How to Benefit from YouTube Shorts for Business

YouTube is a great place to watch educational videos, fail compilations, cute cat and dog videos, and your favorite vloggers.

However, YouTube can also be used for business. Back in September 2020, the video platform launched YouTube shorts, as an answer to the similar features of its competitors – Instagram Reels, TikTok videos, Facebook stories, etc.

Basically, the whole idea behind these short clips is to reflect on the short user attention span. Creating short, digestible videos is a perfect way to engage today’s audiences.

It’s no wonder that YouTube shorts for business are gaining popularity. Let’s find out why, and how to utilize their power.

What Are YouTube Shorts?

You might have noticed YouTube shorts appearing in your YouTube feed. They are displayed as vertical videos, and upon clicking one of them, you can continue to scroll down to watch more.

YouTube shorts videos are less than 60 seconds long, and are meant to be mobile-friendly. More and more brands are using YouTube shorts, so is it worth it?

Let’s find out.

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Why Use YouTube Shorts?

Starting from the beginning of February 2023, YouTube Short creators are able to earn money from the ads displayed between videos.

The YouTube Shorts monetization policy certainly created a buzz around the format, which is evident by the Google Trends report:

Now let’s take a look at the other benefits of YouTube Shorts for business.

1. Better engagement and increased brand awareness. Did we mention that users have a very short attention span? Distractions are everywhere, especially with social media and whatnot, so people rarely have the time anymore to consume long-form content (videos, articles, etc.).
2. More mobile traffic and wider audience reach. More than 70% of YouTube views come from mobile devices, and given that YouTube Shorts use a vertical video format and scrolling navigation, it’s much more intuitive to use for smartphone users. This can also contribute to expanding your viewership, and reaching a wider audience.
3. More channel subscriptions and views. Since Shorts are a separate menu on YouTube, when someone likes your videos, and subscribes, they are also subscribing to your long-form content, and basically your YouTube channel. So, using Shorts can be a game changer for your business, more so due to the much lower competition. More subscribers, and more views, what’s not to like?

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YouTube Shorts: Best Practices for Brands

1. Follow the Appropriate Length
2. Publish Consistently
3. Create Relevant Videos for Your Audience
4. Put Extra Effort into Intros
5. Keep the Vertical Format
6. Optimize Your Titles
7. Add Value

1. Follow the Appropriate Length

You have a limited amount of time to grab the interest of your viewers. It’s essential to keep your video length within the requirements (under 60 seconds), all while saying everything you want to say.

2. Publish Consistently

Consistency is key. If you’re serious about boosting your brand, and reaching a wide audience, you simply must publish a YouTube Short every day. If you’re having troubles with staying organized, you can create a content calendar.

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3. Create Relevant Videos for Your Audience

Of course, it’s not just about creating videos, it’s more about the content you share and how it corresponds with your target audience. A business channel, with content mainly about business tips and know-how, will most likely not create videos on how to clean fabric stains.

4. Put Extra Effort into Intros

In order to minimize the chances of someone scrolling through your video within seconds, it’s vital to craft an enticing intro. For instance, start with the most important information, and look for other ways to grab the attention of users, like writing a creative caption or creating a custom thumbnail.

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5. Keep the Vertical Format

It’s really unpleasant to have to turn your phone sideways to watch a YouTube Short, especially if all the other videos are in the proper, vertical position. That’s why you should avoid that, as it could be considered a bad user experience, and always make sure to record videos vertically.

6. Optimize Your Titles

You will have a higher chance of being found by both users, and YouTube’s algorithm, if you optimize your video titles. This means that you have to follow the character limit (50-70), research keywords to include, and use hashtags. Keep in mind that YouTube recommends using the #shorts, so the system can recommend them to spectators.

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7. Add Value

How do you make people want to watch more and more of your videos? Easy, make them valuable. For example, you can offer a solution to the problems your audience faces, inspire them to perform a certain action, or make your content relatable so that they can have something to think about.

How to Monetize YouTube Shorts

First, it’s important to note that you can’t just begin creating YouTube Shorts and monetize them instantly, unless you already have a YouTube channel. In other words, you must be a part of the YouTube Partner Program.

To be eligible for said program, you must have at least one of the following:

• 1,000+ subscribers and 4,000 valid public watch hours on your long-form content.
• 1,000+ subscribers and 10 million eligible public Shorts views in the last 90 days.

What’s more, in all cases, you must follow YouTube’s Originality Policy, in order to be eligible for monetization.

YouTube Shorts monetization works on the principle of revenue sharing. In practice, all the revenue from ads shown between Shorts is gathered, then a part of the total revenue goes into the “creator pool”, depending on the total views and music usage across all watched Shorts.

Finally, revenue from the “creator pool” will be properly allocated to the eligible creators, based on the total number of views.

Now, if you’ve met one of the above requirements, you can start monetizing YouTube Shorts right away. Here’s all you have to do:

• In YouTube Studio, select “Get Started”, and accept the terms under “Short feed ads”.

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Example of Great YouTube Shorts

Here’s a very cool video with tips on how to teach your child some basic skills. It’s presented in a fun, and engaging way, plus it has upbeat background music, and wastes no time, going straight to the promised hacks and craft.

Views: 109M

This next one is about curious animal facts. Again, it starts immediately and delivers the expected information.

Views: 11M

How-to, or tutorial videos are always valuable. This video shows 3 magic tricks in under a minute, and it uses captions to grab even more attention. Furthermore, it has separated chapters to make it even easier to navigate.

Views: 17M

Summary

Trending, new, and mobile-friendly, the number of brands using YouTube Shorts for business is growing.

It’s not that hard to get started, and you can begin monetizing right away if you already have an active YouTube account. And, by chance, if you’ve not yet delved into the world’s second-largest social platform, what are you waiting for?

YouTube isn’t going to decline in popularity any time soon, so begin investing time and resources into it today, and you’ll see that the long-term results are definitely worth it.