If you’re trying to grow your channel, taking advantage of YouTube Shorts is a smart move. Here’s how you can get more views with short-form video!

A new TikTok competitor, YouTube Shorts, has proved popular in the world of content creation. Whilst it’s not currently possible to monetise Shorts, it is still a handy way to cast a wider net on the site. Whether your goal is to earn money through YouTube, or simply have as many people see your videos as possible, more content is more.

The way Shorts works is that videos are not separated from the rest of the video content on the site. You can browse Shorts specifically, however the snappy 60-second videos will also appear on the general homepage. It’s this fact that makes them a valuable way to get more views.

Here’s how you can optimise your YouTube Shorts to attract more views on your channel!

Perfect the Thumbnail

Just as with regular videos you upload to YouTube, you should include a scroll-stopping thumbnail on your Short. This is the image that people will see and give them an instant impression of your video. That’s why it’s vital that you take this opportunity to convince people to watch your video.

Including clear text, eye-catching colours, and attractive imagery will all help you to get more views.

Consider the Length

YouTube Shorts allows you to upload videos up to 60-seconds long. However, it is recommended that you stick to creating videos that are around 15-seconds long. This is in line with people’s addiction to easily digestible content, that cater nicely to shorter attention spans.

A minute-long video would be considered short when uploaded to YouTube as a normal video. But, it’s actually rather long in terms of short-form video. You don’t want to give people more of an opportunity to get fed up and skip your content. 15 seconds should be enough to entertain and avoid getting rejected, telling YouTube to put your videos in the “not so popular” box.

Tag Carefully

The way to let YouTube know your video is meant for Shorts, is by adding the hashtag #Shorts. Often, people get this wrong slightly, meaning the algorithm doesn’t pick the content up correctly. For example, the tag #Short appears to crop up a lot.

You can make your video more widely visible by adding more tags in the title or description. Sticking to ones that are relevant to the genre or type of content is best. E.g. #Food, #Comedy, #Fitness. This helps your content to be found by the intended audience, which is more likely to result in a positive reception.

Be Descriptive

Very much like optimising a regular YouTube video, adding a clear and accurate description to your Short will help garner more views. Understanding YouTube analytics and keywords will help you out here vastly.

Using keywords that will act as good buzz words and sign posts for what your content contains, will help the right people stumble upon it.