If you’re a content creator looking to amplify your reach and engagement on YouTube - Shorts are your golden ticket! These bite-sized videos are the perfect way to get your brand message across - and fast. Showcase your creativity in 60 seconds or less and stand out in an ocean of digital content. These tips are for the beginners and for the seasoned masters - let's serve good content, and let's do it FAST! 

Why Youtube Shorts?

1. Captures Attention Quickly

Short-form content is designed to capture attention quickly and create immediate impact. With the fast-paced nature of today’s user habits and consumption patterns, YouTube Shorts can quickly engage with users and keep them coming back for more. The format is perfect for delivering concise, impactful messages in a time-conscious way. 

2. Increased Discoverability

YouTube shorts are prominently featured on the YouTube homepage and have a dedicated space, making them highly discoverable. The app’s algorithm also promotes such content to a much wider audience, including users who might not be subscribed to the creator’s channel. This increased visibility leads to much higher engagement rates. 

3. Drives Traffic due to Brevity and CTA

Shorts often lead to higher engagement rates because viewers are most likely to watch a short, quick video in its entirety. With its direct Call-To-Action prompts - such content also tends to generate much higher and more organic responses. This increased engagement signals to YouTube that the content is valuable and deserves to be boosted across feeds. 

4. Leverages Cross-Platform Trends

Shorts allow creators to quickly hop on trends - subjects, themes, and audios - which can attract more views and engagement. By creating timely and relevant content - creators can tap into the potential of virality and potential of trending hashtags and challenges, enhancing their channel’s growth and visibility. Using trends from other platforms and repurposing content can build a cross-platform identity for your brand.

5. Cost and Time-Effective

Producing Shorts is often quicker and less resource-intensive compared to long-form content. This ensures that you do not face a content-burnout and can maintain an upload schedule. This also enables audience engagement without extensive production efforts always. Frequent uploads can lead to better visibility and sustained engagement on the platform - boosting your overall brand and channel over the platform.

6. Meets Growing Mobile-Consumption Demand

With a significant portion of today’s social media being consumed on mobile phones, on-the-go, Shorts cater to this consumption trend. The vertical video format of Shorts is optimized for mobile viewing, providing a seamless and enjoyable experience for users on a smartphone or tablet.

More Eyes on Your YouTube Shorts : How?

1. Optimize Your Content

• Don’t Overdo Introductions - Make sure to get to the point of the video as quickly as possible. Overloading viewers with irrelevant content in the first few seconds increases the likelihood of them scrolling away.
• Play into the Visual Appeals - Thumbnails are the first impression of your Shorts. Make them eye-catching with bold colors, clear images, and readable text. A compelling title for your video can significantly increase your click-through rate too, drawing viewers in and encouraging them to watch your content. Make sure it accurately represents your video to set proper viewer expectations.
• Keep an eye out for Trends - Jump on trending hashtags and challenges relevant to your niche. Keeping an eye on what’s popular can help you create content that’s more likely to be discovered and shared. Use tools like Google Trends or YouTube’s Explore page to identify and capitalize on current trends.

2. Use Trending Music

Incorporating trending music into your Shorts can dramatically boost their visibility. Trending tracks resonate with a broader audience and can make your content more appealing and relatable. YouTube often promotes videos that use popular sounds, which are likely engaging. Keep an eye on the music that's currently popular in the YouTube Shorts and TikTok communities, and try to incorporate these into your videos. This alignment with current trends can increase the chances of your Shorts being discovered and shared, thereby driving more views.

3. Shoots Videos Vertically

Always film your YouTube Shorts vertically to fit the platform's format. Vertical videos offer a better viewing experience on mobile devices, where most Shorts are consumed. This format ensures your content looks professional and engages viewers more effectively. Videos that fully fit the device screen are known to deliver messages more effectively and are considered more efficient for the brand message. 

4. Use Relevant Hashtags

Incorporate hashtags like #shorts and #youtubeshorts in your video titles and descriptions - irrespective of the genre of your content. These hashtags help categorize your content, making it easier for the YouTube algorithm to surface your Shorts in relevant feeds and search results, thereby increasing your visibility. Also, be sure to include tags that are more relevant to your content and audience niche - strong visibility is always a good mixture of specific and general hashtags. Additionally, leveraging trending and appropriate hashtags can tap into current conversations and viral trends, increasing the chances of your Shorts being picked up by the algorithm and shown to a wider audience.

5. Ideal Duration

Keep your Shorts under 60 seconds to respect viewers' time and maintain their attention. Concise, impactful content performs better, as it aligns with the quick consumption habits of Shorts viewers. Aim to deliver your message quickly and efficiently. Content that values everyone’s time is more widely accepted and receives a larger likelihood of positive engagement. Aim for a sweet spot of around 15-30 seconds for optimal impact while staying within the 60-second constraint.

6. Loop your Shorts

Create your content in a way that your Shorts loop seamlessly. This can encourage viewers to watch multiple times, increasing your total views. A clever way to do this is to start and end your Short with related content or a compelling hook that makes viewers want to watch it again. Even if the video accidentally loops without the viewer realizing it - it counts as more than a single view and helps reach your goal harmlessly. 

7. Timing of Post

Post your Shorts when your target audience is most active on YouTube. Use YouTube Analytics to identify peak times and schedule your uploads accordingly. Posting at optimal times increases the likelihood of immediate engagement and boosts visibility. Publishing during these windows ensures that your content appears at the top of their feeds, increasing the likelihood of immediate engagement. Consistently posting at optimal times can help establish a regular audience and boost the chances of your Shorts going viral.

8. Captions Make Shorts Accessible

Adding captions to your Shorts can enhance audience retention and accessibility. Captions make your content more inclusive, allowing viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing to engage with your videos. Additionally, many users watch videos without sound, especially in public places. By providing captions, you ensure that your message is communicated effectively, regardless of the viewing environment. This can lead to longer watch times and higher engagement rates, positively impacting your video’s performance.

9. Cross-Promote

Cross-promoting your YouTube Shorts on other platforms can drive traffic and increase views. Share previews or links to your Shorts on social media channels like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook to reach a broader audience. Encouraging your followers on these platforms to check out your YouTube content can lead to higher view counts and attract new subscribers. Additionally, embedding your Shorts in blog posts or website pages can further enhance visibility and engagement.

And there you have it! By shooting vertically, using the right hashtags, keeping your content short and sweet, looping strategically, posting at the perfect times, adding captions, and cross-promoting like a pro, you’ll be well on your way to boosting your YouTube Shorts views. Remember, it’s all about experimenting and finding what works best for your unique style and audience. So go on, give these tips a try, and watch your Shorts take off. Happy creating, and see you on the Shorts shelf!