Microdramas go big: The age of brands renting attention is over
Online video viewing is as big as ever, but habits have changes and brands need to change with them. Olly Lewis, SVP & Head of Creative Studio at StudioB, says that understanding the burgeoning sector of microdramas is one way to do that.
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The latest IPA Bellwether report showed that video ad investment is up to its highest level in almost two years, even while spending on other online activity has been cut.
Video, in other words, is the driving force behind the growth we’re currently seeing in media. That’s no surprise.
Brands need to stop thinking like advertisers and start thinking like entertainment companies.
With consumers scrolling on social media and streaming content more than ever, video has earned its place on the media plan. But borrowed attention is no longer enough: consumers are being selective about who earns their views, subscribing to the channels they’re interested in, and skipping the rest.
To truly cut through in a content-saturated world, brands need to stop thinking like advertisers and start thinking like entertainment companies, building audiences they own, rather than ones they rent, which is where microdramas come in.
Above: JC Penney's microdrama for the Hispanic market.
Microdramas. Macro-audiences
The last few years have seen a surge in serialised short-form video created for social media, also called microdramas, or microseries. Starring memorable characters and engaging storylines, and often led by prominent creators, these series keep audiences coming back over multiple instalments.
According to Sensor Tower’s State of Mobile report, global time spent in short drama apps grew by 5.78 billion in 2025. In the same year, short drama app downloads rose by 1.66 billion year on year – leagues ahead of streaming apps, whose download volume actually declined by 264 million. Savvy brands that know how to cater to this passion are reaping the rewards.
Savvy brands that know how to cater to this passion are reaping the rewards.
Take department store JCPenney, which partnered with TelevisaUnivision in a first-of-its-kind collaboration to create a five-episode microdrama series called El amigo de mi novio es millonario, or My boyfriend’s friend is a millionaire. Timed to tie in with the holidays, the series paired soapy drama with a tale about the importance of gift-giving, pulling in more than 16 million impressions and 5.6 million views (according to Marketing Dive) and strengthening JCPenney’s appeal with an audience of Hispanic consumers.
While JCPenney could have opted for an ad spot or product sponsorship during an existing telenovela, the company recognised that it could own the entire story with a co-created production, shaping its message and creating a lived-in world for consumers to enjoy. As a bonus, each video in the series was shoppable, taking viewers directly to a venue to buy products featured within it.
Above: Chinese apps such as iQiYi, ReelShort and DramaBox serialise dramas with bite-sized, two-minute episodes and attention-grabbing storylines.
A trend with global cut-through
During a recent keynote address at the YouTube Brand Leadership Circle in China, where I spoke alongside Josh Saffer, director at social-first creator agency Connect Management, it was clear that the brands that command the next decade of attention will be those that learn how to build worlds with creators.
China knows better than most the power and value of short-form video content, since it was where microdramas were born. Apps like iQiYi, ReelShort and DramaBox began serialising dramas with bite-sized, two-minute episodes and attention-grabbing storylines. From China, they quickly made their way to the rest of the world. This means that brands can use the format to tap into audiences anywhere, as long as they understand the target market and can bring in the right creators and collaborators.
Brands can use the format to tap into audiences anywhere, as long as they understand the target market.
In 2023, Chinese skincare brand Kans successfully rebooted its brand relevance with custom microdramas created in partnership with influencer Jiang Shiqi, which saw it soar to the top of Douyin’s beauty category rankings. International brands including skincare brand Helena Rubinstein and SK-II swiftly followed in its footsteps with their own dramas.
Whether it’s JCPenney building an audience of telenovela lovers or brands like Gucci, Burberry and Chaumet creating microdramas with romantic storylines for Qixi, Chinese Valentine’s Day, short-form dramas are constantly proving their versatility and ability to resonate across cultures.
Above: Content creator Jake Bhardwaj features in the Co-op's Pop to Co-op microdrama campaign.
The next evolution of brand storytelling
Some marketers might look at short-form video and wonder how to communicate the story they want to tell in such a short space of time. While there are lots of excellent examples of this in action, the beauty of serialised short video is that it gives brands space to build a narrative across episodes, landing and underscoring a message that will stick.
Take luxury hotel chain Sofitel, which made a memorable TikTok debut with Sofitel Encounters, a series that showed the hotel’s rarefied offering through a series of humorous scenes. Or Co-op’s new Pop to Co-op campaign, which stars comedian Jake Bhardwaj in everyday situations that are solved with a ‘Pop to Co-op’, only to find they’ve escalated while he was gone.
A successful brand microdrama needs to play to the strengths of the format.
A successful brand microdrama needs to play to the strengths of the format, which requires careful planning and working with partners who understand the medium, but the possibilities are vast. Testing out the form also doesn’t need to involve a commitment to dozens of instalments. A series of four or five episodes can tell a compact, well-executed story that advances brand goals and offers enough data to inform future moves.
Through microdramas, brands are shifting their approach from ‘renting’ attention to owning it. Those that can successfully meet this moment will build an audience that is there not just for the ad, but for the foreseeable future.
