YouTube frequently introduces new tools to help creators engage with their audience. But what happens when one of these features actually harms your channel’s performance?
In early 2025, YouTube expanded its Community Posts feature, allowing all subscribers (not just creators) to post updates, polls, and discussions on a channel’s Community tab.
At first glance, this seemed like a great way to boost engagement—but after testing it, we discovered a massive drop in impressions, likes, and subscribers.
Here’s what happened—and why you might want to avoid enabling this feature for now.
What Is YouTube’s Community Tab?
The Community tab lets creators post:
- Polls
- Text updates
- Images & GIFs
- Questions for viewers
It’s a low-effort way to stay connected with subscribers without uploading daily videos.
The Big Change (2025 Update)
Previously, only creators could post in the Community tab. But in 2025, YouTube allowed all subscribers to post—turning it into a mini-forum.
Safeguards included:
✔ Subscribers-only posting
✔ Moderation controls (similar to comments)
✔ Option to restrict posting to subscribers of 1+ day or 1+ week
Our Experiment: Turning On Viewer Posts
We enabled the feature, expecting more engagement. Instead, we saw catastrophic drops in key metrics.
Before vs. After Enabling Viewer Posts
| Metric | Before (Creator-Only Posts) | After (Viewer Posts Enabled) | Drop |
|---|---|---|---|
| Impressions | ~2.5M/month (~80K/day) | ~35K/day (flatlined) | ↓58% |
| Likes | ~50K/month (~1.6K/day) | ~200/day (sometimes negative!) | ↓75% |
| Subscribers | ~1K/month (~30/day) | ~10/day | ↓70% |
What Went Wrong?
- Flood of Low-Quality Posts
- 250+ viewer posts in 3 days—mostly self-promotion, AI memes, and spam.
- Almost no engagement (single-digit likes/comments per post).
- YouTube’s Algorithm Suppressed the Tab
- When engagement per post plummeted, YouTube stopped recommending Community content.
- Even our own high-quality posts saw fewer impressions.
- Negative Feedback Loop
- More posts = More noise = Less visibility.
- Viewers disliked irrelevant posts, further hurting reach.
The Fix: Turning It Off (And Immediate Recovery)
After one month, we disabled viewer posts. The results?
✅ Impressions rebounded (+75%)
✅ Likes surged (+200%)
✅ Subscribers returned to normal (+130%)
Conclusion: YouTube’s algorithm penalized our Community tab due to low engagement from viewer posts.
Why This Happened (And Who It Affects)
1. The “Quality Over Quantity” Problem
- Good Community Posts:
- Polls
- Behind-the-scenes updates
- Meaningful discussions
- Bad Viewer Posts:
- “Sub4Sub” requests
- Off-topic self-promotion
- Low-effort memes
2. Comparison to Other Channels
We analyzed Froggy Crossing (a channel that kept the feature enabled).
- Some high-engagement posts, but 90% were ignored.
- Still an overall decline in Community tab performance.
How to Fix YouTube’s Community Feature
If YouTube wants this to work, they should:
🔹 Restrict posting to Members-only (not all subscribers).
🔹 Add stricter moderation tools (auto-filter spam).
🔹 Let creators approve posts before they go live.
Should You Enable Viewer Posts?
❌ No—if your channel relies on Community tab growth.
⚠️ Maybe—if you have a highly engaged, moderated community (like a Discord).
For now, we recommend keeping it disabled.
Final Thoughts
YouTube’s intentions were good, but the execution backfired. Until better controls are added, stick to creator-only posts for maximum reach.
Have you tried this feature? Share your experience in the comments!
🔗 Explore YouTube Studio’s Community Analytics: YouTube Studio
#YouTubeAlgorithm #YouTubeCommunityTab #YouTubeGrowth #ContentCreation #SocialMediaStrategy #YouTubeUpdates #AudienceEngagement #YouTubeMarketing #DigitalStrategy #CreatorTips
