While new social media continue to appear on the market, YouTube is the giant par excellence of the video format. In recent years, TikTok has become its fiercest competition. That is why a year and a half ago the platform introduced YouTube Shorts, a format very similar to that of its competitors. Now it is preparing for the big news: from the beginning of next year, creators who are part of the YouTube Partner Programme will also start earning money from Shorts ads.
Shorts is the part of YouTube where you can record, share and watch as many short-format videos – maximum of 60 seconds.
The short format saw the light of day on YouTube in 2021. According to Statista, the platform has more than 30 billion total views per day this year. This makes it very attractive for both creators and brands.
Did you know? The first ever video uploaded to YouTube was only 18 seconds long. It was 2005 and the format was, of course, horizontal. In a way, we can say that YouTube Shorts was the genesis of the platform!
Until now, creators using Shorts have been able to monetize their content through shopping links. The aim is to replicate the classic model of long YouTube videos to the short format as well. In that model, the platform keeps 45 percent of the earnings generated through the display of ads, while the creator gets 55 percent.
What is certain is that the short model has more challenges than the long one. 72% of videos in the Shorts format are between 16 and 60 seconds long. A user certainly cannot watch Shorts and then be exposed to an advertisement. That would be too boring. Therefore, advertisements would only be displayed after a certain number of short videos. So the revenue from one ad would probably have to be divided among several creators.
Brands should already be prepared for this novelty. At the beginning of 2023, it will therefore be possible to place their own ads on the YouTube shorts format, and we are certain that the number of creators present will grow even more. With them, the exposure to these videos will grow, and thus the notoriety a brand can gain from them.
YouTube Shorts also applies well to collaborating with influencers and product sponsorship.
Would you like to learn more about this topic and how to collaborate with influencers?