YouTube has laid out how it wants creators to win with Shorts, and the advice arrives with real weight behind it. The format has exploded from about 30 billion daily views in 2022 to an estimated 90 billion as of last year, making it YouTube’s fastest-growing content type. So for anyone chasing younger audiences, short-form video is no longer optional.
The tips come from YouTube’s own Julia Lee Harter, and the first cluster is about spotting trends before they peak. She points creators to the remix button, which lets you reuse audio, collaborate, add a green screen, or cut a clip as inspiration. Trending audio offers another signal, since the Add Sound library shows what is already climbing.
Hashtags earn a surprising defense, too. They have fallen out of favor for boosting reach, yet Harter frames them as research tools rather than magnets.
“Every community on YouTube has its own hashtags, whether it’s #booktube, #cleanwithme or #learnonshorts,” Harter said. “Tapping on these hashtags takes you to its pivot page, which is a gold mine of ideas.”
Tapping a tag like booktube or cleanwithme opens its pivot page, which she calls a gold mine of format ideas. Templates round out the beginners’ toolkit, replicating the timing, cuts, and music of a proven Short.
Poll and quiz stickers let viewers vote or answer in-stream, while the Q&A sticker invites typed responses that Harter calls a goldmine for future video ideas. The Add Yours sticker goes further, prompting viewers to post their own linked take, which multiplies exposure.
The smartest guidance, though, treats Shorts as a doorway rather than a destination. Harter urges creators to build a clear path from Shorts to long-form videos using the Related Videos link, paired with a direct call to action. Point at the link, show the thumbnail, and then deliver immediately, since the first few seconds of the long video should confirm the viewer chose well. When a comment sparks something, she says, do not just reply, since the better move is making that viewer the star of your next Short.
