The End of YouTube Clickbait: The Future of Video Content Discovery
Algorithmic recommendation engines will distribute video content to viewers who are most likely to engage. Goodbye clickbait.
For years, YouTube creators have relied on catchy titles and compelling thumbnails to hook viewers and drive engagement. The financial incentives for creating clickbait content are clear: without a compelling title and thumbnail, a video is unlikely to get very many views. As a result, many creators have become adept at the delicate balancing act between manipulating audiences and being truthful with their titles and thumbnails.
But the era of YouTube clickbait may soon be coming to an end. Developments in AI technology and innovation in content discovery are eliminating the need for titles and thumbnails altogether.
TikTok is the prime example of a platform that successfully eliminates clickbait titles and thumbnails by immediately delivering content to viewers and intelligently tuning the video feed to match each user's specific preferences. Every other major social media platform has started adopting TikTok's user experience and content discovery methodology.
YouTube Shorts are already an extremely successful product and eliminate the need for clickbait. But what does this shift mean for content creators and their workflows?
Creating content solely based around simple ideas that can be distilled into a short title and thumbnail will no longer be the only viable form of content. Algorithmic recommendation will serve new types of content to audiences, and will allow for new creators to find an audience without being limited to creating ‘searchable’ and ‘SEO focused’ content. Rather than relying on catchy intros or thumbnail design, creators will need to differentiate by creating content with unique and compelling story structures.1
Algorithmic recommendation engines will dynamically distribute content to the audiences that are most likely to engage, without viewers even needing to decide on a video to watch. Most platforms are likely to redesign their interfaces in a way that users rarely have to choose a video to watch, but instead are delivered a feed of videos that the AI thinks they will like.
In the cases where there are still explore sections that utilize thumbnails and titles, generative AI will be able to create multiple headlines and thumbnails automatically. The algorithmic recommendation engine will then determine the best title and thumbnail by A/B testing multiple options. This will result in more efficient and effective content discovery for users, without the need for creators to spend time and energy on clickbait.
In the future, it's likely that brands and individuals who want to post content to social media or video distribution platforms will no longer need to think about titles or thumbnails in the same way as they do today. The content will be analyzed by AI, which will know the genre, subject matter, and other key details. Algorithmic recommendation engines will then distribute the content to the viewers who are most likely to engage, without the need for clickbait.
One thing is certain: the future will be shaped by algorithms instead of clickbait. Content creators will need to adapt to this new landscape, where the emphasis is on telling compelling stories and engaging with audiences, rather than relying on clickbait to drive views.
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As a creative professional with 10+ years of experience in media workflows, I have gained insight into the many details involved in creating feature films, advertisements, YouTube videos, and other forms of digital media. This is my space for sharing creative workflow ideas and developments. Thank you for joining me in the Creative Workflow Lab.
Brief explanation of story structures. Put simply, it’s the framework on which a story is built. It typically consists of a series of events that are arranged in a logical order to form a narrative. The story structure can include elements such as the plot, characters, setting, and themes. The way in which these elements are arranged can vary depending on the specific story, but most stories follow a basic structure that includes a beginning, middle, and end.