u/onadroll

Hey guys!

I think I'm confusing the hell out of YouTube's algorithm.

I've been aiming towards a left leaning/youtube drama channel with a few pieces of horror movies/books stuff sprinkled in.

I don't think YouTube knows what to do with me? I posted a couple of videos covering drama that did better than ever since I've started a couple of months ago- almost three thousand views and a ton of comments and likes. I really thought I was getting some traction.

Then, I posted a movie video that also got tons of positive feedback in ratio to the views, but YouTube barely pushed it. Like just a bit over a hundred. I was confused, because the feedback was so positive.

On top of that, I think I've attracted some right wing bros to my channel who are now being turned off, seeing where I lean. I'm not overtly political, but I make fun of a lot of right wing YouTubers. Similarly, I make fun of a lot of left wing grifters (maybe what got those viewers interested in the first place).

I'm also female, and I think my personality makes me seem more right wing? The whole busty, abrasive, anti-PC kind of attitude. I thought I could attract viewers that are, like me, left leaning but get frustrated with online hypocrisy. But instead, I think I got the algorithm for right wing bros who now hop on to insult my channel while I'm getting barley one view a day.

SO, I think both my movie content, and my personality are skewing the numbers. I hope this makes sense, it's hard to explain. I want those views back but I also still want to talk about what I want to talk about and not compromise my content for the views. I started doing this because I was tired of faking it in the real world. I don't want to sell out just the same to get some income on YouTube.

I'm now sitting at just a handful of views a week, as opposed to a thousand or so a day last week. Moreso, my shorts views are now stopping at a couple of hundred when they were also reaching a couple of thousand, before. And that's even though their analytics were good (people stayed to watch the whole thing around 80%, likes, comments, etc. One short 85% viewed the whole thing and after three days it is at a whopping ELEVEN views.

Is YouTube just still figuring me out? Or have I corrupted the trajectory for good? Has anyone experienced anything similar when they first started? Waves of lots of views and then nil?

I posted the other day on short promotion. Learning more and more what a crap idea it was. I only paid like ten bucks, but it gave me a lot of subs. Now, since the promotions have ended, I've only gained maybe five subs in a couple of weeks. I was growing much faster than that, even before I did a whoopsie and decided on promoting. Is this major lull caused by algorithm confusion from bot subscribers? Is my channel permanently screwed? If I weren't getting any views I'd be ready to start from scratch, but those are actually improving a great deal on their own. Just no movement in subs. Any advice on what my move should be? Wait it out, or make minor/major changes?

This is one I haven’t been able to figure out for the life of me, because the algorithm seems so random and touchy. I’ve seen many creators suggest posting videos/shorts daily, but doesn’t that distract from the previous video getting views and confuse the algorithm?

I’m always super reticent to post a new one if the last one is still doing well. From my experience, once I post something new the last thing I’ve posted is now dead in the water. Should I keep a consistent posting schedule, or wait until a previous video seems to have run its course?

Hey guys,

I'm curious about what people think about 'promoting' shorts and videos. Is it encouraged? Discouraged? I paid like ten bucks to promote one short that I thought should have done well and just missed the algorithm. And it got me a good handful of subscribers. But then again, the whole of my content doesn't have much to do with that short in the first place, so I'm worried that those subs won't be any real contribution, anyway. I'm thinking that I should avoid promoting so to ensure that the subs/views I do get make some actual traction on my channels growth. Thoughts?

Hey guys,

I'm curious about what people think about 'promoting' shorts and videos. Is it encouraged? Discouraged? I paid like ten bucks to promote one short that I thought should have done well and just missed the algorithm. And it got me a good handful of subscribers. But then again, the whole of my content doesn't have much to do with that short in the first place, so I'm worried that those subs won't be any real contribution, anyway. I'm thinking that I should avoid promoting so to ensure that the subs/views I do get make some actual traction on my channels growth. Thoughts?

Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiii,

I'm in my thirties, but am woefully behind when it comes to internet savvy. For example, I've never been much interested in having a social media presence. I had a facebook about a decade ago, but I soon tired of it. Recently, due to a sort of... existential/third-life crisis/'I'm tired of the real world kind of thing', I decided to start a YouTube channel. It's just Youtube drama reaction slop, but I also play these 'niche' games- old strategy/city-building stuff from the early 2000s. This wasn't exactly purposeful, it's just that (much like my lack of social media experience) I also am completely inexperienced and ignorant of modern computer and video games. Games like Civilization, Caesar, and Age of Empires are the only games I ever played as a kid and have every enjoyed. I tried the newer/popular stuff when I began my channel, but it was all too overwhelming. So I stuck with what was familiar.

According to my friend who is very much a part of the reddit/gaming community, playing these games are actually a unique factor of the whole schtick that might get me some followers/views on YouTube. She suggested I join Reddit, so here I am! And I am already so so so so so lost. I almost feel like it's simply too late for me to dive in, but I have had some luck with followers and views for a beginner, and I really want to give this whole internet life a shot. If anyone could help me with just the beginning steps, I would so much appreciate it. So far, I've just understood enough to join some pages related to the games I play, and that's the extent of my Reddit interaction.