Passing fancy: Half of YouTube views come, on average, within 6 days

YouTube as a venue for video work has always had the challenge of overcrowding – when there is no selectivity, it is the viewer who must wade through the morass. And a study shows that the YouTube window is shrinking. The average YouTube video has 50 percent of its views within 6 days, and 75 percent of its views within 20 days. In 2008, it took 14 days to get to the 50 percent threshold and 44 days to get to 75 percent.

Part of that may be due to the increasing number of news-related videos going up, and of course many bloggers post video with their daily posts. But it also indicates that in the YouTube ether, videos generally lack staying power.

For the filmmaker putting a trailer out on YouTube, it’s worth considering how to makes its effectiveness move beyond that 6-day threshold. It can include embedding or linking in any press releases, updating in posts on the film’s blog or website, using substantial keywording, and linking the trailer in comments to any mention or publicity on the film. As with films generally today, it takes work on the filmmaker’s part not to let the work just fade away.