How to Make Successful YouTube Shorts and Grow Your Fanbase

How to make successful YouTube Shorts and grow your fanbase

There are certain tips and tricks you can use when making your YouTube Shorts to help grow your fanbase. Like any social media platform, there is an algorithm that favors certain videos over others. The algorithm for long form videos on YouTube works differently than the algorithm for the Shorts. 

How well a Short performs is dictated by whether or not users watch the video or skip ahead. The more people that watch your Short, the more your video will be pushed onto the home page of other YouTube users. It’s a snowball effect that is common in other algorithms used on streaming services like Spotify, Apple music, Napster, Amazon music, Tidal, Google play, and more. 

Here are some tips on how to make successful YouTube Shorts to captivate the viewer from the start:

1. Pick the best image for your video thumbnail

A good video thumbnail can make a big difference. If you want people to watch your video, you first have to give them a reason to click. Choose a still from your video that is clear and high-quality– no blurry screenshots please! Showcase the main subject right away: usually this will be a person (the artist) or an interesting visual that serves as the focal point. 

You want people to quickly understand what the video is going to be about. Attention spans are getting shorter, so be smart about making a good first impression! Video thumbnails with vibrant colors and contrast are usually more effective in grabbing the users attention. 

2. Optimize your Shorts titles and hashtags

When uploading your Shorts, pay attention to the titles, descriptions, and hashtags to optimize them for best results. Use relevant keywords, including genre, artist name, and relevant descriptors, to ensure that your content appears in relevant searches and recommendations. 

This will increase the chances of your Shorts being discovered by viewers interested in your style of music.

3. Keep what works, throw away what doesn’t

The best way to take advantage of YouTube Shorts is to keep what works and throw away what doesn’t. Essentially, this means testing out different Shorts and analyzing the performance of your videos. 

Which of your Shorts got the most views and why? Was it the thumbnail that worked well? Or the type of content? Pay attention to the click-through rates and viewer retention metrics to identify what works best for you. 

Once you figure out what type of content works best for your Shorts, you can upload consistent videos to strengthen your visual identity and branding. This helps establish a cohesive and professional image for your artist channel!

4. Engage with your community

Don’t forget to engage with your community by responding to comments and finding other Shorts that you like. Encourage them to subscribe to your channel or your Spotify page to keep up to date on new releases. Share a link to your music website where they can buy CDs or other merch. 

To make the most out of YouTube Shorts, you should learn how the platform works by discovering other artists creating content you find interesting. You can even take inspiration from them for your own videos or collaborate on a Short together! Try out some remixes of music by other YouTube creators, or asking fellow songwriters to write lyrics for your instrumental beats.

5. Don’t just follow what’s trending, find out what makes you authentic

It’s easy to follow trends nowadays and potentially go viral. It’s smart to do so, but make sure that you are also creating content that is authentic and will keep people coming back for more. 

Give your viewers a reason to get off of YouTube Shorts and go listen to your music catalog out of the millions of songs available to them. 

Usually this happens through the art of good storytelling: by conveying a unique universe and strong moods, you can invite the audience into your world. This is mostly done with visuals, but also through the music itself.