How to Hire a Shorts Editor (Instagram, TikTok & YouTube)

Short-form editors are everywhere; short-form editors who understand the scroll are rare. Here’s how to find the second kind.

The 2-second test

Open their published reels. If the first 2 seconds don’t make you need the next 2, keep scrolling — your audience will. Test ours: Talking Head Reels, UGC Ads and Podcast Reels.

Caption quality is a proxy for everything

Word-timed, readable at arm’s length, styled to the brand, never covering faces. Sloppy captions predict sloppy everything.

Ask about platform-native delivery

A real short-form editor delivers per-platform versions — different safe zones, hooks and loop points — not one file posted three times.

Hire with a trial batch, not a trial video

Short-form quality shows in consistency. Commission 3–5 videos, judge the batch.

Ready when you are: hire a video editor with a single trial video, or send your brief for a fixed quote within hours.