YouTube is growing their creator tool lineup – and spoiler alert, there’s a lot to look forward to in 2022.
YouTube’s chief product officer, Neal Mohan, revealed several new monetization features for creators in a recent blog post.
Here’s what we know so far.
New Creator Tools Coming to YouTube in 2022
In the lengthy post, YouTube revealed a number of new features on the horizon, including:
Branded content integrations for YouTube Shorts
New video effects & editing tools
E-commerce opportunities through Shorts & new Live shopping
Collaborative livestreaming
Gifted Membership: the ability to purchase a channel membership for another livestream viewer.
New and improved insights in YouTube Studio
plus, many more!
And we couldn’t help but notice an overall theme – creators and monetization.
“We’ll continue to invest across our multiple formats: Shorts, Live, and video on demand (VOD). And in the months ahead, we will bring even more engagement and monetization options across all three formats,” explains Mohan.
If you’re a creator, now is a great time to level up your YouTube strategy.
“YouTube creators are the heart and soul of the platform, and we want them to always be able to fulfill their most ambitious creative goals,” says Mohan.
While the announcement from YouTube was jam-packed with releases, we dig into the details and explain what this means for creators on the platform:
New Features Coming to YouTube Shorts
While still a relatively new feature, YouTube Shorts have seen massive success with 5 trillion all-time views.
ICYMI: YouTube Shorts are vertical videos set to audio that must be 60 seconds or less. Think of Shorts as YouTube’s take on TikTok and Reels.
Mohan notes that YouTube is committed to growing those numbers: “We’ll continue to improve the product and make it easier to create videos.”
So, what’s coming to YouTube Shorts in 2022?
For monetization tools, Shorts creators can expect new branded content integrations through BrandConnect.
This means a more streamlined way for creators to partner with brands to make more impactful connections, turn viewers into customers, and get more performance insights.
Beyond that, YouTube is also introducing new video effects and editing tools for Shorts, including the ability to reply to individual comments in a Short.
Want to see YouTube Shorts in action? Subscribe to Later’s YouTube channel for bite-sized videos on the latest social media tips and trends.
Additional Creator Tools Coming to YouTube in 2022
And that’s not all – YouTube is also introducing new livestreaming, shopping, and channel features.
Mohan shared they’re testing the idea of the ability for users to shop directly from a Short, Live Shopping, and more e-commerce opportunities across the app.
Mohan explains “Live is another area that will see progress this year to build on our momentum — daily Live watchtime more than tripled between January 2020 and December 2021.”
Enter: Collaborative livestreaming, which according to Mohan “allows creators to go live together and create even more interactive streams for their audiences.”
YouTube hopes collaborative livestreaming will help creators grow their audience, while inspiring their individual communities to interact and build connections with each other.
Plus, YouTube have begun testing gifted memberships – the feature gives viewers the ability to purchase a channel membership for another viewer in the livestream.
Stay tuned as gifted memberships are still being rolled out on livestreams in the coming months.
Finally, other new features include the ability for creators to set channel guidelines so they can better shape the tone of conversations on their channel and new insights in YouTube Studio.
These new insights will help creators understand how viewers are interacting with their content and help generate new creative ideas.
The creator economy, especially on YouTube, is only getting bigger and better from here.
With all of these new tools and monetization features on the horizon, it may be time to lean into YouTube and strategize for 2022!
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