P2Syndrome
Member
Not sure if this is the right place to put this but: What's your audience retention? Mine is around 30% and I was wondering if that's below average or what, I do make longer videos so I'm thinking that might affect it...
What's your average audience retention?
- Thread starter P2Syndrome
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P2Syndrome
Member
But isn't retention kinda the same as watch time? I just like looking at the percentage because the watch time can fluctuate depending on if you have videos that are 1 minute and videos that are 13 minutes.
Therealkojr
Loving YTtalk
My average view retention is about 20% while my average watch time is about one minute and thirty seconds.
You have a good point here. I've never thought about it like this but yeah. Since my videos do fluctuate in the length the retention would probably be a better stat for me.
You have a good point here. I've never thought about it like this but yeah. Since my videos do fluctuate in the length the retention would probably be a better stat for me.
The NotARubicon!
NotARubicon Productions
I asked this same question a week or two ago - be careful because the know-it-alls will come in, ignore your question, tell you that you should pay no attention to audience-retention, and write a book on something else that has nothing to do with your question.
I too wanted to know how much people were watching of my videos, and drilling down to see where they were getting bored (even though the "experts" here posted that this does not matter, blah blah).. True, there ARE more important metrics, but that does not mean we should ignore this one.
My Average Percentage Viewed for the last 365 days is 56%, last 90 days, 53%, last 30 days 50%
I too wanted to know how much people were watching of my videos, and drilling down to see where they were getting bored (even though the "experts" here posted that this does not matter, blah blah).. True, there ARE more important metrics, but that does not mean we should ignore this one.
My Average Percentage Viewed for the last 365 days is 56%, last 90 days, 53%, last 30 days 50%
Crown
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Moved to the YT forum.
As mentioned above, the % amount isn't what is important, otherwise, you could just make a 10 second video and get close to 100% ^^
It's the absolute watch time that is important and videos are compared with videos that are similar length and from a similar topic.
As mentioned above, the % amount isn't what is important, otherwise, you could just make a 10 second video and get close to 100% ^^
It's the absolute watch time that is important and videos are compared with videos that are similar length and from a similar topic.
JesusGreen
Posting Mad!
Mine's 42% but as others have said, your retention times are not so important.
They are a good indicator - higher retention times means you're making engaging content that is keeping people watching, but don't be too concerned about them, as they're not what is important to the algorithm.
The algorithm cares about the total watch time you're generating - and that doesn't just go for your own videos, but also the length of their whole session on YouTube. If your video sends someone off to binge watch for the next 3 hours, YouTube likes that. If on the other hand someone watches your whole video but then leaves YouTube, that's something that the algorithm doesn't like.
That said, where the retention stats are quite useful is in determining what strategies to use for keeping your videos engaging. If you look on the retention screen, you should see a list of all your videos. If you take a look at the ones with a high % used, first check how many views they have - if the view number is low compared to your other videos, ignore this video since your retention figures can be dramatically higher or lower than normal when you don't have that many views yet.
If the view number is comparable to your other videos or higher, then the retention number is good. If the retention number is good, and particularly high, then you should examine that video and see what things you did differently to make the video engaging. It may be the video subject, it could be something you did in editing, or it could just be how entertaining you were - but learn from that video and apply some of it in future videos.
They are a good indicator - higher retention times means you're making engaging content that is keeping people watching, but don't be too concerned about them, as they're not what is important to the algorithm.
The algorithm cares about the total watch time you're generating - and that doesn't just go for your own videos, but also the length of their whole session on YouTube. If your video sends someone off to binge watch for the next 3 hours, YouTube likes that. If on the other hand someone watches your whole video but then leaves YouTube, that's something that the algorithm doesn't like.
That said, where the retention stats are quite useful is in determining what strategies to use for keeping your videos engaging. If you look on the retention screen, you should see a list of all your videos. If you take a look at the ones with a high % used, first check how many views they have - if the view number is low compared to your other videos, ignore this video since your retention figures can be dramatically higher or lower than normal when you don't have that many views yet.
If the view number is comparable to your other videos or higher, then the retention number is good. If the retention number is good, and particularly high, then you should examine that video and see what things you did differently to make the video engaging. It may be the video subject, it could be something you did in editing, or it could just be how entertaining you were - but learn from that video and apply some of it in future videos.
P2Syndrome
Member
Wow, all this is actually pretty interesting. I wasn't aiming to get people talking about the algorithm and all that but what you're saying does make sense. You kinda explained how you should look at analytics which is something I've been trying to figure out myself. Thank you!
David Perez
I've Got It
Mine is very few but i really appreciate on the 5 people who watch my videos