How to Capture and Keep Attention with YouTube Shorts: A Cheat Sheet for Creators
YouTube Shorts are a great way to reach new audiences, grow your subscriber base, and drive attention to your long-form videos. Here are three key YouTube Shorts engagement tips you need to grow your channel, broaden your audience, and skyrocket channel growth.
While Shorts themselves don’t pay creators much, that doesn’t mean they’re not worth the effort. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to inject new life into your channel, mastering the art of YouTube Shorts can be your ticket to new heights. In this guide, we’ll explore essential strategies to not only grab but also maintain viewer attention, ensuring your short-form content makes a lasting impact.
YouTube Shorts Engagement Tip: You Need a Hook
The opening seconds of your YouTube Short can make or break the viewer’s decision to keep watching. Here’s how you can make those seconds count:
- Curiosity: Kick off your video with a question, a surprising fact, or a bold statement. This can intrigue viewers and make them eager to see what comes next. For instance, start with “What if I told you that you’ve been using hashtags all wrong?” This immediately grabs attention and sets the stage for valuable insights.
- Emotion: Human beings are driven by emotions. Your intro should aim to evoke feelings like excitement, joy, or even outrage. A video that begins with a powerful, emotional statement can connect instantly, making viewers feel invested right from the start.
- Relevance: Make sure your video speaks directly to the interests of your audience. If your channel is about DIY crafts, a video that starts with “The easiest way to create stunning home decor in under 1 minute” can be highly appealing because it’s both practical and relevant to your viewers.
Not sure where to start? Here are 28 powerful YouTube Shorts hooks to get you started.
YouTube Shorts Engagement Tip: Shorts Should be… Short
Trim the Fluff. “Kill your darlings.” Keep your content sharp and engaging.
In YouTube Shorts and short-form video in general, every second counts. If you start your short video by saying some variation on “hey guys,” you’re probably doing it wrong.
Here’s how to trim the fluff and keep your content streamlined and punchy:
- Avoid Filler: Stay away from lengthy intros or rambling. Get to the point quickly. The faster you can deliver your core message, the less likely viewers are to swipe away.
- Distraction Test: This editing trick can be a game changer. While reviewing your video, surround yourself with potential distractions. If your video still holds your attention in that setting, it’s likely to captivate your audience as well. This helps ensure that your content is engaging enough to compete with the myriad of distractions viewers face.
YouTube Engagement Tip: Mix it Up
While it’s crucial to have a clear focus or niche, offering a variety of content types can keep your audience coming back for more. As Jon Youshaei put it: “marry your niche while you’re varying your format.”
- Variety is Key: Think of your YouTube channel as an ice cream shop. Everyone who comes through the door is there for the same basic thing but no two orders are exactly alike. Just as customers might enjoy different flavors, your viewers will appreciate diverse types of videos — all within your niche. If you’re a fitness guru, mix up workout videos with diet tips and personal fitness journeys.
- Experiment with Series: Launch different series under your channel to see what resonates best with your audience. After posting a few videos in each series, gauge the response. If a particular series is a hit, keep it going; if not, it might be time to try something new.
YouTube Shorts is an exciting platform that offers vast opportunities for growth and engagement. By crafting irresistible intros, eliminating unnecessary fluff, and continuously delivering fresh and relevant content, you can significantly enhance your channel’s appeal and viewer retention.
Remember, success on YouTube is not just about attracting viewers — it’s about captivating them so profoundly that they can’t help but come back for more. Start implementing these strategies today, and watch your YouTube journey take off!
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Genius way to BLOW UP on YouTube Shorts: Video Transcript
00:00
I have gained hundreds of thousands of followers and millions of views with short form content and if you want to do the exact same thing all you need to know are these three simple steps number one you need to have irresistible intros the first three seconds of your YouTube shorts matter the most YouTube even shows you how many people viewed your video or swiped away follow this formula curiosity plus emotion plus relevance curiosity the goal is to spark curiosity you do this by asking a question challenging a belief or calling someone
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out here’s an example to watch the reason why your clothes don’t last and look like this is simple you’re breaking one of these three rules the Curiosity component was the three things and if your clothes look that way well it’s due to one of three reasons which he’s going to tell you emotion whether it’s Joy shock or rage if you can evoke an emotion in someone they are immediately hooked just like this example don’t make this mistake when you’re working on your own happiness she said the emotion right
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away in the video it’s happening us relevance the goal of making a video relevant is so the audience knows you are creating content that is relevant for them this video right here is a great example of that here’s a new trendy way to make your favorite sushi at home I call it a California fold a video teaching you how to make sushi at home if you’re someone who wants to make recipes at home cook at home or do anything with food at home that’s the channel for you there’s multiple ways to achieving a successful hook you just
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have to find what’s best for you number two is what I call trimming the fluff one of the biggest issues creators face is having too much fluff on their videos that’s causing them to lose views watch this video Hey so uh welcome to the video welcome to the video today uh we’re going to talk about how you can get more subscribers on your YouTube channel and um I’m going to share with you boring it’s taking way too long to get into the content and you’re going to lose people now watch this video do this if you want
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to get your first thousand YouTube subscribers in less than 30 days better whether it’s leaving filler words in on the video or taking too long to get into the content you’re going to lose people’s attention and they’re going to find something else to watch remove the filler words pauses or cut anything that might cause someone to lose their attention here’s another trick you can use when it comes to trimming the fluff on your videos I learned this one from Hayden Smith from the editing podcast
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who has edited for Logan Paul yes Theory and Mr Beast it’s called the distraction test ever done the distraction test this is something that I do where it’s I get every single potential distraction possible and so when I’m going for a video I’ll get my phone in front of me I’ll get my tablet in front of me I’ll get a book that I am avoiding reading in front of me I get my cat in front of me and then the second I want to pet my cat I want to look at my phone I get a notification I’m interested or finally
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I’m gonna pick up that book that I’ve been avoiding in all those months something’s wrong here number three content flavors John you shy said it best marry your Niche while you’re varying your format one thing you need to stay true to is your Niche that doesn’t mean however you need to live in a box think of your channel like a variety show you could have talking head Style videos clips from long form YouTube videos podcast Clips interview Clips better yet think of it like this your YouTube channel needs to be like an
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ice cream shop when your viewers go to your ice cream shop there are many flavors for them to choose from your ice cream shop can be whatever your channel is about whether that’s fishing cooking gaming whatever that is let’s look at some examples if you’re a cooking show you can show tutorial Style videos collaborative Style videos or outlandish and explorative style videos if you’re a Finnish Channel like my buddy Marcus you can do sit down talks you could do in the kitchen nutrition tips and you could
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do exercise demonstrations all different flavors but at the end of the day the ice cream shop or whatever their channel is about is serving the audience the exact content that they want decide on three series or flavors for your channel Post 10 videos from each of these if after 10 videos you want to remove one and add a different style go for it if all three are performing really well keep going but I’m curious to hear from you and let me know in the comments below tell me the three series that you’re going to create for your channel
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so we can all go check out your channel if you haven’t already hit the Subscribe button or smash it or whatever thing kids are into nowadays I don’t know and I will see you in the next video but before you leave check out this video I shared some secret websites that’ll help grow your small YouTube channel I’ll see you there
by TubeBuddy as part of