Video for every generation: platforms, captions and sound

James Jones Guest post from Granary Digital Published 28 September 2026 · 5 min read

Different generations watch video in different places. Ofcom found in 2026 that TikTok is used by 83% of social media users aged 16 to 24 but 7% of those aged 75 and over, while Facebook reaches 81% of the older group. Hearing changes with age too, and RNID estimates over half the population aged 55 or more have hearing loss. One shoot can reach every generation if it is cut for each platform, captioned and mixed for clear speech.

Organisations that make video usually need it to reach customers, staff or members of every age, from school leavers to retirees, and a single shoot often has to serve several platforms. It can, if you plan where each version will go, caption it properly and put the voice first in the mix. This is the approach I would take at Granary Digital, the film, photo and podcast studio I run near Chichester.

Where does each generation watch video?

In different places, and the gap is wide. Ofcom's Adults' Media Use and Attitudes report for 2026 found that 82% of social media users aged 16 to 24 use social media for watching videos, against 31% of those aged 75 and over. TikTok is used by 83% of social media users aged 16 to 24 and by 7% of those aged 75 and over. Facebook is the only platform Ofcom asks about that is more popular with the older group: 81% of social media users aged 75 and over use it, against 55% of those aged 16 to 24. WhatsApp bridges the two, used by 81% of the younger group and 78% of the older one.

Which platforms reach the youngest and the oldest adultsShare of social media users in each age group who use each platform

TikTokAged 16 to 24: 83%Aged 75 and over: 7%
FacebookAged 16 to 24: 55%Aged 75 and over: 81%
WhatsAppAged 16 to 24: 81%Aged 75 and over: 78%

Source: Ofcom, Adults' Media Use and Attitudes report 2026

The survey of 4,067 people published on this site, Communication Habits and Preferences 2024, shows the same split in the apps people use to talk to each other. 74% of Gen Z used Instagram to communicate, against 13% of Baby Boomers, while 80% of all respondents used WhatsApp, more than any other app.

The practical answer is one shoot and several cuts. Make a vertical version for TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, a landscape version for YouTube, Facebook and your own website, and a link that works when someone forwards it in a WhatsApp message.

Why do captions matter more as audiences age?

Because hearing changes with age. RNID estimates that 1 in 3 people in the UK are deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus, that over half the population aged 55 or more have hearing loss, and that almost 80% of people over the age of 70 will. Captions help anyone watching with the sound down too, on a train or in an open-plan office.

There are two kinds worth knowing. Open captions are burned into the picture and always show, which suits social feeds, where a video often starts playing silently. Closed captions are a separate file that viewers turn on or off, and they belong on YouTube and your website, where people can also change their size.

Automatic captions are a good start, but check every line. Names, places and technical terms are where they most often go wrong. Keep each caption to two lines, in sentence case rather than capitals, with strong contrast against the picture, and leave it on screen long enough to read comfortably.

How should video sound for every age?

Put the voice first. Music and effects should sit well below speech, and a voice recorded close to a good microphone in a quiet room needs far less rescuing in the edit than one recorded across a room. Give every speaker their own microphone, so each voice can be balanced and nobody has to compete to be heard.

Check the final mix on a phone speaker as well as on good headphones. Many viewers will hear it through a phone, and a mix that only works on headphones will lose them.

What makes a video feel made for everyone?

Start with on-screen text. Make it large and high in contrast, and leave it up long enough to read twice, since it is often read on a small screen held at arm's length.

Pace matters too. Open with the point, because a scrolling feed gives you seconds, then give the explanation room to breathe. A video that rushes everything will lose the viewers who need a moment longer.

Then think about who appears on screen. In the 2024 survey, 71% of Gen Z said they find it easier to communicate with people closer to their own age, against 36% of Baby Boomers and 39% of Gen X. A video fronted by one presenter may speak most easily to people of that presenter's age, so where you can, put more than one generation in front of the camera. Plain words help as well: slang dates quickly, and jargon excludes people of every age.

How does one shoot become content for every platform?

Plan the cuts before the shoot. Frame each shot with room to crop a vertical version from a horizontal picture, and record every camera and every microphone separately, so the edit has choices. The podcast studio at Granary has three 4K cameras, and a 4K frame has enough resolution to crop a sharp vertical version.

Then keep a simple list for every video: the horizontal master, the vertical cut, the caption file, a thumbnail, and a short description that makes sense without the sound. Each platform then gets the version that suits it.

Frequently asked questions

Which social media platforms do older people use?

In Ofcom's 2026 report, Facebook was used by 81% of social media users aged 75 and over, against 55% of those aged 16 to 24, and WhatsApp by 78% of the older group. TikTok was used by 7% of social media users aged 75 and over. Ofcom also found that 31% of social media users aged 75 and over use social media for watching videos, against 82% of those aged 16 to 24.

Should social media videos have captions?

Yes. Captions help viewers with hearing loss, and RNID estimates over half the population aged 55 or more have hearing loss. They also help anyone watching with the sound off. Use burned-in captions on social feeds and a separate caption file on YouTube and your website, and check automatic captions for names and technical terms.

What shape should video be for each platform?

Vertical, in a 9:16 frame, for TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, and landscape, in a 16:9 frame, for YouTube, Facebook, websites and screens. Plan both before the shoot, so each camera is framed to allow the crop.

See how each generation communicates, from the survey of 4,067 people behind this site.

Read the 2024 survey

Listen: related podcast episodes

Episode 1 · 7 January 2025 · 30 min