Youtube is the biggest video platform on the web. It is the home to billions of videos. But entertainment isn't Youtube's only goal. It has other goals too, which are very important for its survival and growth. These goals are mostly focused on monetization and maintaining a stable reputation in the eyes of the public. But as we all know, this can be a recipe for disaster as the creators and viewers are slowly getting fed up with the constant changes.
For creators that are established on the platform for years, the new changes are bound to slow down their growth and decrease profits. But the real problem lies with those who are just getting started. These people will have an incredibly hard time pulling through the algorithm and gaining views and subscribers as so many did before them.
Here are some of the biggest challenges that content creators will have to face in 2022!
Removal Of The Dislike Button
This is a big one! You know we all love to dislike videos that are bad, made with bad intentions, or try to promote harmful things. But for Youtube, this is not the case. Under the excuse that disliking videos might hurt people's feelings and promote hate, YouTube decided to completely remove the dislike button.
The worst thing you can do from their point of view is to dislike a video without watching it at all, which leads us to another problem- fake views and likes! Most users of the platform are strongly against this new update and criticize it every chance they get. There are even some third-party extensions and apps like Return YouTube Dislike" that try to bring this feature back through some clever programming tricks.
As everything stands right now, YouTube is likely not to reverse its change anytime soon. So for the time being, the only ones who will see dislikes on videos are the creators themselves through the YouTube Studio app.
YouTube Shorts
TikTok and Instagram Reels are taking over the internet. Young people pretty much only watch this sort of content as its short format appeals to most people. The popularity of these formats is something YouTube wants to capitalize on as well.
They decided to create the YouTube Shots, which are essentially short videos that are meant for entertainment. The problem with these videos is that they are relatively new, they have a niche audience, and they are not properly monetized at the moment. So, if you make shorts, you will get low engagement rates, potentially a lot of views, and close to no monetary gains.
It is still too early to tell if this format will take off or not. But, we can say for sure that it is not going to be easy to make money off of them unless something changes.
Changes In The Algorithm
The algorithm changes are probably the biggest challenge that content creators have to face on a regular basis. It is always changing and evolving, making it harder and harder to get views and subscribers.
In addition, YouTube keeps introducing new rules that make it difficult for videos to rank high. For example, they now favor longer videos over shorter ones and they are pushing for more original content. So if you don't make short-form content like shorts, or long-form content that is longer than 10 minutes, you are bound to be punished by the algorithm.
This means that if you want your video to rank high, you will need to put a lot of effort into making it unique. You will also need to promote it properly or you might not get the right amount of views and subscribers, despite having a great video. This all reflects on how well your videos are doing.
Demonetization And Political Correctness
Over the past few years, there has been an increase in the number of videos that have been demonetized by YouTube. This means that these videos do not generate any ad revenue for their creators. This culminated in 2017 with the so-called "Adpocalypse". During that time a lot of sponsors and advertisers pulled out of YouTube which caused massive problems for the platform.
Even though the Adpocalypse is kinda behind us, there are a lot of problems that are still lingering or new ones appearing. One of the biggest ones is that YouTube started deleting and restricting channels that don't align with their political views or agenda. While this is their right as a private company, this doesn't fare well with users.
Creators all over the platform are worried about the changes as all of them know that one decision by YouTube can leave them without revenue. The problem with this is that a lot of people are starting to feel like they can't make the content they want to make because it might get demonetized. And, as we all know, political correctness is running rampant on the internet. So, if you make a video that is even remotely offensive to someone, there is a good chance that it will get demonetized.
This poses a huge challenge for content creators as they no longer have complete creative control over their work. They are constantly worried about whether their content will be demonetized or not, which takes away from the creative process. This leads to a lot of content creators already quitting or moving to other platforms.
Other Platforms And Competition
With YouTube struggling, other platforms are looking at the possibility of getting a chunk of the audience and creators that YT is shedding. And, if that happens, it will leave YouTube in a very bad place.
The biggest threat is, of course, Facebook's new video platform. It has been around for several years now and it is starting to look better and better every single day. This is especially true since they introduced their own version of Stories which allows creators to upload short videos with links inside them.
People can follow the links and go directly to the creator's website where they can try and promote whatever product or service they are promoting. If this catches on, YouTube could be in a lot of trouble as most content creators will move over there instead of staying with YouTube.
Another big one is Amazon-owned Twitch, which has been trying to lure YT content creators over to their platform. They have been doing this by offering them a lot more money for their content as well as more leniency with the rules. If Twitch gets a decent number of YT video makers on board, it could mean huge trouble for YouTube who is already way behind in terms of revenue and user base.
Of course, there are long-time competitors such as DailyMotion, Vimeo, Curiosity, Floatplane, and Wistia. They all have their own unique selling points that help them get extra viewers and content creators.
With so many choices for users, YouTube is having a hard time trying to convince people to stay with them. As of right now, YT has about 2 billion monthly active users while Twitch has around 140 million. The competition is getting bigger and it seems like only the biggest players will survive in the future.
Conclusion
YouTube is going through a lot of changes and, while some of them are good, others are not. The biggest challenge for the platform in the years to come will be retaining its users and content creators. If it can't do that, it will slowly lose out to other platforms that are starting to look a lot better. The platform will have to adapt to its competitors and just their policies so that it can stay as popular as it is right now.
For newcomers to the platform, the rise up to the top will be quite hard. And the creators who have been active for years are starting to move away from the platform due to the strict monetization policies and potential loss of revenue.
YouTube is still a very powerful platform that has a lot going for it. It has the biggest user-base out there and people enjoy using it because of how easy it is to use. However, with other platforms starting to focus on content creators more and more, YouTube will have its work cut out for them if they want to stay relevant in years to come.
Have you used YouTube as a creator? What are the biggest changes you have experienced and are you worried about the future of the platform? Share your experience with us in the comments below!
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