Start with moments, not timestamps
The best clips aren't the first two minutes of your video. They're moments that make sense with zero context: a clear opinion, a quick story with a payoff, a surprising fact you can back up, a strong answer to a common question. Watch the full thing and mark those.
Re-cut, don't just crop
- Open on the payoff line. Then explain how you got there.
- Cut the setup. Anything that only made sense in the long version goes.
- Reframe for vertical. Keep the face and anything important in frame, and use punch-ins to add movement.
- Captions. Readable on a phone, timed to speech.
- End clean. A clear last line, or a pointer to the full video.
A simple routine
Every time you publish a long video, plan the clips at the same time. One long upload can feed your short form channels until the next one goes out. Over time you'll see which kinds of moments travel best, and you can lean into them when you record.
Want us to handle it?
This is a big part of what we do. Read our short form editing guide and how to write hooks for short form, look at our shortform work, and send us a long video.