A new YouTube algorithm recently designated certain videos as “YouTube for Kids.” This more or less means, if your video is appropriate for kids or considered child-directed content, you must label it as such!
As of November 2019, content creators on YouTube were asked to specify if their videos were made for kids. This sent many channel creators on a quest to determine which content was deemed “kids” or “not kids”. For example, would all or just certain gaming and vlogging content be labeled for kids? Or do only mature video games not fall under that category?
Once a video is put under the title of YouTube for kids, a few things happen to that video:
- Targeted, interest-based ads no longer appear in the video, which means the creator loses out on a lucrative and commonplace type of digital advertising.
- Only “contextualized ads” will appear, which are based on the video content itself.
- A video will no longer have a comment section or end screen that allows viewers to subscribe to their channel.
- The penalty for not labeling your video as YouTube for kids is quite harsh. The FTC can sue individual creators for up to $42,530 per violation!
- And that doesn’t help when YouTube Kids is one of the lowest-paying niches on YouTube!
- Video view counts are no longer displayed, subscriber count is.
- YouTube with kids videos featured (physically) in the video rank higher in this new YouTube algorithm, but videos for kids are not as impactful. This is a result of YouTube trying to make their platform more family-friendly.
Fortunately, we at Global Social Media Marketing do not create videos/content with the explicit audience of children/kids in mind. Many of our topics are business-oriented. The inability to subscribe to a channel and YouTube’s decision to not have targeted ads on “made for kids” videos inhibits one’s goal of monetizing their channel. Furthermore, no comments decrease audience engagement.
As a YouTube channel/content creator, you must ask yourself “What do I want my channel to be about?” Remember, having a mission statement is key! Once you determine that, you’ll be able to figure out if your channel has to adhere to this new algorithm. If your channel falls under the YouTube for kids category, you should take a step back and rethink your monetization plan. If you’d like to keep your channel as is, that’s great! Be you and make the best content you are able to make. You’ll just have a steeper climb than others that don’t have to follow the algorithm. Regardless of where your channel ends up if you have any questions, we at GSMM are here to help. Please drop us a message in the comments below!