Audience retention on educational dermatological videos: an exploratory study using a dermatologist-led experimental YouTube channel

Abstract

Background Patients increasingly search for dermatological information on YouTube; however, the successful presence of dermatologists on this platform is limited. Audience retention is essential to ensure success, as the YouTube algorithm considers it to rank videos. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study in dermatology that focuses on audience retention on YouTube. It is based on a real-life dermatologist-led channel. Objectives To determine factors that influence audience retention on a dermatologist-led YouTube channel and provide insights that can help dermatologists create engaging content that becomes successful. Methods This research studies 137 videos. First, multiple linear regression was performed to test whether the specific video characteristics significantly predicted audience retention. Second, moments of peak retention (spikes) were identified, and their content was analysed to determine what was particularly interesting for viewers. As the videos were educational, spikes were classified into conceptual or procedural knowledge. Results The average audience retention was 41.69%. Longer video length and increasing number of days from release had a negative and significant effect on audience retention, with the effect of video length (β = -.6979; p < .0001) being strong and that of days from release being weak (β = -.023; p < .0001). Spikes were observed in 76 videos (55.47%), 68.15% of which were classified as procedural. Conclusions These data indicate that audience retention increases as video length decreases, and that viewers are essentially interested in practical information. Consequently, to increase audience retention, dermatologists should design succinct videos and deliver procedural knowledge that creates value for the public.