with me
Come eat with me at work
Justified this to finance…
Realistic vs. aesthetic workday
What’s on my desk
I never saw myself here
Favorite office tradition
Team
- William HansenProject Manager
- Thy LeProject Manager
- Sarah WangProject Manager
- Michelle LiuProject Manager
- Avery Roslansky
- Avani Gireesha
- Daisy Huang
- Edward Jue
- Gabrielle Soetomo
- Keeley Jibben
- Neha Haresh