Getting your video off the ground as a small creator is one of the hardest things you do, but a new tool may boost you further than before.

No matter the platform, standing out amongst the hundreds (even thousands!) of uploads made every day is a challenge. SoundCloud are taking action to tackle this with new algorithms that push songs with zero plays. YouTube, however, are going in a different direction.

Their new tool ‘Hype‘ is a way for the lucky few who get to watch a video early in its career to spread the word. A new Hype button lets viewers mark when they think a video deserves a wider reach than it’s getting from views and likes alone.

As viewers press the Hype button, content will climb a Hype leader board. These leader boards are separated by country, so viewers can see what’s trending and on the rise in their location. YouTube hope that this will provide a powerful new way for creators to get discovered and reach further audiences.

Benefits for creators:

  • Increased Visibility: Being featured on the Hype leader board can significantly increase a creator’s visibility and exposure to new audiences.
  • Community Building: Hype can foster a stronger sense of community among viewers and creators, as it encourages active participation and engagement.
  • Revenue Potential: In the future, YouTube may introduce features that allow fans to purchase additional Hypes, providing creators with a new revenue stream.

Benefits for Viewers

  • Active Participation: Hype allows viewers to actively contribute to the success of their favorite creators, feeling more connected to the YouTube community.
  • Discover New Content: By hyping videos, viewers can help to promote emerging creators and discover new, exciting content.

YouTube found that users hyped over 5 million times across more than 50,000 unique channels across beta tests in Turkey, Taiwan, and Brazil. They found that 18-24 year olds were the most likely to hype, accounting for 30% of the Hypes across the beta.

YouTube say the idea came from an observation: “Passionate fans want to be part of their favourite creators’ success stories. They want to do more than just watch and like; they want to actively help those creators get discovered.”

YouTube are planning to expand to new markets with Hype beyond their beta tests, however they haven’t confirmed where or when they will be launching the feature next.

This week, YouTube have revealed a number of exciting new features including photorealistic AI generators coming to Shorts creators and AI-powered auto-dubbing into other languages.