YouTube has reported that its short-form video content platform YouTube Shorts clocks 1.5 billion engaged users per month and has counted 5 trillion all-time views since its launch, which is incredible news for marketers and content creators alike.
YouTube Shorts is YouTube’s answer to TikTok and Reels and is quickly becoming one of the major players in the short-form video industry by effectively using its existing expertise of being the primary video-sharing platform in existence.
YouTube reported that 2 billion users were using the platform in April 2022, meaning that 75% of all YouTube users are consistently logging into the Shorts platform to engage with the content.
So how did YouTube manage to get so much traction among creators to use the platform to host their content and generate so much interest for the public? Last year, YouTube announced a $100 million Shorts Fund, which was used to pay content creators who made videos that generated high levels of engagement to the platform.
The thinking behind this was to turbocharge the growth of Shorts to catch up to the rapidly expanding TikTok.
Since then, YouTube has naturally experienced some loss in revenue due to not having any framework in place to monetize the short-form content at the same rate that they do on the traditional longer-form platform.
This is where it gets exciting for marketers - YouTube has now announced that they have started testing monetization on Shorts with advertiser feedback and results being promising so far.
However, the monetization structure appears to be slightly different to the traditional ad placement and media buying that marketers are used to.
“In the coming months, we’ll start to test other ways to make money on Shorts — like exploring new ways for Shorts creators to build branded content through BrandConnect, integrating fan-funded features like Super Chat into Shorts, and bringing the ability to shop directly from a Short.” Announced Neil Mohan, YouTube’s Chief Product Officer.
This is massive news for both content creators and marketers and creates a valuable opportunity for both to work together to generate high revenue and results.
