Showerthought: I spent a week trying to figure out why a post about my local library's book sale wouldn't get any views.

I posted a video about it on a Tuesday, used all the right tags, and it just sat there (maybe 50 views in 3 days). I was sure the algorithm just didn't like local stuff. Then I dug into the analytics and saw the watch time was terrible because my intro was way too long, like 15 seconds before anything happened. I cut that down to 3 seconds and re-uploaded, and it got over 2,000 views in a day. So was it the algorithm burying me, or was it just my own bad video making the algorithm think it was boring? Which side do you guys fall on, the algorithm as a gatekeeper or as a mirror?

4 comments

4 Comments

olivia6707d agoMost Upvoted

Honestly, the 50 views in 3 days stat is what hit me first. That was my wake-up call that something was clearly off. I checked the audience retention graph and saw people dropping off at the 4 second mark every time. My intro was basically me talking about the weather before I even mentioned the book sale. Once I trimmed that fat, the views just came rolling in. So yeah, the algorithm was just showing people what I made, and they voted with their clicks.

ryan7931mo ago

That "blaming the algorithm to blaming myself" shift is the whole lesson right there.

hannahcraig1mo ago

Then I dug into the analytics" made me switch from blaming the algorithm to blaming myself.

-1

emmamason1mo ago

That's the real turning point, isn't it? What was the specific number or stat that finally made it click for you? Like, was it seeing how many people actually scrolled past your video in the first three seconds?