It’s not that long ago that YouTube launched the YouTube Shorts format (aka Stories) following the example of Instagram, TikTok, and other social networks. Just like on other platforms, new videos on YouTube Shorts are much more recommended by YouTube to entice users to the new format. I’ve already written about social media algorithms on this blog.
What are YouTube Shorts
For those encountering this format for the first time, YouTube Shorts are short, up to one-minute-long videos that are typically filmed vertically, with (for now) a large unpaid reach. This format is reminiscent of Stories or Reels on Instagram, but unlike Stories, they don’t disappear after 24 hours.
YouTube Shorts also play a role in search, because as you know, YouTube also functions as a search engine. Well-shot and described videos can significantly contribute to the fulfillment of your marketing strategy goals.
Me and YouTube
My activity on YouTube has never been particularly significant. In fact, I “started” with my own channel because of the clothing brand by André. On my channel, you can find 4 videos that I published last February and March. At that time, my number of subscribers on YouTube grew to around 130. Since then, I haven’t posted anything there, until the end of January 2023.
To explain: The numbers I mention in this article are not particularly high, but for the potential that’s there, it’s undoubtedly a sufficient example.
When YouTube launched the Shorts format, I decided to give it a try. I selected a few videos that I hadn’t published anywhere yet, and put together some from my Instagram or TikTok – about 10 videos in total, and started adding them gradually to Shorts. I tried English and sometimes Czech captions, with and without hashtags.
Shorts increased my subscriber count by a fifth
It’s been about 2 months, and in that time, with those 10 videos, the number of subscribers has increased by almost 20%. Of course, the videos are quite diverse, because I don’t have a specific plan with YouTube, but something that didn’t cost me almost any effort increased my subscriber count by about a fifth. Along with that, the number of views on my regular videos also increased by about 10%. Here I wouldn’t credit just the YouTube Shorts, because the videos also appear in blog posts, where I currently have a fairly decent regular traffic.
Use YouTube Shorts while it’s working
Just look at what a few Shorts did to my YouTube channel, and it’s clear that it makes sense. Plus, it’s possible that some video will hit trends, and your video will suddenly have thousands or hundreds of thousands of views without spending a single penny.
A small tip in the end: When you want to share your video from YouTube Shorts, for example, in a blog post where a regular video looks better, you can turn the Shorts into a regular video in an instant.
For example, this is what a link to one of my Shorts looks like:https://www.youtube.com/shorts/AxVPm-u1EVs
You can turn the classic video from it like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxVPm-u1EVs
In the link, instead of shorts/, you insert watch?v=. Don’t forget to copy the correct video code, which is the key.
