Everything you need to know about YouTube, Twitch and co!

After years of short-form video dominance, long-form content is experiencing a strategic renaissance. While platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels continue to capture attention, brands are redirecting budgets toward platforms where deep engagement and sustained audience relationships drive actual business outcomes. In 2026, YouTube views increased 76% year-over-year, while 51% of Americans now watch podcasts on video platforms – signaling that audiences are actively seeking substantive content that short clips cannot provide.

For brands and agencies, this shift represents more than trend-following. Long-form platforms offer distinct advantages: Extended storytelling opportunities, higher trust-building potential, and audiences primed for deeper consideration phases. The question facing marketers is no longer whether to invest in long-form content, but how to allocate resources across platforms that serve fundamentally different audience behaviors and commercial objectives.

The four platforms reshaping long-form strategy

YouTube: The long-form video infrastructure

YouTube maintains its position as the essential long-form video platform, with 68% of marketing leaders citing it as their top-performing channel for business impact. The platform recorded over 700 million hours of podcast viewing on living room devices in October 2025 alone, demonstrating its evolution beyond desktop consumption. YouTube’s dual format strategy – combining traditional long-form content with Shorts – allows brands to use short-form content as discovery mechanisms that funnel engaged viewers toward comprehensive video content.

The platform’s pricing reflects its commercial maturity. YouTube influencer rates vary significantly by creator tier: nano influencers (1,000 to 10,000 subscribers) typically charge $20 to $200+ per sponsored video, while mega influencers (1 million+ subscribers) command $20,000 to $50,000+ depending on content complexity and deliverables. Industry-standard CPMs for YouTube sponsorships fall between $15 and $30, though high-value niches like technology and finance often exceed these benchmarks due to advertiser demand and audience purchasing intent.

Twitch: Live streaming for community engagement

Twitch recorded 240 million monthly active users in 2025, maintaining 54% market share in gaming live streaming despite growing competition from YouTube Gaming and emerging platform Kick. The platform’s strength lies in real-time interaction and community building, with users spending an average of 95 minutes per day on the platform. Twitch generated $1.8 billion in revenue during 2024, with advertising costs ranging from $4 to $10 CPM, rising to $12+ during peak seasons when gaming and tech brands intensify competition.

For brands, Twitch represents access to highly engaged, younger demographics – 72% of users are under 34 – with authentic community dynamics that traditional advertising struggles to penetrate. The platform’s 70/30 revenue split for top creators and growing category diversification beyond gaming (Just Chatting emerged as the top category in 2024) signal opportunities for brands outside traditional gaming verticals.

Podcasts: Audio and video convergence

The podcast industry reached a $39.63 billion global valuation in 2025, with 584.1 million listeners worldwide and 55% of Americans consuming podcasts monthly. The format’s evolution from pure audio to video-hybrid content fundamentally changes distribution strategy: YouTube is now the primary podcast platform for 33% of weekly podcast listeners in the United States, ahead of Spotify (26%) and Apple Podcasts (14%). This shift means podcast strategies must account for visual production values even as 92% of audiences still describe themselves as “listening” to content.

Podcast advertising is projected to reach over $4 billion by 2025, with premium opportunities emerging in live-recorded events where 15% of listeners would pay $10 to $25 for attendance. SiriusXM’s rise to the top podcast network position, surpassing Spotify and iHeart, demonstrates how established media infrastructure can successfully compete in creator-driven spaces when combining reach with strategic content investments.

TikTok: Long-form video’s unexpected expansion

TikTok’s evolution from 15-second clips to supporting 10-minute videos (with select creators uploading up to 60 minutes) represents a fundamental platform shift. The platform now allows videos up to 10 minutes when recorded in-app and up to 60 minutes when uploaded from devices. Videos between 3 and 10 minutes receive the highest average views, with content longer than 3 minutes earning more than double the views of videos under 10 seconds. This expansion signals TikTok’s direct competition with YouTube for substantive content, particularly in educational and tutorial categories where audiences tolerate extended durations when value is clear.

Strategic considerations for platform selection

The decision between platforms requires matching content strengths to campaign objectives:

• YouTube excels at product education and evergreen content that continues generating value months after publication.
• Twitch serves real-time engagement and community building, particularly effective for product launches or interactive experiences.
• Podcasts build authority and thought leadership through extended conversations that short-form content cannot replicate.
• TikTok’s long-form content earns double the engagement, opening opportunities for tutorials, edutainment, and deeper storytelling.

Brands should evaluate platforms based on three criteria: where target audiences consume content naturally, which format best serves the strategic message, and what production capabilities exist internally. A technology company explaining complex software benefits may find YouTube’s educational format more effective than Twitch’s live interaction, while a gaming peripheral brand might prioritize Twitch’s embedded community presence.

Production realities and resource allocation

Long-form content demands substantially different resource commitments than short-form. A highly produced 10-minute YouTube video can require multiple days for scripting, filming, and editing, directly influencing creator pricing and internal production costs. Podcast episodes averaging 20 to 40 minutes (the most common length) need consistent publishing schedules – typically every 8 to 14 days – to maintain audience retention.

The production quality threshold has risen across platforms. Audiences expect professional lighting, clear audio, and thoughtful editing even from mid-tier creators. Brands entering long-form content must budget not just for creator fees but for production infrastructure, potential licensing rights for content repurposing, and cross-platform promotion to maximize reach.

Long-form content performance requires different success metrics than short-form. While views and impressions remain relevant, watch time, completion rates, and downstream actions provide more meaningful indicators of content effectiveness. YouTube’s average session length and return viewer rates signal genuine audience value. Podcast listener retention through full episodes indicates message resonance that preview metrics cannot capture.

Brands should establish measurement frameworks that account for long-form content’s extended impact timeline. A YouTube video continues accumulating views and driving conversions months after publication, unlike social posts with 24 to 48 hour lifecycles. This durability justifies higher initial production costs when evaluated across content lifespan rather than immediate performance.

The strategic case for long-form investment

The resurgence of long-form content reflects fundamental audience behavior rather than temporary platform trends. After five years of rapid short-form content and AI-generated material, audiences are actively seeking “slower social media” with authentic storytelling and human rhythm. 

Investment in long-form content serves distinct strategic purposes that short-form cannot replace: Building genuine expertise positioning, creating conversion-ready educational content, and developing sustainable audience relationships. The platforms enabling this content – YouTube, Twitch, podcasts, and even professional networks – each offer specialized advantages when aligned with clear campaign objectives and realistic resource commitments.

For brands questioning whether long-form content justifies investment, the answer increasingly depends on whether strategic goals extend beyond immediate awareness toward consideration, trust-building, and sustained audience relationships that drive long-term business value.