Nearly A Million Subs And Never Been More Miserable
Hello,
I've been doing Youtube for 7 years (way before the AI trend) and was probably one of the first, if not one of the 'OG' channels making history/mythology content. I'm no stranger to seeing videos get millions of views and definitely know how to put a video together. At least, I thought I did. Since about 3 years ago my channel has been on a steady decline, with the most significant dip occuring this year. From 1.5 million monthly views all the way down to 100k.
I did jump on the AI trend for a season (which ironically saw the channel score some big wins), but I just couldn't say I was proud of the work and so, decided to elevate my videos with natural prop design and even being on camera (thus eliminating AI from the videos). This was met with a warm reception from my regular audience, but now it would seem I've been fully booted out of recommendations.
I should point out from the attached screenshot that my CTR is 4%, yet my impressions are still really high. Has anyone seen a similar metric? I know my thumbnails aren't super duper amazing, but I find it hard to believe that 2.1 million people were shown my videos and only 4% are clicking. I kind of suspect Youtube isn't even showing this to my niche, but rather random people who have no interest in my topic.
I guess I'm just looking for general advice at this point. What am I doing wrong? I feel like I've tried everything and now just have tunnel vision. Is it over for me? That's fine if it is - it's been a wild ride, but I'm still investing heavily into research, animation, artwork, script writing etc and I'd rather just use my time better if this is as good as it's going to get. I guess I'm also looking for why this happened. I know the Youtube algorithm is a beast of its own and can't be understood, but other newer channels in my niche (who are using AI) are killing it. Why do I feel like I've been blacklisted?
Apologies for the rant. I'm also happy to review your channels and offer my insights in return if you'd like :)
Cheers
Channel link: https://www.youtube.com/@thelegendsofhistory