The mythical “Algorithm”. I wish I could say I wasn’t constantly chasing “the algorithm”, but the reality is that I do. I’m not proud of it. And the reality is I’m a bit obsessed with my YouTube analytics data.
What does it mean when your favorite YouTube content creator says that liking and commenting helps the YT algorithm? Well, YouTube (and other social media platforms) has a set of rules for determining what gets shown every time you log in. When you bring up YouTube, you see a list of videos (and ads) and it’s not random. Have you ever noticed that after you watch one funny cat video all of a sudden every time you log into YT you are inundated with funny cat videos? That’s YouTube trying to guess what content you might like or what videos you are more likely to watch.
As content creators, we don’t know exactly what algorithm or logic YT uses. They let us know the broad strokes but nothing specific. We can only guess and go by what other creators are noticing. In general, it all comes down to what YT terms “watch hours”. That is — how many hours do people spend watching videos on YT. The more the better. If you spend time watching my videos, YT will then share it to more people who they think might also like my content. If you engage with my videos (e.g. liking and commenting), then YouTube will show you my other videos and also suggest my content to other people as well.
Ways to Show Your Support
There are lots of FREE ways you can show your support. In my Let’s Talk Design Teams – Part 1! post, at the very end, I mentioned free and paid ways you can support your favorite creator, but let me go into more specifics. Some of these free ways you can show your support actually can put dollars in the wallet of your creator.
Free Ways to Help Your Favorite Content Creator
WATCH TIME
This helps a channel get shown to more people.
To help your favorite YT channel increase their watch hours, try to watch their videos to the very end. Another easy thing to do is maybe play one of their playlist while you’re working or cooking just to have something on in the background.
ENGAGEMENT
This helps a channel get shown to more people.
Like, comment, and share the video. Subscribe to the channel. When you engage with a video, it’s how YT knows that the content was good enough for you to take a little extra time to give some love to the creator.
CREATE A PLAYLIST
This helps a channel get shown to more people.
Make a playlist of all your favorite videos. Subscribers that you have or people who watch similar videos as you may actually discover your favorite creator through your playlist. If five people add my video to their playlist, now there’s more opportunities for people to find my videos because it can be from my channel or from those five people.
WATCH THE ADS
This puts dollars in the wallet of your content creator.
No one likes commercials, but channels with over 1000 subscribers are able to monetize their channel if they meet all the other requirements and apply. So when you see ads, it’s possible the content creator may get some of that ad revenue.
SHOP THE LINKS
This puts dollars in the wallet of your content creator.
Many content creators use “affiliate links”. These are links to products that earn the creator a commission any sales generated. But it’s not specific to any one product. For example, if you click any of my links but you don’t end up buying that product but you buy a bunch of other things, I will get a commission on what you purchase but it doesn’t cost you anything extra. It’s the shop/company that is sharing a bit of their profit with me.
Also, keep in mind that links are only good for 24-hours (or less sometimes). So if you clicked my link today but then 3 days from now you complete your order, I won’t get a commission. That’s just how it goes.
Paid Ways to Show Your Support
If you have the means, there are several ways on YouTube you can support your favorite content creator. Don’t feel like you need to do this. I know I would definitely appreciate it, but I appreciate you all the same if you aren’t in a position to or just don’t want to do this. It took me a while to even open up some of these monetization options because it’s hard for me to ask for money. And also, YouTube takes a healthy cut of the proceeds. But the reality is that I truly wish I could do this full time and the only way that’s possible is if it can earn me enough money so I don’t need a day job. 🙂
THANKS
Have you noticed the Thanks button? It’s below every video. It’s a good way to give a one-time monetary tip to the content creator.
SUPER CHAT
Did you know there’s something called a “super chat”? When you watch a livestream, you can chat for free, but if you want to throw some monetary love to the creator, you can give super chats and super stickers. Your super chat comments are highlighted. For live streams where there’s a very active discussion in the live chat, it can be a great way to get your comment noticed.
BECOME A MEMBER
Some channels have membership clubs. Some of your creators may have a patreon subscription instead or in addition to their YouTube membership. Both work on the same general principle. There are different levels of offerings that come at different price points and have additional perks. For a content creator, having a monthly subscriber base is such a blessing. It’s a way for us to hopefully get a steady, predictable income. And that is my ultimate desire because I would love to craft full-time. You are always free to change your membership level and cancel at any time.
Conclusion
At the end of the day, I personally appreciate any form of support you are able and willing to give. Sharing my makes is a passion and a joy for me and your support gives me the motivation and encouragement to keep sharing. Some day, I would love to do this full-time and have it generate income. I know supporting me monetarily means one less stamp or one less die you can buy. 🙂 I get that big time. But if you have a dream and you need the help of others to get there, then the only sure way to fail is to never ask for that support. So this is me asking not just for myself but for all my fellow content creators out there. Thank you so much!
[…] expect everyone to be able to or want to support me in this way. If you saw my post – Support Your Favorite Creator, I wrote about a variety of free ways to support creators. I really appreciate any and all forms of […]
Thank you, Linh. I love your content and am so proud to be supporting you on your journey to self-improvement.
Thank you so much, Meg! I appreciate your support and inspiration so much! Thanks for the continued encouragement and support. You are amazing!