INTRODUCTION
According to Global Media Insight, YouTube has 2.6 billion active users, and more than 1/4 of the world’s population uses it every month. Since the content distribution platform emerged in 2005, it has kept enhancing its user experience all while keeping its audience engaged.
Here are a few of the new features of YouTube in 2022:
ENHANCED SUPERVISION FUNCTIONALITY
The issue of adult supervision, like with other social media platforms, is important to YouTube. Last year, it created a set of restrictions that allowed parents to better control what content their children can access on the platform. The three levels of strictness are the “Explore” level, suited for kids nine and older; “Explore More” for kids 13 and older; and “Most of YouTube,” which is mostly everything except age-restricted content.
Earlier this year, YouTube announced supervised accounts can now use the video-sharing platform on eligible smart TVs and on other devices like smartphones, laptops and tablets as an app, through a web browser or on Google Assistant-enabled devices. This includes YouTube Music and YouTube Kids.
NEW YOUTUBE SHORTS FEATURES
With the rise in popularity of short-form videos, YouTube launched Shorts in Beta form in late 2020. Users can connect with a new audience using just a smartphone and the Shorts camera in the YouTube app.
To create a short video, tap the “create” button and then “create a Short.” To record, hold the capture button or tap it to start recording (up to 60 sec. in length). Next, tap “close,” choose to start over or save as draft and exit the camera mode. Tap “done” to watch and make any enhancements to your video. Finally, tap “next” to add details to your video (e.g., title) and select the audience (e.g., “yes it’s made for kids”). When you are finished, click “upload” to publish.
This year, all Android devices were enabled to create Shorts by importing horizontal video clips of 60 sec. or fewer from each device’s gallery. In addition, this feature was improved on the iPhone with users being able to retouch their video clips in real-time.
In addition, Shorts are now available to watch on computers, laptops, tablets and mobile phones. To see for yourself, click on the Shorts icon (if using a tablet or phone) at the bottom of the YouTube app or browser.
NEW RESEARCH TAB
In April, YouTube introduced a Research feature in which users see what their viewers and what their audiences are searching for over the last 28 days. Also, within this feature, users can gather insights like similar channel searches, content gaps and search volume of each search term.
To use the Research feature, sign in to your YouTube account and click “Analytics” found on the left side menu of your YouTube studio account. Then select “Research” and type any term in the search bar. The feature also allows you to save/unsave search items and view Google Trends.