shorts-strategy

name	shorts-strategy
description	Decide when to use Shorts vs long-form. Shorts = discovery ($0.01-0.06 RPM). Long-form = revenue ($1-30 RPM). Both = 3x subscriber growth. Use when planning content mix or considering Shorts.
argument-hint	[your channel goals, current metrics, or specific video to decide format for]

Shorts vs Long-Form Strategy

Analyze for: $ARGUMENTS

The Core Trade-Off

Factor	Shorts	Long-Form
Role	Discovery engine	Revenue + authority
RPM	$0.01-$0.06/1K views	$1-$30/1K views
Audience	Cold, browsing	Warm, subscribed
Algorithm	Fully decoupled (2025+)	Separate evaluation
Retention target	70%+ (100%+ = replays = best signal)	50%+
Evergreen value	Low (feed-driven)	High (educational = 80% views 6+ months post-upload)
Production	Low effort, high volume	High effort, quality-focused

Key stat: Creators posting BOTH formats grow subscribers 3x faster (YouTube internal data).

The Growth Funnel

Short → Attention → Long Video → Subscriber → Revenue

• Shorts grow the audience
• Long-form earns ad revenue
• Brand deals, courses, products do the heavy lifting
• One deep-dive video earns as much as 10 viral Shorts

Shorts-Specific Rules

Ranking Signals (Different from Long-Form)

• Swipe-through rate
• Loop rate (above 100% retention = replays = best possible signal)
• Shares
• First-second engagement

SEO (Different from Long-Form)

• Rank on: audio, hashtags, hashtag-search combos
• NOT traditional titles and descriptions
• Trending audio gets 2.5x more views

Retention Benchmarks

• 70%+: Healthy
• Below 50%: Structural problems
• Above 100%: Replays — the strongest signal

Max Length

• Now 3 minutes (2025 extension)
• Collaboration feature: up to 5 co-authors

Monetization Threshold

• 1,000 subscribers + 10 million Shorts views in 90 days
• OR: 4,000 watch hours from long-form (standard YPP)

Decision Framework

When to Use Shorts

• Reaching new audiences in a new niche
• Testing a topic before investing in a long-form video
• Repurposing best moments from long-form (extract the rewatch "bumps")
• Building subscriber count quickly
• Trending audio is relevant to your niche
• You have a tip that can be delivered in under 60 seconds

When to Use Long-Form

• Topic requires depth (tutorials, courses, explainers)
• You want ad revenue (10x+ higher RPM)
• Building authority in your niche
• Creating evergreen content (80% of views come 6+ months later)
• You need watch hours for monetization threshold
• The video has a natural narrative arc

When to Use Both (Most Cases)

• Release the long-form video
• Extract 3-6 Shorts from the best moments
• Shorts drive discovery to the long-form
• Long-form drives revenue and subscriber loyalty

Output Format

## Format Recommendation: [Topic/Goal]

### Recommended: [Shorts Only / Long-Form Only / Both]
**Reasoning**: [why this format for this content]

### If Shorts:
- Hook style: [trending audio / text overlay / face-to-camera]
- Target length: [15s / 30s / 60s / 3min]
- Hashtag strategy: [relevant hashtags]
- Volume plan: [X Shorts per week]
- Success metric: [views / new subs / loop rate]

### If Long-Form:
- Target length: [minutes]
- Evergreen potential: [high/medium/low]
- Watch hour contribution: [estimated WH per 1K views]
- Revenue potential: [RPM estimate for niche]

### If Both:
- Long-form first, then extract [X] Shorts
- Shorts angle: [what slice of the long-form works standalone]
- Cross-promotion: [how Shorts reference the full video]

### Content Calendar
| Day | Format | Topic/Angle |
|-----|--------|-------------|