YouTube’s rolling out some new options for podcast creators, while it’s also adding new video download options, and launching a new experiment that will recommend Hashtags to include in your uploads, thus maximizing discovery. Let’s go over the treasure trove of updates, shall we?

Analyze Deez

To start, creators will be able to create a new podcast directly within YouTube Studio, as well as designate an existing playlist as a podcast, which will help to improve the podcast upload and management process. The new options will make it easier to specifically focus on podcasts in the app, complete with improved upload processes and dedicated tools to help you separate your podcasts from your regular uploads. YouTube first began testing the option with select users last month.

To add, YouTube’s also throwing Podcast Analytics into the mix. YouTube has been gradually developing more podcast tools as it moves to better align with growing audio usage. YouTube Music now has more than 77 million paying subscribers. Yes, visual elements remain central to the platform’s broader offerings, but a growing interest is also starting to show for audio-only content.

With a lot of popular YouTubers now also running their own podcasts, it makes sense for YouTube to expand its horizons in this direction, providing a more comprehensive media offering for its creative talent. The new podcast features will be rolling out to all creators this week.

On another front, YouTube will also now enable creators to download their videos from the mobile version of YouTube studio. This could make it easier to manage your YouTube content on the go, or cross-post to other platforms via native apps. However, it is worth noting that YouTube Shorts, when downloaded, will come with a YouTube watermark to limit cross-posting to TikTok and Reels.

YouTube also added a new shortcut link within Studio to its Creator Music Library, which will make it easier to find tracks included in the program. The new listing will include filters to help you find relevant tracks for users to incorporate into their clips. Creator Music, which YouTube launched last July, allows creators to add licensed music to their content, with fees paid and then shared with musicians.

YouTube is also running a new experiment that will suggest hashtags to include when publishing long-form videos. The idea is that this will supposedly help improve discovery, by guiding creators to more specific tags, helping YouTube better categorize and display user posts. On a last note, YouTube’s also retiring its overlay ads format, which saw full-width promotions displayed along the bottom of the playback screen.

The Wrap

Good or bad news, overlay ads will no longer appear as of April 6th. YouTube says that this is a ‘legacy’ ad format, which has proven to be disruptive for viewers. The removal will ideally push advertisers to more valuable, better-performing ad types on YouTube. YouTube creator updates are always jam-packed with several elements, which could prove to be relevant to your process.

Sources

http://bit.ly/40bHWGb