Short dramas lose luster but find new purpose in brand storytelling

A young man dressed in a Starbucks uniform accidentally bumps into a girl in a white dress. When he regains his footing, he finds himself transported to an ancient street lined with traditional architecture—he has traveled through time. This is the opening of Starbucks’ custom short drama, I Opened a Starbucks in Ancient Times. The story follows his journey as he uses two bags of Starbucks coffee beans that traveled with him to launch a business and turn his fortunes around.

Starbucks is the latest brand to experiment with short dramas, following others like McDonald’s, KFC, and Mixue Bingcheng. Short drama marketing has become a key focus during this year’s Singles’ Day shopping festival, especially on platforms like Douyin.

Douyin has not only increased its ad placements for short dramas but has also rolled out a new marketing model combining drama, push notifications, search integration, and live streaming to amplify campaign impact. This strategy connects personalized recommendations, search visibility, and live streamed promotions to drive short drama engagement.

Success stories like Kans, which has led Douyin’s beauty category for 14 consecutive months, demonstrate the potential of this format. Another standout is the smart lock brand Kaadas, which leveraged its self-produced short drama during Singles’ Day to generate over 300 million impressions and secure leading positions in various e-commerce categories.

Yet, as the buzz around short dramas grows, so do the challenges.

Xiao Fan founded a short drama studio in September 2023, envisioning a fully integrated operation that would handle everything from scriptwriting to production. At the time, the business model for short dramas was still uncertain, but Xiao Fan was confident in their potential as a brand marketing tool. Despite her ambitions, limited demand has kept the studio focused exclusively on scriptwriting. Facing these challenges, Xiao Fan has turned her attention back to long-form drama projects.

Su Cheng, CEO of brand marketing firm Oyo Group, noted a sharp downturn in the short drama market during the first three quarters of this year. Many short drama influencers have left the mainstream market altogether, signaling a decline in the once-thriving industry.

Even high-profile figures like Xiao Yang, once regarded as a breakout star in short drama marketing, have struggled. His multichannel network (MCN) agency, Three Sheep Network, faced setbacks when its debut short drama, Master Fu, Your Substitute Bride is a Boss, was pulled from platforms. Compounding the challenges, the drama’s production company, Hangzhou Yimeng, has been plagued by rumors of dissolution.

After two years of meteoric growth, short drama marketing now faces a critical question: is it still a worthwhile investment for brands?

Waning opportunities in short drama marketing

The year 2023 was dubbed by many as the “year of the short drama,” with numerous success stories emerging. One standout was Kans’ aggressive strategy on Douyin.

In March, Kans collaborated with Douyin influencer Jiang Shiqi to launch its first short drama, Dressing Up for Growth. The production quickly went viral, boosting Kans’ gross merchandise value (GMV) on Douyin past RMB 1 billion (USD 140,000).

This momentum carried into the following year. According to the live streaming analytics platform Chanmama, Kans achieved over RMB 6.2 billion (USD 868 million) in GMV on Douyin between August 2023 and August 2024, securing its position as the platform’s top beauty and skincare brand. During this period, Kans released nearly 30 short dramas.

The brand’s soaring sales were tied to its ability to harness the short drama traffic boom. Su Cheng, who was involved in Kans’ marketing efforts, explained that their success stemmed from a strategy of mass placements and organic reach, which achieved broad visibility throughout 2023. However, this advantage was short-lived, with traffic benefits dissipating by the year’s end.

According to iResearch’s 2024 industry report on micro and short dramas in China, 584 recorded short dramas were released in 2023. By comparison, 589 were recorded in just three months between August and October 2024, as reported by the Center for Film and Television of the Supreme People’s Procuratorate. This surge has made it increasingly difficult for brands to achieve viral hits, while traffic costs have soared. The cost per mille (CPM), which started at just a few RMB during the boom, now ranges from RMB 30–40 (USD 4.2–5.6)—a nearly tenfold increase.

Zhang Peiran, vice president of Gangshang Kaihua, highlighted that, while some brands continue to reinvest in short dramas, others have withdrawn after underwhelming results. “Clients realized that not all short dramas are inherently effective, nor are all agencies or influencers skilled in producing quality content,” Zhang explained. Even video bloggers and movie commentary accounts have received short drama placement requests, signaling the broad but uneven interest in the format.

Even Kans has scaled back its short drama placements this year, with recent projects underperforming. For example, Let Love Be Captured, a short drama co-produced with influencer Jiang for the 618 shopping festival, garnered 230 million views—less than half the 600 million views achieved by Dressing Up for Growth.

Bai Yunhu, founder of e-commerce firm Meiyun Kongjian, attributed Kans’ sustained strong sales to the brand awareness established in 2023. Bai noted that Kans’ success is difficult to replicate, as it relied not just on short drama traffic but also on years of accumulated brand equity, founder Lu Yixiong’s strategic foresight, and an aggressive marketing approach.

Reinventing short drama marketing strategies

“Brought back from the brink.” That’s how Su described Starbucks’ short drama marketing success.

As the initial traffic advantages of short dramas waned, brands began to lose confidence in the format. “The entire market experienced a significant crisis in Q3,” Su said, noting a sharp decline in orders during that period.

The turning point came in October, when Starbucks debuted its first custom short drama, I Opened a Starbucks in Ancient Times, on Douyin. Planned and marketed by Su’s company, the campaign garnered 80 million views—not an extraordinary figure but enough to attract 1.35 million local lifestyle consumers. For the first time, Starbucks also surpassed Luckin Coffee on Douyin, becoming the platform’s top beverage brand.

This campaign came with higher costs. The cost per mille (CPM) reached RMB 40, and the total campaign expenditure amounted to RMB 3 million (USD 420,000). However, the focus shifted from chasing high sales to fostering brand perception. “We’re no longer chasing high returns on low costs but instead leveraging content to spark discussions and emotional resonance,” Su said, adding that this approach helped Starbucks retain its competitive edge against low-cost rivals offering RMB 9.9 (USD 1.4) coffee deals.

This shift reflects the evolving priorities of brands investing in short dramas. Many are now aiming to merge branding with performance—seeking not just conversions but also content that reinforces or reshapes their brand image.

Starbucks’ campaign underscores the importance of quality content. The drama featured cinematography comparable to traditional TV productions and professional actors with notable experience. As viral traffic becomes harder to achieve, premium content has emerged as the key to staying relevant.

The format of short dramas is also evolving. Previously, a single drama might include multiple product placements, but many are now crafted exclusively for one brand, allowing for seamless integration of narrative and branding. This “soft placement” approach has become the norm for brand-led short dramas.

As Starbucks’ experience shows, short dramas remain effective, especially for local lifestyle brands that face less competition than crowded sectors like beauty and skincare. However, competition is intensifying as brands like McDonald’s, KFC, and Tai Er enter the space, driving up costs.

New conversion strategies are also taking shape. During Singles’ Day, some influencers tied their live streaming personas to short drama characters, leveraging these roles to boost product sales. MCN agencies have even licensed such content for brands to use in secondary video marketing.

Despite rising costs, Starbucks’ success and other recent campaigns suggest there’s still value in short drama marketing. However, the exponential growth seen during the Kans-led boom is unlikely to be replicated.

KrASIA Connection features translated and adapted content that was originally published by 36Kr. This article was written by Lan Jie for 36Kr.

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