YouTube enables linking between Shorts and long-form videos

The links will direct viewers away from Shorts, which can't display pre or mid-roll ads, to long-form videos, which support both ad products.

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YouTube creators will soon be able to link Shorts to other types of content, such as long-form videos.

The platform announced that it is going to start introducing a safer way for creators to direct viewers by the end of September 2023.

Why we care. YouTube Shorts are viewed by more than 2 billion logged-in users a month and are seen by people who may not be subscribed to your channel, so linking this content to your long-form videos could be vital in unlocking your brand’s growth and success.

Are there ads on Shorts? There isn’t currently an option to display pre or mid-roll ads on Shorts –however, linking Shorts to long-form videos provides an opportunity to monetize that traffic, as ad products are available on long-form videos.

How it works. Creators can add a link to any Short they post using a new option now available in YouTube Studio. Once a link has been inputted, it will then appear in the description of the Short video, accompanied by a play button encouraging viewers to tap through to the linked content. Once they hit that button, viewers will be redirected to the linked video, expanding their YouTube experience with your channel, as shown below:

Screenshot 2023 08 11 At 18.25.00

What has YouTube said? YouTube announced the link update via a statement on its blog:

  • “We know that clickable links help creators direct their Shorts audiences to other types of content, like their long-form videos. By the end of September, we’ll start introducing a safer way for creators to direct viewers from Shorts to their other YouTube content – stay tuned!”

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Deep dive. Read YouTube’s Link Updates announcement in full for more information.


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About the author

Nicola Agius
Contributor
Nicola Agius is the Director of SEo and Discover at Reach PLC. Previously, she was Paid Media Editor of Search Engine Land from 2023-2024. She covered paid media, retail media and more. Before this, she was SEO Director at Jungle Creations (2020-2023), overseeing the company's editorial strategy for multiple websites. She has over 15 years of experience in journalism and has previously worked at OK! Magazine (2010-2014), Mail Online (2014-2015), Mirror (2015-2017), Digital Spy (2017-2018) and The Sun (2018-2020). She also previously teamed up with SEO agency Blue Array to co-author Amazon bestselling book Mastering In-House SEO.

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