12 Ways to Get More Views on YouTube Shorts

YouTube Shorts was released in September 2020, and after a slow expansion, the feature was released to the United States and then more countries. If you’re trying to learn how to get more views on YouTube Shorts, it’s a lot easier than most people believe.

You won’t be paid much for even 1 million views on Shorts, but they can help you:

We’re going to show you how you can start getting more views on your Shorts by following proven techniques.

How To Get More Views on YouTube Shorts?

Shorts are like many content types: some get views and others don’t. But you’ll find that it’s far easier to get views on a Short than a video because viewers will keep cycling through them on their phone and come across them faster than a video.

If you want your Shorts to be viewed for longer and get more views overall, you can follow👇these techniques:

1. Buy YouTube Views from Viralyft

Want an easy way to boost your YouTube Shorts views? Buy them from Viralyft. We offer real views from real users. 

Choose from high-quality and premium-quality views at a wide range of prices and view amounts.

Most YouTuber stars pay for engagement because it’s fast and effective.

2. Add Captions – It Helps

Captions help. You’ll find that all of the big creators are using captions for a few reasons:

As you can see, captions are a great addition to your Shorts and even long-form videos. Here’s the great news: you don’t need to go into every video and add captions manually.

You’ll want to use a free trial of the tools and find one that you prefer. Many editors use AI to detect your voice and auto-transcribe at a very high level of accuracy.

3. Create a Strategic Video Loop🎥

Strategic loops get me every time. I was just watching a Short on how much one creator made on his channel, and before I realized it, he looped it. After the third time, I caught on to the fact that I had listened to the same Short three times in a row.

And that’s the power of loops.

When you loop properly, you say or do something at the end of the video that transitions right back to the beginning. Now, why would you want to do this? Well, YouTube will pay you for the rewatch – more than the first watch – and it will trick the algorithm because:

You’ll need to spend time with your video to really understand how you can make it loop. If you watch the end of the video and it restarts, just ask yourself: will people realize they’re watching again?

4. Optimize Your Shorts to Help the Algorithm

You want to make the YouTube algorithm happy (read about it in our guide), and one tactic is to optimize your Shorts. Captions are a good start, but you’ll also want to optimize:

Any hint that you can feed the algorithm to let it know what your video is about will help you get more views. You can even add in strategic keywords – naturally – and your video may show up in search results, sending more views your way.

5. Master Your Thumbnail Creation Game

Want to know how to get more views on YouTube shorts? Choose the right thumbnails. You’ll find people having a lot of problems with this because:

You’ll need to see if changing the thumbnail is working for you on your phone’s app or not.

If you can change your thumbnails, do it. The right thumbnail is crucial to getting more videos if people go to your channel. 

Tools to Help You Create Better Thumbnails

For a lot of creators, making thumbnails isn’t their idea of a fun time. It’s time-consuming and tedious, but these tools can help:

Creators Share Tips on Thumbnail Creation

Not sure how to create amazing thumbnails? You can listen to some of the best creators in the world and see what they have to say about thumbnails:

One of the tips that has always stuck with me is to go on Netflix and see what they’re doing with their thumbnails. If you have Netflix, you know that they create amazing thumbnails that get you to watch shows that you would never watch otherwise.

If you become a student of thumbnails and really analyze them, you’ll start getting more views.

But this is only relevant for people who go to your channel because if they’re watching Shorts, they’ll automatically start watching your video.

6. Focus on Quality Not Quantity

You’ll find many creators who are focusing on quantity and not quality content. YouTube is being flooded with poor quality videos from people who hope that they’ll instantly hit it big and make heaps of money.

But subscribers will remember if you produce poor-quality content and will stop watching your channel.

They’ll also unsubscribe.

If you’ve ever watched a TV show that started out amazingly and then all of a sudden, the quality tanked, you don’t want to do this to your audience. It’s better to post a few great Shorts than a bunch that have no substance or views.

7. Create Shorts for Upcoming Content to Lure Subscribers to Watch

Subscribers will see your Shorts, and it’s a great opportunity for you to show off your upcoming content. One of my favorite creators recently released a Short telling everyone he is on vacation and when he’ll be back on his channel.

And it was a nice update because now subscribers know what’s going on and when to check the channel for new content.

If you plan on doing any of the following, Shorts are a great way to promote it:

Shorts are a fun way to keep your subscribers engaged and in the loop about what’s happening with your channel.

8. Hook People in During the First 2 Seconds

Shorts are short. You have a second or two to hook people in, and that means do something fast to keep eyeballs on your video. Every niche is different, but if you tell a Story and show something dramatic at the start of the Short, there’s a good chance people will watch it.

9. Hype Up Your Titles

Titles are what catch people’s attention and get them to click on your videos. Hype yours up! Don’t be “clickbaity” with your titles, but do make them catchy.

Your title needs to be intriguing enough to get searchers to click and deliver on your claims (i.e., don’t say you have the best solution and never talk about that solution).

10. Add Your Shorts to Your Featured Section

Another way to increase views for your Shorts is to add them as a featured section of your channel. YouTube is more likely to recommend videos that are featured, so this could be an easy way to generate more views.

The “Short videos” section should be there by default, but if it’s not, click the “+ Add Section” button and choose Short videos.

You can move the tab around to choose the order of your featured sections.

Don’t forget to click the Publish button before you leave the page. Changes are not saved automatically.

11. Use The “Would You Watch Your Video?” Tactic

When you create YouTube Shorts, you obviously have an idea that you’re passionate about or at least interested in. But how well have you executed your plan?

Before you post a Short, take the time to watch it and give yourself an honest opinion. If you were a YouTube user, would you watch your video?

If the answer is “yes,” then post it right away.

If not, then it’s time to reevaluate things. Analyze your Short and find areas to improve. What is it about the video that just isn’t working? If you can’t quite put your finger on it, ask a trusted friend who will be unbiased to tell you what they would change.

12. Add in Hashtags for Good Measure

Hashtags aren’t as impactful on YouTube as they are on other social platforms, but they’re still useful.

Add three relevant hashtags to your Shorts to help other users discover your content.

Bonus: View Your Analytics and Change Your Strategy

YouTube Shorts analytics can give you a ton of insights into engagement and growth on your channel. Those insights can help you understand what’s working, what’s not working and what could use some improvement. 

Pay attention to metrics like Average View Duration (AVD), as this will tell you whether people are really watching your Shorts all the way through. 

Use your analytics in addition to your engagement insights to tweak your strategy as needed. Continually improving will help you get more views on your YouTube Shorts over time.