As bite-sized content rises in popularity, YouTube has hopped on the trend by introducing YouTube Shorts. These short-form, vertical videos are 60 seconds or less. You can capture, edit, add text and sound, adjust the speed of your footage, and stitch together multiple video clips to create your Shorts, all from your smartphone.
Once viewers tap into a Short, they can scroll to watch more of them — a lot like a TikTok feed. A visible Subscribe button on each Short means YouTubers can pull in subscribers through Shorts, too.
While YouTube first launched Shorts to compete with TikTok, Shorts have since completely changed the way users interact with the platform, and have become one of the best discovery vehicles on YouTube. As of early 2024, Shorts have crossed 70 billion daily views.
Wondering how to use YouTube Shorts? Read on to learn how you can create them and make them go viral.
How to make YouTube Shorts
You can create YouTube shorts by uploading vertical videos from your computer or smartphone, or recording directly on the YouTube app. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to create and upload YouTube Shorts.
Step 1: Sign in to the YouTube app.
Step 2: When you land on the homepage, hit the + icon (also known as the Create tab) on the bottom menu. Then, select Create a Short to access the Shorts creation tool.
Step 3: To make a 15-second clip, hold the red record button or tap it to start recording and then again to stop.
Step 4: Click 15s in the upper-right corner to switch between 15 and 60-second videos. You can stop recording at any time.
Step 5: If you made a mistake, tap the reverse arrow to undo the previous video clip you recorded. Tap the forward arrow (or Redo button) to add it back.
Step 6: When you’ve finished recording, tap the checkmark to preview and enhance your Short. You can also tap the Close button in the upper-left corner, then Save as draft if you want to revisit your video later.
Step 7: Add music, text, voiceover, and filters to your video using YouTube Shorts’ in-app editor. Tap the timeline icon to specify when text appears on the video timeline.
Step 8: When you’re done editing, tap Next in the bottom-right corner. Caption/title your Short (max. 100 characters) and select if you want the video to be public, unlisted, or private. Under Visibility, you can tap Schedule to select a publish date and time for your Short.
Step 9: Tap Select audience to indicate if your Short is appropriate for kids or requires an age restriction.
Step 10: Finally, tap Upload Short to publish your Short.
How to make YouTube Shorts go viral
Want to reach a wider audience and achieve viral success through YouTube Shorts? Keep these tips in mind when you create YouTube Shorts:
- Give it an attractive title
- Make the first few seconds count
- Create the perfect loop
- Re-hook your audience
- Create consistently
- Use relevant hashtags
- Post your Shorts at the right time
Tip 1: Give it an attractive title
Optimizing the title/caption of your Short is just as important as making the video itself engaging. Think about how you can use the title as a hook to keep viewers watching your Short until its end.
This is something you’ll need to experiment with, since different kinds of language work for different audiences. That said, it’s a good idea to keep your title short and punchy and use words that resonate with your audience.
Tip 2: Make the first few seconds count
Come up with a compelling hook to get your viewers’ attention within the first few seconds of your video. Avoid clickbait, though! Nothing makes a viewer swipe to the next YouTube Short faster than a clickbait video. It’s a great idea to brainstorm a few hooks before filming your Short, and to make sure you experiment with different kinds of hooks across your videos.
Tip 3: Create the perfect loop
YouTube Shorts are played on a loop by default. This means that if the viewer doesn’t swipe to the next Short video, they will see the same Short again for the second time, or even more times. A perfect loop will help make your Shorts look crisper. When filming and editing a Short, try to create a seamless loop to encourage multiple views.
Tip 4: Re-hook your audience
It isn’t enough to just create a strong hook for the beginning portion of your Short. Despite the short length of the video, you need to keep viewers engaged throughout its duration. Ideally, you should aim to re-hook your audience every three to five seconds, whether with a trending sound, text, or other visuals.
Tip 5: Create consistently
Whenever a new platform — or a feature like YouTube Shorts — gets released, content creators will pour themselves into testing it out and figuring out how they can make it a part of their strategy. But all too often, these creators give up after a few attempts that don’t go far.
If you really want to go viral with Shorts, you have to create them consistently. That can be one video a day or one a week, but just make sure you stick with them. That’s the only way you’ll start seeing results!
Tip 6: Use relevant hashtags
Hashtags are a great way to make your Shorts more discoverable, and they should definitely be part of your YouTube Shorts strategy. Do some research and see what hashtags top creators in your specific niche are using, or what hashtags are featured in viral videos at the moment, and include them in your content.
Tip 7: Post your Shorts at the right time
While there’s no hard-and-fast rule for the best time to post on YouTube Shorts, there are some general tips you can follow. According to research from HubSpot, most marketers post YouTube content between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m on Thursdays, Fridays, or Saturdays. That’s generally a good time to post.
But if you have a big enough audience, you can check YouTube Analytics to see when your subscribers are most likely to be on the platform. Make sure to post at those times for the best chance of going viral.
How to get ideas for YouTube Shorts
Need a little help coming up with video ideas? Follow these tips to get the creative juices flowing:
- Start with research
- Learn from the competition
- Create a series
- Jump on trending music
- Look out for other viral trends
- Try different types of content
- Turn longer YouTube content into Shorts
Tip 8: Start with research
What kind of YouTube Shorts content are creators in your niche making? How can you create Shorts that your audience will actually want to watch? How many of them should you post a week — or a day?
You should consider these questions before you whip out your phone and start filming your first Short. That’s because Shorts are a powerful boon to your channel when used right — but they won’t help you much if you use them wrong.
Tip 9: Learn from the competition
Ever heard the saying “great artists steal?” It’s been attributed to everyone from Russian composer Igor Stravinsky to Steve Jobs, but the full saying goes something like this: “Good artists copy, great artists steal.”
The difference? Copying would mean just taking what the competition’s doing and doing the exact same thing. “Stealing” means finding out what works and putting your own spin on it — injecting your own creativity into an established format or trend. Doing this should be an important part of your research.
Tip 10: Create a series
One-off Shorts are great, especially when they have a strong hook and the perfect loop. But do you know what’s even more engaging? A series of Shorts.
A series can keep your audience coming back for more, with a natural sequence that they can follow from one content piece to the next. By making your Shorts into a series, you can break down more complex topics into multiple bite-sized, short videos. And if you include something like “Part 1” in the video title, people will know they should keep checking in to see the rest of your series.
Tip 11: Jump on trending music
With YouTube Shorts’ built-in Sound tool, creators can add popular songs from major labels to their videos without getting penalized. Whenever appropriate, consider featuring trending music in your Shorts to improve their chances of going viral. Pick a song that matches closely with what your Short is about.
Tip 12: Look out for other viral trends
Besides trending music, keep an eye out for trending topics and viral video trends as well. Creating a great YouTube Shorts video inspired by a specific trend of the moment is a great way to attract new viewers. Just be careful not to blindly follow trends for the sake of keeping up with what’s in. When incorporating trends in your Shorts, be sure that they are relevant to your content in one way or another.
Tip 13: Try different types of content
Just because your YouTube channel is dedicated to your podcast doesn’t mean all your Shorts have to be clips of your longer content. Similarly, even if you’re a Let’s Play creator, that doesn’t mean every Short of yours has to be a snapshot of your best gaming moments.
No matter what kind of creator you are, there are many ways you can connect with your audience — and the rest of YouTube — with Shorts. Film behind-the-scenes content showing your setup or tidbits of your personal life. Summarize longer videos and link back to the original video. Share updates about your travels or any time off you take. Try different things and see what sticks.
Tip 14: Turn longer YouTube content into Shorts
Podcasters share clips from their episodes, creator educators share bite-sized lessons, and reaction channels highlight their most intense reactions. There are tons of ways to make a Short from a longer YouTube video. And if you’ve got a decent backlog of content, you’ll have a ton to work from. Pluck the best parts from your videos, turn them into 60-second long clips, and create Shorts that link back to the original content.
How to make YouTube Shorts part of your overall strategy
- Drive your audience to other content
- Use Shorts to boost views of your longer videos
- Promote your content
- Engage with other creators
Tip 15: Drive your audience to other content
Creating Shorts is one of the best ways to funnel people toward other types of content. Use pinned comments to direct viewers to additional content, like another Short that serves as a part two to the video, or your channel’s long-form content. Whatever you point viewers to, it’s easier to pull them in if there’s some kind of connection between the two pieces of content.
Tip 16: Use Shorts to boost views of your longer videos
One of the most popular ways to use Shorts is to share clips of longer videos. Whatever your channel is about, you can probably find awesome clips that you can turn into Shorts. By cleaning them up a bit, adding some captions, and making sure they have a nice loop, you can create a great piece of content that stands on its own, while pulling in viewers for your long-form content. You can also add a link to your Short that leads to a long-form video on your channel.
Tip 17: Promote your content
To get your Shorts in front of as many viewers as possible, make sure to promote your content on YouTube and beyond. You can share snippets of your Shorts on YouTube Stories, as well as on other social media platforms like Instagram Reels.
Tip 18: Engage with other creators
Too many creators think they’re on their own, and that any views their Shorts get have to come at the expense of another content creator, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. With YouTube Shorts getting billions of daily views, there are more than enough to go around. Collaborating with other creators is a great way to get your content in front of a different audience, which means more views for your videos!
How to keep your audience coming back with Shorts
- Avoid the “like-favorite-subscribe” script
- Prioritize your audience over trends
- Use YouTube Analytics to track your Shorts’ performance
Tip 19: Avoid the “like-favorite-subscribe” script
If you’ve been making YouTube videos for a while, you know the script by heart and automatically insert it as you’re filming. But while that might get results for longer videos, it doesn’t seem to have much of an impact for Shorts. So, spend those few precious seconds maximizing value for your viewers instead of trying to drive engagement.
Tip 20: Prioritize your audience over trends
While participating in trends is a great way to go viral and bring in more subscribers, jumping onto a trend shouldn’t come at the expense of your core audience.
If a trend falls entirely outside your niche, think carefully before you try to get in on it. Will creating something for that trend lead to content that’s valuable for your core audience? If not, are you comfortable with losing subscribers?
Following a trend risks alienating your audience since they expect you to create content catered to them, not future subscribers.
Tip 21: Use YouTube Analytics to track your Shorts’ performance
Did you know that all YouTubers have access to a free suite of robust analytics tools? They’ll tell you how many views you’re getting, which of your videos are performing best, and give you some insights into improving your content.
As you experiment with YouTube Shorts, be sure to review your analytics regularly to see how they’re contributing to your channel overall, as well as how they’re performing individually.
Stay ahead of the YouTube Shorts game
With the launch of YouTube’s ad revenue-sharing program for Shorts, the short-form video format is only going to get more traction. If you’re a content creator, now is the ideal time to start posting YouTube Shorts and get ahead of the curve.
With Shorts, you could have your content discovered by more viewers, get more subscribers on your channel, generate more YouTube engagement, and even unlock a new revenue stream — so start creating with our tips above.
How to make YouTube Shorts viral FAQ
How do YouTube Shorts go viral?
According to YouTube’s Creator Liaison Rene Ritchie, the algorithm “pulls videos for viewers” based on what it thinks they like most. So, your Shorts get in front of viewers if the content matches their interests and preferences. The more relevant the content of a Short video is to a viewer, the more it’ll be picked up by the algorithm and recommended to them.
How many views do YouTube Shorts need to be considered viral?
There’s no specific number that officially makes a Short viral, but we can ballpark it using some data. Creator marketing agency Exonia compiled a list of the 25 most viewed YouTube Shorts in 2022. Guess how many views you need to make it to #25? Over 300 million.
That doesn’t mean your Shorts won’t be considered viral if they don’t get that many views, but you’ll need at least a few million.
What is the best time to post on YouTube Shorts?
The best time to post is when your audience is scrolling through YouTube. Each audience is different, so the perfect time to post will vary for each creator, but there are some general guidelines you can follow.
More than half of marketers surveyed by HubSpot in 2023 said that the best time to post was between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. with only a few saying they’d post earlier. It’s also best to post between Thursday and Saturday. You can also check YouTube Analytics to see when your audience is usually swiping through YouTube.
How often do you need to post YouTube Shorts to go viral?
More often is better than less. If you can make a YouTube Short three to five times a day, you have better chances of making a viral one than if you only posted once a week. But the question is, do you have the bandwidth to create videos that often?
If YouTube is still just a side hustle for you, it doesn’t make sense to pour a ton of work into that many Shorts when there’s no guarantee that they’ll go viral. Rather than going for quantity, it’s better to take your time crafting quality, engaging content your audience will love. But if content creation is your full-time job, the more Shorts you can create, the better.
How can you use Shorts to grow your channel?
Because YouTube Shorts have strengths that your long-form videos don’t, they make a natural addition to your channel. Here are some of the best ways to use YouTube Shorts:
- For discovery: YouTube Shorts are displayed in their own endless scroll feed, giving you a better chance of reaching potential viewers.
- For experimentation: Making and publishing YouTube Shorts is a lot quicker than creating long YouTube videos. Use them to experiment with different editing styles and types of content.
- To promote other content: Because YouTube Shorts can reach a broad audience, they’re a natural promotion tool, whether you’re sharing clips of longer YouTube videos or promoting content from other platforms.
- Linking directly to long-form videos: You can add a direct link to a long-form YouTube video in a Short, so make sure to do that as much as possible.
Will Shorts impact my YouTube channel if they don’t do well?
No. In fact, it’s the other way around: channels that create both Shorts and longer videos grow faster than channels that don’t. That means there’s no downside to creating Shorts.
YouTube Shorts have their own algorithm, meaning that the performance of your long-form content won’t affect them either. Better yet, they help you qualify for the YouTube Partner Program so you can make bank.
Does having more subscribers help your Shorts go viral?
There’s no evidence that having a higher subscriber count will make your Shorts go viral, but it will likely help you get more views. After all, your subscribers will see your Shorts in their recommended feed, which will help give your videos extra attention.
What’s the best length for YouTube Shorts?
While YouTube itself hasn’t shared any official numbers, YouTube channel growth expert Paddy Galloway recently published a Twitter thread cataloging his findings after analyzing 3.3 billion Shorts views. According to Galloway, the ideal length for a YouTube Short (“ideal” meaning the length that’ll bring in the most views) is 50-60 seconds.
Does SEO matter for YouTube Shorts?
Yes! SEO (or search engine optimization) is absolutely important for YouTube Shorts. In this context, SEO is about making it easier for YouTube users to find your Shorts videos. Doing so could give your Shorts their best chance to get more views and go viral.
One of the things you can do to increase the visibility of a Short is to identify keywords that describe what it’s about. Feature those keywords in the title, description, and the actual video content. Additionally, use the keywords in your Short’s hashtags.
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Further reading
- How Does the YouTube Shorts Algorithm Work?
- YouTube Shorts SEO: 13 Effective Ways To Boost Your Reach
- What Is the Best Time to Post on YouTube Shorts?
- YouTube Shorts Monetization: How To Earn Ad Revenue With Short-Form Videos
- How To Create a YouTube Content Calendar (+ Free Template)
This article was originally published in November 2022, and updated in August 2024 with additional information.
