YouTube Shorts Algorithm 2023

YouTube Shorts have become one of the greatest features on the app to share content. And thanks to the success of TikTok, other networks have turned to short-form video content, even the well-established long-form video platform.

As we know, algorithms are an essential part of each social network and how content is organized for each user’s timeline. 

Therefore, in this article, we are breaking down how the YouTube Shorts algorithm works, and what aspects you need to focus on to improve your content and rank higher in search results. 

What is the YouTube Shorts Algorithm? 

First of all, the YouTube Shorts algorithm is a formula in which the social network gathers information from each user, and then determines which content will appear first in each user’s feed.

Each social network has its own algorithm. For example, Instagram uses a separate algorithm for each section: feed, Reels, and Stories. 

The YouTube Shorts algorithm functions independently of the regular YouTube algorithm, to tell the network which content to prioritize for this section.

And why is it important to know how this works?

If you understand how the algorithm works, you can improve your content to appear among the first search results thus increasing views, interactions, and ultimately new subscribers. 

How the YouTube Shorts Algorithm Works

Now that you know what algorithms on social media are in general, let’s break down the YouTube Shorts algorithm in 2023, and how brands, content creators, and marketers can utilize this information to master content on Shorts. 

In an interview with Todd Beaupré, Director of Growth and Discovery hosted by Rene Ritchie on the “Creator Insider” channel, Shermann gives the answers to the most common questions about the YouTube Shorts algorithm.

The biggest takeaways that we learned from Beaupré are the following:

Think Audience, Not Algorithm 

Since the goal of YouTube Shorts is to cater to users’ behaviors and interests, the algorithm will favor what your audience wants to see. Of course, you can’t always predict this perfectly, but when it comes to content creation, putting yourself in the shoes of your ideal audience is important.

How can you do this? Beaupré recommends to scroll through YouTube, and take note of how you as viewer interact with the platform, and what you’re more drawn to. 

When we can take a step back from our own profiles, and look through the viewers perspective, this can help curate natural ideas and creativity. 

Satisfaction > Watch Time 

Next in the interview, Richie asks Beaupré how ‘satisfaction’ factors into the algorithm. When the YouTube Shorts team was developing the algorithm, they wanted to factor in behaviors like watch time, but they also understood that they needed the user feedback in order to recommend content. 

Therefore, the network runs recommendation surveys to ask users a few questions about a video they just watched, which they then take into consideration for choosing content. 

Beaupré noted that although watch time is important, it doesn’t encompass a user’s whole experience. With this, he suggests that creators should think of the long-term value of their content in a way that it could be watched back six months from now, or encourage viewers to come back to your channel. 

New Creators Can Succeed 

We have talked a lot about audience satisfaction, but how do creators that are just getting started survive without an audience? YouTube was aware of this challenge and knew there needed to be a different approach.

This is where things like: title, description, thumbnails, keywords, tags, come in handy. When the network finds users they think might be interested, they run trials to different users to see who will interact with this content.

So, if you’re a creator or brand that is trying to build your audience, do the research to see what’s trending, which of your videos have had the most success, etc. You can use analytics tools like YouTube Studio and Metricool to understand how your strategy is working, and how you can improve it. 

Keeping Users Engaged

This is one of the biggest struggles creators and brands face: How do I keep my audience engaged? The average attention spans is less than 10 seconds, so this means you need to attract your audience’s attention within about the first 15 seconds. 

The algorithm considers a few things when it comes to engagement such as the Viewed vs. Swiped Away rate, which is the balance of how many users watch your Short versus swiping away. 

Of course you’re aiming for a higher engagement rate, which indicates that more users interacted with your content. 

You can view metrics such as watch time, videos growing your audience, when your audience is on YouTube, and returning users to see what content your audience better engages in.

Conclusions

As we can see, the algorithm is based on numerous different signals to determine which content will be featured and prioritized in front of viewers. It’s important to understand these signals so you can include them in your content strategy. 

However, as we can also see, the network favors content that users are interested in. So whereas this formula is robotic, it favors humanity. 

It encourages creators to experiment, post content that can communicate with multiple audiences over a long period of time, and to create content that is authentic. 

For more help on perfecting your YouTube marketing strategy, here’s a guide below. 

Anniston Ward , 22 September 2023