Vertical video used to be considered amateur. Now it dominates how people watch content on their phones. TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts are all built for vertical video and designed for watching on the go.

Our advice is simple: go where your audience is. Vertical video feels natural on smartphones because it fills the screen and keeps attention without forcing users to turn their devices.

This does not mean abandoning horizontal video. The smarter approach is to use both. Short vertical video captures attention quickly and works well for awareness. Horizontal video still has its place when you need depth or more detailed storytelling.

The key is to design for each format intentionally. Do not just crop one to awkwardly fit the other because that rarely works.

If you are not using vertical video yet your strategy may already be falling behind. So it is worth taking seriously.