By Michael Keenan
Improving Social Media
May 28, 2023
14-minute read
What is the YouTube Algorithm?
The YouTube algorithm is a set of coded instructions designed to process videos and related content such as comments, descriptions, interactions, and more, with the aim of ranking and recommending videos based on relevance and viewer satisfaction.
How Does the YouTube Algorithm Work in 2023?
The YouTube algorithm aims to help its users find the most relevant content in the easiest way possible. The overall goal of YouTube is to increase customer retention and keep them watching videos for as long as possible.
Since 2015, YouTube has been improving viewer satisfaction. This is done by conducting surveys of users while they watch content to see how they really feel about it, and to help the algorithm recommend the most satisfying content.
But how does YouTube determine satisfaction? It sends out millions of surveys every month – although users may see only two or three – asking for feedback on a specific video. It pays attention to the moments when users click the “not interested” option on videos. It looks at the number of likes, dislikes, and shares on the video.
This scientific research, published by Google engineers Paul Covington, Jay Adams, and Emre Sargin, details the additional signals that YouTube uses to rank videos for recommendations: click-through rate (the likelihood of someone clicking on the video after seeing it), watch time (the total time viewers spend watching videos), the number of videos a user has watched from your channel, when the user watched a video on the same topic in the past, what the user has searched for in the past, what videos the user has watched in the past, user demographic information, and location.
The first three signals are the only ones you can directly influence. The rest of the signals depend on factors outside your channel for personalization of the recommendation.
These Google engineers even state that their ultimate goal in ranking is “a generally simple function of the expected watch time per impression. The ranking boosts the click-through rate of misleading videos that users do not complete (clickbait videos) while capturing watch time participation much better.”
Where Recommended Videos Appear
There are two main places where YouTube users will see recommended videos: on the homepage and while watching other videos. These videos are recommended using the YouTube algorithm, but the algorithm operates differently in each of these places.
Homepage
When you go to the YouTube site or open the mobile app, you’ll land directly on the homepage. Here, YouTube aims to provide the most personalized and suggested recommendations for each user, enticing them and trying to keep them on the app for as long as possible.
The videos on the homepage are based on two criteria: video performance: how similar viewers enjoyed the video, and personalization: your viewing habits and history.
Suggested Videos
The suggested videos section appears in the right sidebar next to the video you are currently watching (or below the video you are currently watching if you are using the mobile app).
These videos are based on your viewing history during this session and the algorithm’s recommendations based on what it thinks you will watch next. The criteria include: videos watched together, videos on the same topic, and videos you have watched in the past.
How to Improve Your Reach on YouTube
1. Stick to a consistent idea or format for your YouTube videos
Most great channels on YouTube can be summed up in five seconds: First We Feast: celebrities and food, Blendtec’s Will it Blend?: blending something that shouldn’t be blended, Vox: newsworthy topics explained in a simple and engaging way.
On the other hand, many channels and content creators on YouTube struggle to gain an audience because they treat their YouTube channel as a place to upload all their video content, rather than as a place for a consistent video series.
Continuity
is the foundation for success on YouTube – without it, you may attract attention, but you won’t be able to maintain it. YouTube content creators who find their continuity can increase their subscribers and views, as it makes it easy for people to decide to watch more of their content and subscribe to their channel.
The First We Feast channel embodies the type of continuity we are talking about – celebrities eating food – with a multi-part series that fundamentally relies on the same idea.
If you want to deviate from the core idea, it’s best to do so on a separate YouTube channel to avoid undermining your own efforts. For example, First We Feast is owned by Complex, which focuses on different things and a different target audience. The channels are connected under the Featured Channels label, but they don’t really overlap.
To ease the posting process, you can find free video editing software that allows you to upload videos to your channel with one click. You won’t have to waste time uploading and downloading files, and you can publish videos quickly and consistently.
2. Feed the recommendation engine with other sources
New YouTube channels cannot rely solely on the recommendation engine to increase their views. Recommendations primarily depend on how viewers have watched and interacted with your videos in the past. YouTube needs data to base recommendations on, and there are no data without people watching your videos. So, engage in all the usual efforts to promote your videos, such as: sending new videos to your email list, collaborating with press or other influencers, promoting your videos on social media, and starting your affiliate YouTube marketing program.
But also focus on improving your YouTube ranking and increasing your subscriber count, not only to attract video views in the long run, but also because what users frequently consume on the platform and what they subscribe to are key signals that the YouTube algorithm uses to provide personalized recommendations.
In research, engineers point out that “the most important signals are those that describe the user’s previous interaction with the item itself and similar other items. For example, consider the user’s past history with the channel that uploaded the video being recorded – how many videos has the user watched from this channel? When was the last time the user watched a video on this topic?”
If you can get a new user to keep watching more content after clicking on one of your videos, you can increase the chances of recommending your videos to them the next time they open YouTube.
3. Create clickable thumbnails
We have confirmed that the click-through rate is still important and that YouTube prioritizes watch time as a preventive measure against low-quality clickbait titles.
So now let’s talk about the obvious – optimizing the click-through rate – using fantastic sources of inspiration for clickable thumbnails: trending YouTube videos and Netflix.
Incorporate expressive faces or action shots in your thumbnails
Look around on YouTube and you’ll see plenty of very expressive faces on video thumbnails.
According to a pioneering study by Netflix on the performance of artwork on the platform, “emotions are an effective means of conveying complex details. It is well known that humans are naturally programmed to respond to faces – we have seen this apply across all media. But it is important to note that faces with complex emotions outperform neutral or silent expressions.”
One of the early trends Netflix noticed, which deserves to be maintained in your thumbnails, is that the opportunity for an image to win over another increases when it features more than three people.
You can
Improve your thumbnails to increase click-through rates by including one to three faces that express emotions more than words.
If you don’t have expressive faces in your videos, you can also use thumbnails that convey motion to evoke an emotional response, like The Slow Mo Guys.
Follow the “two-thirds rule” for thumbnail composition
The two-thirds rule is a simplified way to achieve the “golden ratio,” which studies have shown reduces the time it takes for our brains to process the image.
These thumbnail composition guidelines recommend placing your focal point not in the center of the image, but in the first third or the last third of the frame.
While it’s more of a guideline than a strict rule, designing your thumbnail this way helps draw the viewer’s attention to the most important “message” in your image.
Add text to your thumbnails
About 63% of YouTube watch time worldwide occurs on a mobile device.
This is what the YouTube homepage looks like for those users:
Considering the prominence of the thumbnail compared to the title, it’s almost certain that users’ eyes will be drawn first to your video’s thumbnail. If they find the image compelling enough, they’re more likely to read the title and click on the video.
So why not add some text to the thumbnail to help viewers make their decisions?
The text can be the video title or even a few words related to the video’s hook. Whatever you choose, since more than a third of viewers are used to “reading” thumbnails on mobile, make sure your thumbnails can communicate your video content, even without the title.
Add branding to your thumbnails
If you look at the trending spotlight on YouTube, you’ll notice that many popular videos have optimized their “first impression” using the tactics we mentioned above.
YouTube thumbnails can be visually very similar, so you should make it easy for viewers to notice your videos at a glance and click on them from those who already know your content.
4. Encourage viewers to stay after clicking
Getting people to watch your videos is one thing, and getting them to watch the video until the end is another.
Fortunately, you can improve video completion rates (and gain more watch time) by building this goal into your video creation process: start strong and ensure there’s a “hook” at the beginning of the video, break down your videos so that people can watch them without sound, adjust the video length according to your analytics (how far do viewers actually get before dropping off?), don’t use the same shot for too long or viewers may get bored (that’s why quick cuts are popular on YouTube), if your video is long, add interruption moments to refocus viewers’ attention when it begins to wane, ask viewers to click the subscribe button or watch additional videos in the end screen of each video, or even turn on notifications for your future videos.
5. Encourage viewers to binge-watch on your channel
You can also improve watch time on a channel level by using strategies related to video consumption and continuity.
In addition to having a central theme for your YouTube channel – which is undoubtedly the most important factor – you can make it easier for viewers to watch more of your content by: using cards and end screens to manually recommend related videos, linking videos in playlists when you share them so that the next video the user watches is always one of your own, developing a consistent format from the thumbnail to the video itself – if viewers enjoyed one of your videos, they should be able to rightfully assume they will enjoy the rest of your videos – and including a specific call to action or even clips from other videos to direct viewers to consume more content.
Can
Using cards to engage viewers deeper into your YouTube channel. Another good idea is to run subtitles for all your videos so people can continue watching even if they can’t turn on the sound.
6. Optimize your video for a specific keyword
Since YouTube is also a search engine, you can optimize your videos around a specific keyword and some secondary keywords to help your videos appear more in YouTube search results and give the algorithm a better idea of your content, so it knows when to recommend it.
First, you’ll need to conduct keyword research on the platform to identify which keywords and video topics are popular and could attract your audience. Using a Chrome extension like TubeBuddy can help you find the best keywords to use.
All you need to do is type the potential keyword into the search bar and check TubeBuddy’s stats in the sidebar. Try some other parallel keywords until you find the best one.
Try to find a keyword that rates as “very good” or “excellent” overall. However, if your content is already well-established on YouTube, you can ignore the “competition” option, as your channel has already proven to be a good competitor.
Then you’ll want to make sure to include the keyword in the video title, description, and tags. You can also add a few hashtags at the bottom of the video description to categorize your video content.
7. Track your competitors
Are there any competitors active on YouTube? If so, keep an eye on the types of content they are publishing. After all, the last thing you want is for one of their videos to be recommended instead of yours.
Pay attention to things like: the most popular videos, any playlists/series they are creating, how engaged their audience is, how they craft titles/descriptions/video data.
A better understanding of what your competitors are posting can help guide your own strategy and ensure that you’re also covering all the same topics so that your audience can rely on your YouTube channel more effectively.
8. Track metrics
YouTube penalizes clickbait tactics – over-promising before clicks and delivering disappointing content afterward. The click-through rate is still as important as it ever was. You can’t generate much watch time on YouTube without getting clicks first, at least.
You can even see these priorities reflected in YouTube Studio by checking your YouTube Analytics dashboard.
You can see the following metrics related to organic reach, which together illustrate YouTube’s renewed focus on click-through rates and watch time: impressions: how many times your video thumbnail has appeared to viewers as a suggested video, on the homepage, or in search results. Traffic sources for impressions: the places on YouTube where your video thumbnail appeared to potential viewers. Click-through rate on impressions: how often your video is viewed after your thumbnail is seen (based on recorded impressions). Views from impressions: how often your videos are watched after being seen on YouTube. Watch time from impressions: watch time generated from people who saw and clicked on your videos on YouTube.
9. Create Shorts videos on YouTube
YouTube Shorts is a short-form video format introduced by YouTube to compete with TikTok and Instagram Reels.
Shorts provide vertical videos designed for mobile viewing and quick consumption. They give creators a new way to connect with their audience and share brief, entertaining videos.
The Shorts algorithm relies on various factors to determine which Shorts videos to recommend to viewers. Some of these factors include: user engagement: the algorithm considers how users engage with content, such as likes, comments, shares, and watch time. High engagement typically leads to better visibility. personalization: the algorithm considers viewing history and user preferences to recommend Shorts videos relevant to their interests. content relevance: the algorithm evaluates the content of Shorts videos and their metadata (title, description, tags, etc.) to determine their relevance to user search queries or browsing habits. creator history: the performance of a creator’s previous content may also influence the visibility of their Shorts. Creators with a consistent history of high-quality content and engagement may receive a boost in the algorithm.
Use
YouTube algorithm to grow your business
The YouTube algorithm has changed a lot over the years, leaving creators and brands wondering why the methods they relied on in the past don’t work anymore.
But even as the YouTube algorithm evolves, remember that the platform’s goal is still to bring more people to watch and engage with more videos on YouTube. This goal is not much different from yours.
Ultimately, create videos that connect with your audience on YouTube. The more engaging videos you produce, the higher the chance that the algorithm will recommend your videos to users.
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Frequently Asked Questions About the YouTube Algorithm
What is the YouTube algorithm?
How does the YouTube algorithm work?
Who programs the YouTube algorithm?
How can I increase my YouTube video views?
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