Playbook · YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels, TikTok, LinkedIn and Medium
How to make course lesson clips for Shorts, Reels and TikTok
Short answer
Distill one lesson / concept from a longer course into a single, self-contained short that teaches the viewer one thing. Deliver 9:16 on YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels and TikTok and 1:1 on LinkedIn and Medium. Burn captions in on YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels and TikTok; the others take plain text.
Start from: screen recording + narration, slide deck voice-over and whiteboard capture.
The steps
- Pick one lesson: One idea per clip. If the lesson needs two ideas, it needs two clips.
- Cut to the demonstration: Skip the introduction and recap. (Long to Reels)
- Add step-numbered captions: Use the same style across the course. (Burn-in)
- Reframe to 9:16: Zoom the action; let the narration stay in. (Reframe)
- Export for the target platform: 9:16 for short-form; 16:9 if YouTube long-form gets the same lesson. (Content Pack)
What to produce: 60s vertical lesson (9:16, 60 s); Long-form full lesson (16:9, 600 s); Concept carousel (1:1).
Platform by platform
| Platform | Aspect | Length | Captions | Reframe from 16:9 | Safe zone |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube Shorts | 9:16 | up to 60 s | Burned in | Yes | Apply before upload |
| Instagram Reels | 9:16 | up to 60 s | Burned in | Yes | Apply before upload |
| TikTok | 9:16 | up to 60 s | Burned in | Yes | Apply before upload |
| 1:1 | up to 60 s | Plain text | No | Not required | |
| Medium | 1:1 | up to 60 s | Plain text | No | Not required |
Course lesson clips on YouTube Shorts
- Hook
- First 3 seconds decide Shorts retention - open on the strongest beat.
- Captions
- Burned-in captions; Shorts allow heavier caption styling.
- Deliver
- 60s vertical lesson (9:16); Long-form full lesson (16:9); Concept carousel (1:1)
Extra steps for YouTube Shorts
- Apply platform safe-zone overlay: Use the YouTube Shorts safe-zone overlay so subjects stay visible. (Safe-zone)
YouTube Shorts export preset · YouTube Shorts safe-zone overlay
Course lesson clips on Instagram Reels
- Hook
- Lead with motion; Reels favours strong visual hooks.
- Captions
- Burned-in lower-thirds; Reels tolerates heavy captions.
- Deliver
- 60s vertical lesson (9:16); Long-form full lesson (16:9); Concept carousel (1:1)
Extra steps for Instagram Reels
- Apply platform safe-zone overlay: Use the Instagram Reels safe-zone overlay so subjects stay visible. (Safe-zone)
Instagram Reels export preset · Instagram Reels safe-zone overlay
Course lesson clips on TikTok
- Hook
- Lead with the surprising beat; TikTok rewards pattern interrupts.
- Captions
- Burned-in captions; place inside the platform safe-zone.
- Deliver
- 60s vertical lesson (9:16); Long-form full lesson (16:9); Concept carousel (1:1)
Extra steps for TikTok
- Apply platform safe-zone overlay: Use the TikTok safe-zone overlay so subjects stay visible. (Safe-zone)
Course lesson clips on LinkedIn
- Hook
- Lead with the contrarian or non-obvious point; LinkedIn rewards dialogue.
- Captions
- Burned-in captions are essential; LinkedIn feeds are predominantly muted.
- Deliver
- Long-form full lesson (16:9); Concept carousel (1:1)
Course lesson clips on Medium
- Hook
- Open with the question the lesson answers, not the topic name.
- Captions
- Step-numbered captions (Step 1, Step 2...) make the lesson scannable on mute.
- Deliver
- Long-form full lesson (16:9); Concept carousel (1:1)
Pitfalls to avoid
- Lesson doesn't fit in 60 seconds - split into 2 clips
- Captions cover the diagram
- Intro that names the course instead of teaching
Turn one source into the clips
Koldflux turns one long video into ready-to-post vertical clips with captions.
Questions people ask
What aspect ratio should course lesson clips use?
9:16 on YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels and TikTok and 1:1 on LinkedIn and Medium.
How long should course lesson clips be?
YouTube Shorts: up to 60 s, Instagram Reels: up to 60 s, TikTok: up to 60 s, LinkedIn: up to 60 s and Medium: up to 60 s.
Do course lesson clips need burned-in captions?
YouTube Shorts: burned-in recommended, Instagram Reels: burned-in recommended, TikTok: burned-in recommended, LinkedIn: plain text is enough and Medium: plain text is enough.
Related playbooks and guides
Sources
- YouTube Help - Creator playbooks, verified September 18, 2026.
- HubSpot content types overview, verified September 18, 2026.