How to Get More YouTube Shorts Views on Your Channel

Want to get more YouTube Shorts views? This guide will help you attract viewers with the three E’s: entertainment, education, and emotion.

"Why are my YouTube Shorts not getting views?"

If you find yourself thinking this often, you're not alone. Getting views on a YouTube Short — millions of views, for that matter — is a challenging goal. It seems like everyone is making short videos now and creating more competition as they do.

But there are other reasons you might struggle to get views. Your Shorts could be lacking any of these elements:

  • A superb "hook" in the first three seconds
  • Storytelling that takes viewers on a journey
  • Making viewers feel something — happy, amused, surprised, etc.

But those are just a few suggestions. Here's a deeper look at how to get more views on YouTube Shorts.

Entertain Your Viewers

Entertaining your viewers is a powerful way to make better YouTube Shorts. If you can show something interesting, funny, or action-packed in the first three seconds, there's a chance viewers will stick around for the next 30 (give or take).

If you don't know what entertains your viewers, start by asking some basic questions. Which videos have the most views on your channel right now? What are they about, and what makes them so intriguing? And finally, How can you pack those elements into a YouTube Short?

For example, look at this Short from Jesse Heffels called "How Many Flips Was That?"

This video is incredibly entertaining for three reasons:

  1. It gets straight to the action. There's no "intro" to endure before things take off.
  2. The story keeps building. Every time the group bounces on the trampoline, the person in the middle flips higher into the sky.
  3. The music matches the action. An inspirational, upbeat tune accompanies a wild stunt.

But how did Jesse know that turning flips would make the video go viral with 13 million views? Our guess: He noticed what worked on his channel versus what didn't.

Here are some of Jesse's most popular videos:

And here are some of the least popular:

It's clear that viewers show up to see multiple flips in the sky, especially on a trampoline. That's what they find entertaining and choose to watch on Jesse's channel.

Show Your Viewers Something New

Revealing something shocking or unexpected is another way to get YouTube Shorts views. This works because sometimes, as humans, we're exposed to the same things every day. That could be our jobs, where we live, the restaurants in our neighborhood, etc.

I'll admit that before I watched a Short about 3D billboards, I had no idea they existed. So I was amazed to see what they look like in Dylan Anderson's video, "These 3D Billboards Stop Everyone on the Street." The Short has 38 million views and counting, so I know I'm not alone in my amazement.

Plus, Dylan makes the video 10 times better by explaining what's happening:

"These 3D billboards look so real when they show 3D animations, like a lion breaking through the glass and jumping onto the street, which even had this lady scared…. So many of these have gone viral for how incredible they look and immediately stop everyone on the street," he says.

Add Some Emotion to Your YouTube Shorts

You may have noticed that with emotional videos, people don't just watch them and leave. They take the time to leave comments, like the content, or share it with friends and family — because the videos make them feel something.

Here's a great example from LeoNata Family. In "Dad Will Do Everything for His Daughter to Win," a father lets his daughter win at every game. It's a heartwarming experience because you get to see her dad cheat (in the best way possible) as the daughter giggles after each "win."

If you want to make emotional content (and boost your engagement rate), create a psychological profile of your viewers. You can start by answering these questions:

  • What kind of humor do they appreciate?
  • What problems do they talk about?
  • What frustrates them?
  • What pleases them?
  • What angers them?

With this information, you can make Shorts that resonate with people and encourage them to engage. All of those engagements (likes, comments, and shares) let the YouTube algorithm know the video is worth recommending to more people.

Watch this tutorial for more ways to add emotion, entertainment, and education to your Shorts:

Extra Ways to Get Views on YouTube Shorts

Want to go the extra mile? Use these tips to get a lot of views on your YouTube Shorts.

Add a Few Hashtags

Want to help viewers find your YouTube Shorts? According to YouTube, adding "#shorts" to your video title helps people do just that.

But that's not the only hashtag you should use. You can also add topical hashtags related to your video, like this Short using the hashtag #Encanto (from the popular Disney movie).

When viewers tap a hashtag (like the one above), YouTube takes them to the official hashtag page for that topic. There, they can explore dozens of videos covering the same subject. This is where you want your video featured, just in case viewers are searching for Shorts similar to yours.

Loop Your Shorts

A YouTube Short that "loops" doesn't have a recognizable beginning or end. Because viewers have no idea where the story concludes or starts, they watch the video several times before realizing it's on repeat. This works because YouTube replays the same Short until you swipe to the next one.

As such, it's the perfect way to get YouTube Shorts views.

Here's an example of a looped YouTube Short from Jake Fellman, 3D animator:

Want to loop your Shorts? Read this post to learn how it's done.

Write an Engaging Video Title

With YouTube Shorts, one of the first things viewers see is the title.

If you want viewers to watch (instead of swiping away), make sure the words tell an engaging story about your video.

That means your video title should:

  • Accurately summarize the video.
  • Make viewers curious.
  • Have relevant keywords (both for viewers and YouTube's algorithm).

For more tips, read this guide about writing better video titles.

Make Your YouTube Shorts the Right Length

You have almost 60 seconds to get your point across in a YouTube Short. But if you can tell your story in less time, you probably should. People consume short videos faster than they do longer ones, so you have to make every second count — and cut dead scenes.

So once you have the whole story packed into your Short, try not to add anything else. People will have fewer chances to get bored and swipe away.

Why You Need More YouTube Shorts Views

For a long time, going viral with YouTube Shorts didn't equal more money for creators.

Now there are two reasons to create better Shorts and get as many views as possible:

  • Earning a bonus each month ($100-$10,000) from the YouTube Shorts Fund
  • Becoming eligible for the YouTube Partner Program after getting 10 million Shorts views in 90 days (plus having 1,000 subscribers)

Are you trying to reach these goals?

Get a head start with this monetization guide for YouTube Shorts.