In September 2020, YouTube introduced its new short video content – officially known as ‘YouTube shorts.’ Within a very short period, this gained immense popularity, with influencers and social celebs capitalizing on it to no end! However, if you have not been able to garner that desired ‘attention’ via the shorts, you must look into it. For starters, do you know the best time to post YouTube shorts? Are you sure your shorts are tallying with what your competitors are offering? You have the answers here!
This blog post will give you ideas about the correct time to post your shorts, the factors to check that are in tune with the posting, as well as some practical tips on increasing your viewership. Let’s get to the basics first –
Table of Contents
Which is the best time to post YouTube shorts?
Rather than unilaterally concentrating on one time suitable for posting YouTube shorts, this section will explain the multiple parameters considered while posting content.
For starters, YouTube shorts are extremely accessible forms of video content and are highly engaging. Multiple influencers and brands have been using this platform (thanks to its speed controls/filters/effects) to put their products through. Therefore – if we speak on a general note, then the time limits of (12 P.M. – 3 P.M.) and (7 P.M. – 10 P.M.) on weekdays, with a particular focus on Mondays and Tuesdays are considered to be the best time to post YouTube shorts.
However, there are multiple parameters that matter, like countries and their respective time zones, target audience for ‘your’ content, and days of the week.
Let us get to that –
Going by the country
Though the general peak hours for posting content have been mentioned above, if we go country-wise –
Say the eastern countries like – China, India, Japan, South Korea, and the like are your target market, then take the social, economic, and cultural factors in mind (most of the population are early risers) – post between (9 A.M. to 12 P.M.) on weekdays.
However, if your target market is Europe (say Italy or Spain) – the best time to post YouTube shorts is late afternoons and evenings on weekdays. This is because, in these countries, people are mostly night owls, and surveys show that these are the peak times for maximizing engagement. If you post your content on weekends, then conduct a specific survey and then figure out the correct time.
However, early afternoons may be a good time given that certain people would like to spend their time indoors (even on weekends), and that could be your target audience.
Talking of the US, Germany, and the UK market, taking into consideration their job timings (a 9-5/9-6 module) – the afternoons (12 – 2 P.M.) and evenings (7 – 10 P.M.) on weekdays are considered the peak hours. On weekends, posting content in the evening garners maximum engagement.
Considering the days of the week
For determining the best time to post YouTube shorts – considering the correct days of the week is also crucial. Extended research has shown that the beginning of the workweek (Monday/Tuesday) is considered the best for posting. On the first two days, the demand for new content is higher.
As the week proceeds, Wednesdays and Thursdays also have moderate to heavy engagement since people tend to look out for new content amidst their tight schedule. However, Fridays tend to bring a dip in the engagement rate since people have other priorities and prefer to opt for streaming channels more.
Coming to the tricky part about figuring out the best time to post YouTube shorts is the weekend. Though afternoons and early evenings are considered standard, this tends to vary. Hence, always carry out proper research while looking out for the ideal time on weekends.
What type of content you post
Say your content is targeted chiefly towards the school/college kids. Then, weekday mornings are considered peak time. YouTube takes some time to index your video, and classify it. The kids will come back from schools/colleges, check out your content almost by the evening, and coordinate those with their studies.
However, suppose they are entertainment/cooking/make-up tutorials/music videos. In that case, early evenings are taken to be the correct timing, given that people prefer to check out such videos at these times.
Ensure that you keep these factors in mind when you are posting YouTube shorts.
Does timing matter while posting YouTube shorts?
It is not without reason that people are looking for the best time to post YouTube shorts. The correct timing of posting videos increases client engagement and expands the reach. This increased visibility naturally increases audience engagement, thereby boosting the return on investment.
Hence, the more precise your timing, the better the audience reach and return.
Can you use multiple time slots for increased viewership?
Assuming you have been reading this post till here, you have already understood the best time to post YouTube shorts, and that, too, based on multiple parameters. In this section, we will discuss how you can improve the overall viewership of your YouTube shorts by utilizing multiple slots. Here are some tips –
Try to schedule your content at a fixed time
At times, you may miss out on posting in the peak hours. What then? That’s when scheduling comes in! Multiple scheduling tools are available online, which you can use to schedule your content and publish it at those specific hours. In this way, you can keep the advantage of using multiple time slots rather than concentrating on one ‘particular’ best time to garner the required eyeballs.
Experiment with the timing and frequency limits of your content
Figuring out the ‘best’ time and posting accordingly is the correct way. But how about experimenting a little? Vary your timing a little and change your posting frequency (increase or decrease accordingly). Say, you normally post on weekends, then try posting on a weekday. That will allow you to tap into that audience, which may be unavailable on weekends. Also, if you are posting too much, decrease the frequency. That will make people wait and ‘look forward’ to your content.
Utilize the trending hashtags
Apart from remembering the best time to post YouTube shorts also utilize what’s trending in the online domain. When you vary your content (from informative to tutorial types) and use the relevant trending hashtags to post them, you will surely get a wider audience. Your content gets a broader reach and increases user engagement, even if the time range of the videos is minimal.
What factors determine the timing of these shorts?
Timing matters when it comes to posting YouTube shorts. But that does give rise to a query – what are those factors that determine the timing of these shorts? When you know and can understand these features, you will be able to determine the timing better –
Understand and consider the wants of your target audience
Who your audience is and what they want also determines the timing of your YouTube shorts. The YouTube Analytics dashboard is available to give you data on the ‘timing’ within which your customer base is most active. You have to understand that students’ time engagement is different from that of homemakers. So, once you know your target market/audience (demographic aspects) – then trace their ‘active time’, and then you can post accordingly.
Consistency is the key to success
After finding the best time to post YouTube shorts you need to post consistently. Let’s see from the user’s viewpoint. When, as a viewer/user, you are following somebody’s YouTube shorts at a particular time. If they do not post consistently, then automatically, you will lose interest. Hence, consistent posting of content at a specific time is also important.
Experiment with different types of content
Data has revealed that different types of content perform well at different timelines. Hence, timing directly correlates to the popularity levels of your shorts. So, try to diversify your content.
Keep track of your engagement
To explain this with clarity, let us brief you. Say you have found out the best time to post YouTube shorts and are posting accordingly. In this way, you will see that, with time, a certain fanbase of your content has developed. There will be people who will be waiting for your content at that time. Also, they will share your videos and leave comments. Hence, the correct ‘time slot’ determines the fan following of your videos.
YouTube’s algorithm
The last key factor that also has a role to play in determining the timing of posting and how popular your shorts video will become is – YouTube’s algorithm. Though the intricacies of the algorithm remains unknown, what is crucial to note is – depending on a person’s watch history at a particular time, that user is given some recommendations online. So, if a user generally watches videos that are in tune with the ones you post, then there are chances your video will get recommended to them. Therefore, you may try posting that type of content which other creators are posting, at the same time and thereby enhance your reach.
Key takeaways
As you can see for yourself, how figuring out the correct timing and varying the range of your content can overall enhance your total viewership. Therefore, as an aware individual who understands the reach of social media, it is better to post your content within that ‘window’ which is officially touted to be the best time to post YouTube shorts as per analysis. By doing that, you will see for yourself how your reach multiplies. If you liked this content and are looking for more exciting pieces like this – keep watching this space for more!
Monalisa Mukherjee is a content writer, copywriter and editor with 4 years of experience. She has written for websites like Biography Talk, The Rich Net Worth, Contour Cafe, He And She Fitness and Fiction Pad. She is currently associated with a noted Digital Marketing Agency and specialises in writing press release, guest posts, articles on travel, entertainment, food recipes, celebs, lifestyle, tech, health, and fashion.
