You upload a Short. It gets a few hundred—or maybe even thousands—of views quickly. Then suddenly, the graph goes flat. No more traction. No virality. What happened?
If you’re wondering why some Shorts explode while others tank, what metrics truly influence performance, and whether you should combine Shorts and long-form videos on the same channel, this article will answer all your questions. Let’s dive deep into how the YouTube Shorts algorithm works and what you can do to ride the wave of virality.
🎯 The Truth About the YouTube Shorts Algorithm
When you upload a Short, YouTube doesn’t immediately know what your content is about—or who it should be shown to. So, it does what’s called a seed audience test.
🧪 What is a Seed Audience?
A seed audience is a small, randomly selected group of viewers who get to see your Short first. This group may or may not be your actual target audience.
- If the seed audience doesn’t engage, your Short flops.
- But if this group engages positively—by watching the full video, liking, sharing, or commenting—the algorithm considers it a positive signal and begins showing your Short to more similar viewers.
This cycle can repeat, allowing a Short to go viral organically, without paid promotion.
🎯 Why Some Shorts Suddenly Stop Getting Views
Many creators get confused when a Short performs well initially but then suddenly halts. That’s because Shorts and long-form videos have fundamentally different algorithms.
- In long-form content, a view happens when someone intentionally clicks to watch your video (via thumbnail and title).
- In Shorts, videos appear in a continuous feed, and users swipe through them rapidly. There are no thumbnails.
So, to determine if your Short is worth promoting, YouTube uses real-time behavior from random users in the Shorts feed.
📊 Key Metrics That Decide a Short’s Fate
1. Viewed vs. Swiped Away (a.k.a. “How many chose to view”)
This metric shows the percentage of viewers who actually stopped scrolling and watched your Short, versus those who swiped it away instantly.
- A high “viewed” percentage tells YouTube your content is engaging.
- A low percentage? Your Short gets buried.
In a study conducted by Paddy Galloway, who’s worked with top creators including MrBeast, data from over 5,000 Shorts showed:
- Shorts with less than 60% viewed percentage didn’t perform well.
- Best-performing Shorts had between 70% to 90%.
💡 Aim for at least 75% viewed rate to increase your chances of virality.
🧲 How to Improve Viewed Percentage: Master the Hook
In long videos, you optimize the title and thumbnail to improve CTR (Click-Through Rate). For Shorts, the first 3 seconds of the video are your thumbnail and title combined. That’s your hook.
✅ Examples of Strong Hooks:
- “YouTubers, stop scrolling!” – A powerful callout to your target audience.
- “I’m sure you didn’t know about this…” – Sparks curiosity instantly.
- Unique Visuals: Like tossing ingredients in the air, pouring unusual paints, or starting with something surprising.
Just like a thumbnail gets the click, a hook gets the stop.
⏳ Retention Matters (A Lot!)
High retention is the second biggest factor in Shorts success.
- For long-form videos, 40-60% retention is often enough.
- But in Shorts, creators regularly hit 90-100% retention—or even higher if viewers rewatch.
📌 Tip: Don’t obsess over exact length. Make your Short as long as it needs to be to tell the story effectively. Both 15-second Shorts and 50-second narrative arcs can work—if retention is solid.
🤔 Should You Upload Shorts and Long Videos on the Same Channel?
This is a hot debate.
Here’s the deal:
- If someone watches your Shorts frequently, YouTube may recommend your long videos on their homepage.
- But here’s the problem: Shorts viewers are often not interested in long-form content.
They’re used to fast, dopamine-driven content. So:
- They may ignore your long videos—hurting your CTR.
- Or worse, click and drop off quickly—hurting your watch time.
Real Examples:
- Jake Fellman: 23M subscribers, millions of views on Shorts, but long videos barely cross 20K views.
- Dan Rhodes: 26M subs, 800M views on a Short, but only 500K views on his most viewed long-form video.
The audience is split, and the algorithm notices that.
🔄 So, What’s the Solution?
Create a separate channel for Shorts.
Yes, it’s more work. But it leads to:
- Better audience targeting.
- Cleaner analytics.
- Healthier channel growth over time.
Unless your Shorts and long-form content cater to the same audience and offer similar value, you’ll likely benefit from keeping them apart.
✅ Final Tips for Viral Shorts
- Hook them within 3 seconds.
- Deliver value quickly and clearly.
- Aim for 70–90% viewed rate.
- Maximize retention — keep them watching till the end.
- Tailor your content for your audience, not just the algorithm.
🌐 Useful Links
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📢 Hashtags
#YouTubeShorts #ShortsAlgorithm #YouTubeTips #ContentStrategy #ViralShorts #YouTubeGrowth #YouTubeMarketing #VideoRetention #AudienceEngagement #CreateBetterContent
