How to set short form video provider criteria

What to take away

Buying questions have moved on. Teams now ask for mobile-first creative evidence and platform-specific formats, not showreels alone.
Fix your inclusion criteria before you contact anyone, so every provider answers the same brief.
Test vertical video work against the short form video review methods used for comparisons.
Ask how each provider handles framing, captions and safe areas on a phone screen.
Agree who owns footage, logins and audience data before contracts are signed.

Set inclusion criteria before you shortlist

A shortlist only works when every candidate is judged on the same points. Write the criteria down first: vertical video output, editing turnaround, caption practice and reporting format.

Shortlist inclusion criteria

Vertical video output
Editing turnaround
Caption practice
Reporting format
Five or six providers
Geography stated

Keep the list short. Five or six providers is enough to compare properly. Add more and you spend your time chasing quotes instead of checking evidence.

Use three criteria you can copy into a brief. First, every sample must include a 9:16 cut with captions inside platform safe areas. Second, the provider must name the channels it publishes to and the first 90-day cadence. Third, the provider must record evidence and data duties in writing.

England-based providers to check

No single public ranking names the best providers for every English team. These England-based names are research leads. Vidsy (London) builds social video creative at scale. Brave Bison (London) runs social and digital campaigns. Skeleton Productions (Leeds) is a video production company. Casual Films (London) produces brand video. Check each against the criteria above.

When mobile creative evidence matters

Short-form video is watched on phones, often with the sound off and captions on. A provider whose portfolio is mostly wide-format edits is showing you work made for a different screen.

Mobile creative evidence checklist

Framing for vertical screens
Legibility with sound off
Safe areas respected
Provider explains cut choices
Provider explains caption choices
Provider explains crop choices

Make the mobile requirements explicit in the brief: shoot in 9:16, keep captions within platform safe areas and make the first frame legible without sound.

If they cannot explain their choices, treat it as a signal. You want a team that can say why a cut, caption or crop was made.

Match platforms to your actual channels

TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts each call for platform-specific creative (platforms reward different formats). A provider strong on one feed may be weak on another, so ask which channels they publish to most often.

Ask for a 90-day posting cadence per channel and the formats they will use. LinkedIn's sponsored content page lists the video formats available for business audiences, so make the provider match your chosen format to that list.

Check data duties and rights before you sign

Short-form work generates audience data, comments and direct messages. Under the Data Protection Act 2018, your team stays accountable for how that data is handled, even when a provider runs the account. For advertising creative, check that it complies with the CAP Code, which the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) enforces.

Ask who owns the raw footage, who holds the platform logins and how comments are moderated. Put the answers in the contract.

Also agree how the provider will hand over account access and footage at the end of the contract.

Compare pricing models in England

Public rate cards for short-form video in England are rare. Most providers quote a day rate, a per-finished-asset fee or a monthly retainer. Compare the day rate, the number of editing days per month and the fee for extra cuts.

Use a before and after comparison

The table shows how the same brief changes once criteria are fixed.

Before criteria

Providers contacted: 12, chosen from search results
Evidence reviewed: Showreel only
Data questions: Not asked
Pricing: Single project fee

After criteria

Providers contacted: 6, chosen on vertical video evidence
Evidence reviewed: Showreel, mobile crops and captions
Data questions: Logins, ownership and moderation agreed
Pricing: Day rate, per asset and retainer compared

Decision rule

Providers contacted: Shortlist only providers whose samples are 9:16
Evidence reviewed: Reject any portfolio without phone-screen examples
Data questions: No contract until data duties are written down
Pricing: Compare like-for-like volume, rights and revisions

Common questions

When should a team start shortlisting providers?

Start once objectives, budget and channels are agreed and the launch date is set. Work backwards from launch: shortlist before you need to issue the brief, leaving time to assess samples, compare proposals, agree terms and produce the videos. There is no fixed lead time; it depends on the campaign and the work required.

Does England have different short-form video rules from the rest of the UK?

For marketing and data rules, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland follow the same UK GDPR and PECR framework. Scotland has its own legal system, and Northern Ireland has separate court structures, so contract jurisdiction and complaints handling can differ. Caption and consent rules do not.

How many providers should a shortlist include?

Five or six is usually enough to compare evidence properly. More than that adds admin without improving the decision.

Should we rank providers on price alone?

No. Price matters, but so do mobile creative evidence, channel fit and data handling. Compare all four before you choose.