Why you should NOT start YouTube Shorts (beware)

TL;DR

Starting YouTube Shorts may hurt a channel built for long-form content because Shorts subscribers can watch only a few seconds of longer videos, weakening average view duration and distribution. The creator reports earning about 8 cents per 1,000 Shorts views and estimates that a channel promoted as making $41,000 monthly would make about $480 if monetized. Read on to understand the revenue gap and audience mismatch.

Transcript

this video claims that this YouTube shorts channel is making up to $41,000 a month but it's not what you think you're led to believe that making YouTube shorts can be a cash cow just like any long form YouTube channel but after looking into the channel that he uses to hook your attention I realized that this channel is actually not even monetized h... Read More

Key Insights

• 🍰 Monetized YouTube shorts channels earn around $480 per month, contrary to exaggerated claims of earning up to $41,000.
• 🫵 Viral YouTube shorts often manipulate facts and statistics to attract viewers, potentially misleading aspiring creators.
• 😘 Mixing YouTube shorts and long-form content can lead to challenges such as lower viewer engagement and algorithmic disinclination.
• 🫵 Short-form content viewers have shorter attention spans and may not consume long-form content, leading to decreased average view duration.
• 🍰 The promotion of YouTube shorts by some channels may serve their own financial interests while neglecting to disclose potential risks to aspiring creators.
• 🫵 Channels that primarily focus on long-form content may experience difficulties gaining views and engagement on YouTube shorts.
• 🍰 Some successful YouTube shorts creators, such as MD motivator, have a significant difference in engagement between their shorts and long-form content.

Questions & Answers

Q: Why should creators be cautious about starting YouTube Shorts?

The creator argues that Shorts can produce far less revenue than inflated online estimates suggest and can attract viewers who do not engage with long-form videos. In his experience, those subscribers watched only a few seconds of longer uploads, contributing to an average view duration of about 20% and weaker distribution.

Q: How much can a monetized YouTube Shorts channel earn?

The creator says his monetized Shorts channel pays about 8 cents per 1,000 views, and other Shorts creators he has spoken with report roughly the same. Based on that rate, he estimates that the featured channel would earn about $480 per month if it were monetized, not the advertised figure of up to $41,000.

Q: Was the channel claimed to earn up to $41,000 per month actually monetized?

No. After investigating the channel used to support the earnings claim, the creator says he found that it was not monetized.

Q: Can mixing YouTube Shorts and long-form videos hurt a channel?

According to the creator’s experience, mixing the formats attracted two different audiences: viewers seeking roughly 30-second content and viewers willing to watch about 10 minutes. Shorts subscribers then watched only a small portion of his long-form uploads, which hurt average view duration.

Q: How did YouTube Shorts affect the creator’s path to monetization?

Several Shorts went viral, with one receiving a couple million views and a few hundred subscribers. This helped the channel gain approval for monetization within 60 days, but the creator later struggled to move that audience to long-form content.

Q: Why did the creator’s long-form videos stop getting stronger distribution?

The creator says his click-through rate was above 10%, but his average view duration was only about 20%. Because Shorts-derived subscribers watched just a few seconds, he believes YouTube interpreted the weak initial response as a sign not to show the videos to a larger audience.

Q: How did the creator’s Shorts performance compare with his long-form performance?

An early long-form upload initially received 19 views in its first week, while an early Short earned a few thousand views. Later, one long-form video reached 120,000 views, while a Short posted during the same week received a couple million views and brought in a few hundred subscribers.

Q: Why did the creator prioritize long-form content despite viral Shorts?

He believed long-form content would generate more AdSense revenue. One long-form video had a CPM above $10, and he estimates it would have earned about $11,000 if the channel had been monetized at the time.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The video claims that YouTube shorts can earn creators up to $41,000 a month, but upon investigation, it is revealed that this figure is greatly exaggerated.

• The reality is that monetized YouTube shorts channels can expect to earn around $480 per month, based on the owner's personal experience and conversations with other creators.

• The viral nature of YouTube shorts often twists facts to attract more viewers, showcasing the potential pitfalls for aspiring creators who may invest time, money, and self-esteem into the platform.