Business
Why Vertical Video Became the Top of the Funnel for Brands
Roberto Kim explains how short-form video volume warms up audiences before major campaigns.
In an interview with Bruno Gimenes on Marketing - The Podcast, Roberto Kim analyzes the shift in traditional advertising. The EDGE Productions executive details the importance of continuous vertical content to capture audience attention before product launches.
Roberto Kim, CEO of EDGE Productions, spoke with Bruno Gimenes on Marketing - The Podcast about shifts in audiovisual consumption and the need for brands and agencies to adapt their advertising investment models. The discussion is part of an episode that also covers creative management and technology.
According to Kim, the traditional advertising model—focused on concentrating significant budgets into a single centerpiece campaign asset—has lost efficiency with channel fragmentation and the rise of short-form formats. Consumer attention has shifted to social media, where touchpoint frequency drives brand recall.
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In the video above, Kim details the practical reasoning behind this transition and compares the costs and impact of large productions with the consistency of vertical formats.
The Role of Vertical Video in the Funnel
Kim argues that vertical content has taken over the primary attraction role at the top of the funnel. Instead of allocating an entire budget to a single horizontal hero film, continuous social distribution builds the audience required to sustain future launches.
"A 2 million campaign, which exists—multiple 1 million, 2 million campaigns. Today, it makes much more sense to translate those campaigns into countless vertical assets rather than a single campaign piece," notes Kim.
According to Kim, capturing attention must precede the commercial offer: "Vertical video isn't something you trade directly for money; you trade it for attention. And attention usually translates into money."
Ecosystem-First Content, Not Product-First
Another key takeaway from the conversation is the mistake of turning institutional posts and social media channels into strict portfolio or catalog showcases. For Kim, brand communication must address the broader context surrounding the industry rather than pushing direct sales pitches.
"Our brand video isn't meant to sell. It's meant to attract and show our DNA," Kim says, explaining how EDGE Productions structures its own digital footprint. "What people need to understand is that you have to start talking about your market's surrounding ecosystem, not your product or your service," he adds.
Kim emphasizes that buyers seek connections with brands actively engaged in industry discussions: "Attraction comes from connection, not from a portfolio; otherwise, I would just drop a link to my website, post my whole portfolio, and do nothing else."
Shifting Dynamics in Modern Advertising
Comparing today's market with past eras, Kim and Gimenes discuss how the abundance of retail choices has reshaped the customer journey. When competing brands were few, direct product exposure was enough; today, purchasing decisions are driven by brand recall built in advance through ongoing branding.
Citing brands like Red Bull, Kim observes that sales happen at the end of the line because communication established cultural relevance long before the immediate moment of purchase, making prior connection the decisive factor in customer choice.
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