YouTube Shorts Success: Key Metrics and Strategies Explained

Successful YouTube shorts captivate viewers with strong intros and maintain high audience retention throughout the video.

### Unlocking YouTube Shorts Success: Key Metrics and Strategies
* 📈 Over the past year, the author posted 40 YouTube shorts, experiencing a range of views from thousands to millions, ultimately gaining **34 million views** and **95,000 subscribers**.
* 🔍 The crucial difference between a short with 100 views and one with millions lies in two key metrics: the **"viewed versus swiped away" graph** and **audience retention**.
* 🎥 The first **5 seconds of a short** are vital to capture attention, as **76% of viewers** watched a particular short that later garnered **15 million views**, indicating that **less than 65% retention** could halt recommendations.
* 📉 Viewer retention is equally important; a **steep drop in retention** signals to YouTube that the content is **not engaging enough**, while a **flatter retention curve** indicates success in **keeping viewers interested**.
* 🔑 To increase view counts, creators should provide YouTube with relevant data by researching **popular topics** and using **effective keywords** in titles and descriptions, as shorts can be **discovered outside the feed**.
* 🕒 After posting, shorts undergo a "**test**" phase where their performance is judged by a small audience, and if metrics are **poor**, recommendations may cease, although some videos may **go viral months later**.
* 🎨 Quality should take precedence over quantity; focusing on creating **high-quality shorts** from well-performing long-form content can lead to **significant growth**, as evidenced by the author's successful strategy with only **40 videos**.
* 💡 Passion for the subject matter enhances engagement; choosing topics that **inspire you** can lead to **unexpected viewer interest and increased views**, making the content creation process **more enjoyable**.

so you keep posting YouTube shorts, and they're not getting any views. Well, there's two things you need to fix. Over the last year, I've posted 40 shorts onto my channel. Some of them only got a couple of thousand views, whereas others went completely viral. But why? When I cracked this code, I gained 34 million views and 95,000 subscribers in less than a year. So, what's the real difference between a short that gets 100 views and a short that gets millions? The truth is that all successful shorts look exactly the same. Inside your YouTube analytics, this short that I uploaded currently has 15 million views. But before the views came flying in, there were two more golden signs that told me it was about to explode. The first one was the viewed versus swiped away graph. This shows you the amount of people that saw the start of your sh and chose to carry on watching instead of swiping away, which is extremely important. Long-form videos on YouTube have titles and thumbnails that try to convince people to click, but nobody chooses to click on

YouTube shorts. The overwhelming majority of your audience discovers them by scrolling through the feed, which YouTube chooses for them. So, the first 5 seconds of your video needs to grab attention and convince people to carry on watching. This is your title and thumbnail. As you can see, 76% of people chose to watch this short, and it got 15 million views. In my experience, if your short gets less than 65 or 70% after a few days, it will stop getting recommended. But don't take my word for it. This other short I uploaded has 9 million views, and this is the swiped away graph. Here's another, here's another one, and here's another one. As you can see, they are all over 70%, and they all ended up getting over 1 million views. And just to prove that point even more, here's another video with just a few thousand views, and the viewed number versus swiped away is much lower. But what if this metric is really good on your video, but you're still not getting any views? Well, I'm sorry to say

that grabbing attention with your intro just isn't enough. If people stop watching after that, you still won't get recommended. You need to hold attention throughout your entire video. Always keep in mind that if the viewer gets bored, they can just swipe away. There's literally thousands of other videos waiting for them in the feed, so you need to keep convincing them to carry on watching and that they're in the right place, which brings us nicely onto metric number two. If we take a look at this short, you can see that despite having a good retention at the beginning, it quickly drops off. This steep curve downwards is people leaving the video and swiping onto something else, and this is a big red flag for the YouTube algorithm. Swiping away is one of the most negative actions you can take on a YouTube sh, and YouTube sees this as your content just not being good enough to hold attention, so they won't recommend it more. But if we now look at one of my shorts with millions of views, you can see that the retention graph is a lot

flatter, and this is what you should be aiming for. The audience retention for this video is at 89%, which means it kept attention throughout the whole thing. Here's some more examples from my other viral shorts, and as you can see, they are all over 80%, which really needs to be the minimum that you aim for. And again, just for comparison, here's one of my lesser-viewed videos, and as you can see, the retention is much lower. It's all connected. You can captivate your audience by keeping an engaging pace with your editing and consistently making sure that the content is relevant, interesting, and most importantly, entertaining. Cut all the fat. Now, these two golden metrics are all well and good if you have some views to work with, but how do you get that view count to move from zero? Well, it's all about giving YouTube enough information when you upload. If YouTube has the right data, it'll be able to show your content to the right people, an audience that's actually interested in your niche, and

topic will be more likely to watch all the way until the end, and that process starts at the very beginning with your video ideas. You need to be making YouTube shorts that you know people will actually enjoy watching, and a great way to do that is to use ideas that you've already seen working and just put your own spin on it. My top-performing shorts are not original ideas; all of them have been made by other creators before, and I'd already used the same ideas on my long-form videos as well, so I already knew that the interest was there before I started recording, and I just added my own perspective. I then always research keywords related to that topic that I use in my title and description, search for some phrases in Chebe Buddy, and try looking for keywords with a high search volume but low competition. I also fill my tags with these phrases as well, and it's easy to forget that YouTube shorts get recommended on the homepage, in the sidebar next to other videos, and they appear in search results as well, so adding keywords actually increases your

chances of being discovered outside of the short speed and by using this method of adding relevant information. My shorts normally get between 1,000 and 3,000 views within the first day, and this is a really important step. You might have noticed that your shorts get a very quick surge in views in the first 24 hours, but then the growth stops. So, why does this happen? Well, it's because you failed YouTube's big test. Like I said before, YouTube shorts don't have thumbnails, so the algorithm needs another method to test if your video concepts are actually any good. And YouTube does this by throwing your shorts into the feed and judging the reaction from that test audience. But if those two golden metrics aren't good after showing it to that small audience, they'll stop recommending it completely. But to be honest, even if you do get the right results from that test audience, you still might have to be patient. The big numbers don't always come right away. Most of my viral shorts popped off almost exactly 3 months after posting.

even when those first two metrics were looking good. But once your video does go viral, it can keep happening again and again, even a year after uploading. My most viral shorts still get pushed into the feed, so all of that time I spent researching and optimizing my video right at the start is still paying off today. Then there's consistency. How many YouTube shorts should you post every week? Many YouTube gurus will tell you to post as many shorts as possible, posting every day or even more. And obviously, the more you upload, the more chances you have of going viral. But I'd also be careful with that way of thinking. The key to our success with YouTube shorts on this channel has been quality over quantity. By focusing on making quality videos from the very best ideas only, we've managed to explode this Channel with only 40 videos. We often take ideas from our best-performing long-form videos and re-optimize them for shorts. We don't just use Clips; I rewrite, re-record, and re-edit those same ideas to fully cater to the shorts platform and my

analytics tell me that this method works. It's a longer process, but it pays off. And if you're looking to post YouTube shorts just to make money, it can be very tempting just to make videos in the most lucrative niche possible. But if your passion for the subject isn't there, people can tell. The truth is, if you're passionate about a subject, that energy is very engaging, even if the audience doesn't have a particular interest in the same thing right away. For example, I've got no real interest in trains, but when I watch this guy's YouTube shorts, they're so charming and engaging that I watch a lot of his content. His enthusiasm for the subject matter keeps me watching, and you can't fake that. So if you choose a topic that genuinely inspires you, it makes things a hell of a lot easier, and you might be surprised how much the views come flying in. Now shorts can be a really great way to grow your channel, but a lot of people don't know about the hidden dangers in

fact. A lot of channels are now saying that posting YouTube shorts can actually kill your channel in the long run. And I explore that exact topic right here. You should check it out.

Why Your Shorts Get Stuck at 400 Views...

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Cracking the Code for YouTube Shorts Success

Successful YouTube shorts have a similar pattern, with the first 5 seconds crucial for grabbing attention.

The viewed versus swiped away graph is a key indicator, with a high percentage of viewers choosing to watch instead of scrolling away.

If a short consistently gets less than 65-70% retention, it is likely to stop being recommended by YouTube.

Grabbing attention with the intro is not enough; maintaining viewer engagement throughout the video is crucial.

A steep drop in audience retention is a red flag for the YouTube algorithm, leading to fewer recommendations.

Aiming for a retention rate of 80% or higher is essential, and providing YouTube with the right data during the upload can help attract the right audience.

To make engaging YouTube shorts, use popular ideas with your own spin and research related keywords for titles and descriptions.

Adding relevant tags and keywords increases the chances of being discovered outside the short feed.

The initial surge in views is crucial, as YouTube's algorithm tests the video's concept, and viral success may take time, with many creators seeing significant growth three months after posting.

Viral videos can continue to gain traction long after their initial upload, making early optimization crucial.

Consistency is important, but focusing on quality over quantity has been the key to success, with only 40 videos driving significant growth.

Passion for the subject matter is essential, as genuine enthusiasm engages viewers and can lead to unexpected growth in views.

The Impact of YouTube Shorts on Channel Growth

Posting YouTube shorts is now believed by many channels to potentially harm long-term growth.

The topic is being explored in detail, highlighting the possible negative effects.

Viewers are encouraged to check out the discussion for more insights.