YouTubers United Podcast
Loving YTtalk
Good Morning/Evening/Night YTTalkers,
A big topic of dicussion right now is the new updates to the Youtube Algorithm, and it hasn't all been productive. Tristan and I couldn't stop talking about it, so we thought we'd share some of what we've learned with you.
As these changes affect us all (not just the big Tubers!), I wanted to skip past the drama, and talk about what the Algorithm means for us all. I'll be using insights from both YouTube gurus like Tim Schmoyer, Derral Eves, and Roberto Blake, but also from bigger YouTubers with lots of data, like Veritasium and Game Theorist.
Ok. Let's get into it!
This all started when H3H3 Productions and Pewdiepie started to complain that their view numbers were crashing, that viewers were being unsubscribed without wanting to, and that new videos weren't being seen on the home page.
This of course all culminated at the point when Pewdiepie threatened to delete his channel at 50 million subs.
Lots of people trashed him for this, but there was a legitimate, fundamental question below the threats:
Is is better to have a smaller, but active subscriber base? Is he hurt by his inflated sub count? And secondarily, is YouTube still dedicated to minutes watched?
And now some others have chimed in on these changes and what we all can do. Let's start with the YouTube Experts.
1) Tim Schmoyer
Tim was pretty 'classic Tim' in saying that you should be developing your channel with a specific audience in mind. In this way, you 'Algorithm Proof' your channel from changes in YouTube's structure.
He wasn't too specific with data, so let's move right along...
2) Roberto Blake
Roberto Blake was also 'classic Roberto'. His version of 'alorithm proofing' your channel involves titles, tags, and a general focus on SEO. He always has lots of good insight into SEO but this wasn't his most helpful post in regards to the algorithm. (check him out anyways)
Now let's get into some Tubers who actually provided some data driven insight....
3) Derral Eves
Derral showed the analytics of some of the million+sub channels he consults and showed some startling trends. At every new upload, there was a peak of lost subscribers. though he didn't offer any solutions, he did show with some concrete data that something has changed, and expressed frustration that YouTube was either hiding the changes or were unaware.
4) Veritasium
Veritasium isn't a Youtube Expert (other than the expertise that goes along with growing a large channel), but I think he had one of the most down to earth explanations for all the changes.
He reminded us all that YouTube's #1 priority is minutes watched. It's ice cold of them, but the people at youtube dont care if your channel grows or dies, their priority is getting people to stay on youtube longer, and simply serving people videos from people theyve subscribed to has resulted in less watch time than mixing it up on the home page. That means Youtube will always focus on the new and the shiny, the well polished and the professional.
Minutes watched is all that matters and if youtube isnt serving your content it means you weren't serving their bottom line purpose!
5) The Game Theorist
The game theorist provided insights he drew from the various channels he operates. Similar to Veritasium, he expressed the underlying goal of Youtube is minutes watched, but with an important addition:
Look at Pewdiepie, as a daily uploader, he should be (and was) the biggest beneficiary of the pure minutes watched algorithm. So why the change now?
And the answer, he theorizes, is a new combination of minutes watched and daily active engagement. In other words, are people coming back for your content every single day?
In this, he says the Pewdiepies and the H3H3s will have more problems in the future as they attempt to compete with the Late Shows, the Daily Shows, and Ellen for space on the youtube home page. In conclusion, the YouTube treadmill is speeding up for us all.
Moral of the story:
There has been a change, but no one knows for sure what it is. We do know that people are being unsubbed at the time of uploads. We also know that some smaller channels (myself included) have benefited since the changes took place.
What can you do? First, upload often, but not so often that people get unengaged from you. That means, super high quality uploads as often as you can. Second, take the advice of Tim and Roberto: 'algorithm proof' your channel by focusing on a specific audience, working SEO, and bulding an authentic community.
So, have you benefited or suffered since the change?
A big topic of dicussion right now is the new updates to the Youtube Algorithm, and it hasn't all been productive. Tristan and I couldn't stop talking about it, so we thought we'd share some of what we've learned with you.
As these changes affect us all (not just the big Tubers!), I wanted to skip past the drama, and talk about what the Algorithm means for us all. I'll be using insights from both YouTube gurus like Tim Schmoyer, Derral Eves, and Roberto Blake, but also from bigger YouTubers with lots of data, like Veritasium and Game Theorist.
Ok. Let's get into it!
This all started when H3H3 Productions and Pewdiepie started to complain that their view numbers were crashing, that viewers were being unsubscribed without wanting to, and that new videos weren't being seen on the home page.
This of course all culminated at the point when Pewdiepie threatened to delete his channel at 50 million subs.
Lots of people trashed him for this, but there was a legitimate, fundamental question below the threats:
Is is better to have a smaller, but active subscriber base? Is he hurt by his inflated sub count? And secondarily, is YouTube still dedicated to minutes watched?
And now some others have chimed in on these changes and what we all can do. Let's start with the YouTube Experts.
1) Tim Schmoyer
Tim was pretty 'classic Tim' in saying that you should be developing your channel with a specific audience in mind. In this way, you 'Algorithm Proof' your channel from changes in YouTube's structure.
He wasn't too specific with data, so let's move right along...
2) Roberto Blake
Roberto Blake was also 'classic Roberto'. His version of 'alorithm proofing' your channel involves titles, tags, and a general focus on SEO. He always has lots of good insight into SEO but this wasn't his most helpful post in regards to the algorithm. (check him out anyways)
Now let's get into some Tubers who actually provided some data driven insight....
3) Derral Eves
Derral showed the analytics of some of the million+sub channels he consults and showed some startling trends. At every new upload, there was a peak of lost subscribers. though he didn't offer any solutions, he did show with some concrete data that something has changed, and expressed frustration that YouTube was either hiding the changes or were unaware.
4) Veritasium
Veritasium isn't a Youtube Expert (other than the expertise that goes along with growing a large channel), but I think he had one of the most down to earth explanations for all the changes.
He reminded us all that YouTube's #1 priority is minutes watched. It's ice cold of them, but the people at youtube dont care if your channel grows or dies, their priority is getting people to stay on youtube longer, and simply serving people videos from people theyve subscribed to has resulted in less watch time than mixing it up on the home page. That means Youtube will always focus on the new and the shiny, the well polished and the professional.
Minutes watched is all that matters and if youtube isnt serving your content it means you weren't serving their bottom line purpose!
5) The Game Theorist
The game theorist provided insights he drew from the various channels he operates. Similar to Veritasium, he expressed the underlying goal of Youtube is minutes watched, but with an important addition:
Look at Pewdiepie, as a daily uploader, he should be (and was) the biggest beneficiary of the pure minutes watched algorithm. So why the change now?
And the answer, he theorizes, is a new combination of minutes watched and daily active engagement. In other words, are people coming back for your content every single day?
In this, he says the Pewdiepies and the H3H3s will have more problems in the future as they attempt to compete with the Late Shows, the Daily Shows, and Ellen for space on the youtube home page. In conclusion, the YouTube treadmill is speeding up for us all.
Moral of the story:
There has been a change, but no one knows for sure what it is. We do know that people are being unsubbed at the time of uploads. We also know that some smaller channels (myself included) have benefited since the changes took place.
What can you do? First, upload often, but not so often that people get unengaged from you. That means, super high quality uploads as often as you can. Second, take the advice of Tim and Roberto: 'algorithm proof' your channel by focusing on a specific audience, working SEO, and bulding an authentic community.
So, have you benefited or suffered since the change?
