How is YouTube Shorts working for you?

redlinederby Thursday, 1/12/2023
Site manager

I was hanging out with friends this past weekend and one of them asked if I'm still racing Hot Wheels. I told them I still had the site but really scaled back on the racing on my home track. When asked why, I explained how much I do not enjoy the video/production side of what the hobby seemingly requires...I didn't like "the journey" and the destination didn't pay big enough rewards to justify the time otherwise.

But then my friend was like, "dude, just put up a TikTok for 30 seconds, that's all you need." And that got me thinking. Now, I don't have TikTok or even pay attention to it but when I talked to my kid about it, she mentioned YouTube Shorts and how that's almost all she watches now. So that got me thinking...

If the expectation of people watching is that videos will be super short and bare minimum type of production, then maybe that's what I need to explore...? I think that type of process will fit into the time I have available and maybe not be such a downer to deal with when doing races.

I did some looking around and have found that lots of you are using YT Shorts for races and car shows and the likes...so how is it working for you?

I'm more interested in the "using it" side of things rather than whether or not you're getting views and subscribers...but hearing some stories about whether or not you're getting returns is certainly worth it. It seems like the Shorts format fits my need to minimize production overhead while still serving the need to show that racing happened and the results reported are legit.


Discussion

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SpyDude 1/12/23

Drag racing is like two seconds long at max? You could fit a whole tournament in there after editing.


  • You’ve never edited race video or finished a race in under two seconds so not sure you’d be the authority on this subject. — BlueLineRacing
  • That's kinda my hope, that the quick turn around of each race can lend itself to minimal editing. I don't want to edit, period, but it's necessary so I just need to reduce that part as much as I can. — redlinederby
  • @BLR: Never said I was an authority at either. Drags are generally shorter than road courses, so you could run more matchups. And I haven’t broken that 2-second barrier yet (I don’t even have a track to test my mods on, just a 1-foot section of desk), but I’m trying to learn what it takes to build a fast car. — SpyDude
  • My comment was meant as, “Cut out all the fluff (commentary, music, etc), so it’s just pure dragging.” I actually do enjoy your videos and the effort you put into them. — SpyDude
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Chaos_Canyon 1/13/23

My main issue with it is the aspect ratio. You can't get more than one car in frame at a time unless it is really close action. I have done a few for some specific things but it hasn't been a focus for now.

I know there's a couple fo tracks doing TikTok and doing well from what I understand but I don't know if that is translating into revenue or just feel good factor.

YT have just monetised shorts for creators, so I may look into it a bit more this year, especially with the new track, as it can reach a different audience.

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H3zzard 1/13/23

From a desktop consumer perspective, I've yet to see any benefit to any 'short' content (be that the YT or TT or whatever). 

If I'm sitting down to watch something, I don't have the incination to flick from video to video every 30-60 seconds. I get that folks with short attention spans and/or brief access via mobile devices might find it more useful than a long-form presentation though. 

Certainly in terms of 'advertising' upcoming events it could be useful. If a creator has filmed something in advance and is editing the footage, they could show off a few highlights (or teases) before the main event goes live..? 


  • I agree, If I am gonna watch something I want more than a minute or two, unless its a teaser, like chaos and ep posted — dr_dodge
  • Fair and a good call. I agree with you but fact is more than 80% of people rolling through here are on their phone which had me thinking if Shorts is a calculated risk. — redlinederby
  • Advertising and teasers would be a decent idea. People gotta know where to go to watch the main events. As for watching the event itself, I do that on my desktop for a big-screen experience in stereo. — SpyDude

I'm learning the you-tube shorts method; its fairly simple. I have yet to chop or edit anything other than add some music or text. No action shots. But maybe in the future. As far as monetized or exposure or anything; thats a hard pass from me. Then it becomes less "fun" and more about "work". 


  • Definitely. Hobbies are supposed to be fun, not work. — SpyDude
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SpoolHeads 1/13/23

WeRaceDiecast has been killing it with shorts. Check it out.

www.tiktok.com/@weracediecast?lang=en

www.instagram.com/weracediecast/

Shorts monitize differently than the longer videos. I don't know the specifics. 


  • That's good lookin' stuff! Anything I do won't look half that nice but proof that format can show the action pretty well. — redlinederby
  • Cheers for the insight! — CutRock_R_Marc_D
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TrackJack 9/3/23

I posted some YouTube Shorts to share ideas on how my TrackJack can be used with Hot Wheels.  I don't have any success stories to share yet about YouTube. It's difficult to predict what will catch attention — you have to do a lot of experiments (which takes a lot of work). 

Here are my shorts — www.youtube.com/@TrackJackToy/shorts

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FredD 9/3/23

shorts are fine for quick videos or to generate interest in your page... quick and easy.

FredD

F'D Racing

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