Are Reefing Videos Helpful?

[Reefer Matt]

So which is more valuable to you, videos that follow a hobbyist along on their reefing journey, or direct topic videos by experts?

 

[Gumbies R Us]

So which is more valuable to you, videos that follow a hobbyist along on their reefing journey, or direct topic videos by experts?

For me, both. I like it when a channel does a good mix of both.

 

[Bear22]

It's not the format that matters, but rather the messaging that is important.

Call me old school: my preference is still a well written article that get's to the point.

In some instances, a well-done video is a great means when it comes to a hands-on tutorial.

 

[zenom73]

So which is more valuable to you, videos that follow a hobbyist along on their reefing journey, or direct topic videos by experts?

I think both are good. I think the challenge (on YT) is that don't they rank videos more for the longer people watch? If you make shorter condensed videos would that hurt you? I would prefer a mix though. I think experts and novices alike can learn from both. Sometimes experts forget what it was like being a newbie and newbies can gain experience from experts.

 

[Reefer Matt]

I think both are good. I think the challenge (on YT) is that don't they rank videos more for the longer people watch? If you make shorter condensed videos would that hurt you? I would prefer a mix though. I think experts and novices alike can learn from both. Sometimes experts forget what it was like being a newbie and newbies can gain experience from experts.

YT ranks videos by the rate that people click on the thumbnail, and by how long they watch. For Reefer Matt videos, people watch about 40-50% of a video, up to 5 minutes regardless of length. So it’s usually not a good idea to make videos more than 8-9 minutes. Not many viewers will sit and watch without skipping around, and then they ask questions about things that were covered in the video, lol!

I don’t claim to be an expert, and I realized I was sharing advanced topics more because that’s what my interests were. With the reset of the channel, it will be balanced with beginner and advanced topics alike.

 

[zenom73]

YT ranks videos by the rate that people click on the thumbnail, and by how long they watch. For Reefer Matt videos, people watch about 40-50% of a video, up to 5 minutes regardless of length. So it’s usually not a good idea to make videos more than 8-9 minutes. Not many viewers will sit and watch without skipping around, and then they ask questions about things that were covered in the video, lol!

I don’t claim to be an expert, and I realized I was sharing advanced topics more because that’s what my interests were. With the reset of the channel, it will be balanced with beginner and advanced topics alike.

Being that you are starting up a new tank, it would be cool to really follow that as much as possible. From the mundane to the advanced. Then you could always make playlists. "The Setup", "Coral Placement" or whatever. Might help people find things and be more sticky? Not sure, I don't have a YT channel, I just know that when I see a series I tend to watch them. I have a hard time on things like "WWC's build a budget tank" and they start off with a $2k aquarium, expensive reactors etc., .... budget for who? :D

Great third person reference ... :D "For Reefer Matt videos"

 

[Reefer Matt]

Great third person reference ... :D "For Reefer Matt videos"

Lol! Reefer Matt llc owns the channel now, not me. So if I use third person, I am talking about the company. Probably shoulda named it something else!

 

[Biokabe]

Depends for me. Sometimes I find reading information or finding a guide online more helpful than a video. Other times I find a video to be more helpful to me. I am someone who doesn't watch any form of short content (TikTok reels, etc.) I don't find those helpful. However, I do find longer, more detailed videos to be helpful when I want to watch a video.

Sometimes a short is all you need, depends on the content of a video. I generally don't really like short videos either, but if I'm trying to find help with one specific thing and that thing can be illustrated in a 30 second short... that's actually really helpful. There are some things that are just really hard to describe with words, but trivially easy to answer with a video.

 

[Ryan - Serious Reefs]

I think they’re helpful when I’m looking for one specific answer. Too many are too long though. I like short videos that just show the problem and the fix.

I agree :)

When there’s a written article available, that’s my preferred format for researching almost anything, reefing or otherwise. It’s often concise, easy to scan, and speed matters a lot to me.

Video is better when nuance matters, and especially for instructions where an image really can speak a thousand words.

Of course, that’s a little ironic because my preferred method of teaching is video. I think that’s largely because video puts some of the humanity back into the discussion. It also allows me to demonstrate something rather than simply write about it.

 

[Reefer Matt]

I agree :)

When there’s a written article available, that’s my preferred format for researching almost anything, reefing or otherwise. It’s often concise, easy to scan, and speed matters a lot to me.

Video is better when nuance matters, and especially for instructions where an image really can speak a thousand words.

Of course, that’s a little ironic because my preferred method of teaching is video. I think that’s largely because video puts some of the humanity back into the discussion. It also allows me to demonstrate something rather than simply write about it.

You’ll be hard pressed to find anyone who doesn’t value and appreciate your efforts sir, thank you!

 

[RoanokeReef]

I don't watch any videos any more that are "reviewing" a product they got for free. I do enjoy the topic videos and tank tour type videos like Ryan, WWC and Top Shelf put out.

 

[sixty_reefer]

For those of you who watch reefing video content, do you think that reefing videos on social media are helpful, not helpful, or redundant? Is there any new info that is increasing your success, or just more of the same?

In the beginning, I think I watched way more YouTube reefing videos than I’d like to admit. As my experience in the hobby grew though, I found myself shaking my head at more and more of the content that was reaching me. I’m also not really the kind of person who enjoys looking at fantasy reefs on Instagram, so it’s actually been a while since I’ve watched much reefing content. I believe the last series that really caught my interest was the BRS biome cycling series. IMO, there’s a real need for more content aimed at hobbyists with a little more experience, especially content that goes beyond repeating the same basic advice.

 

[fish_collector]

I find some of the YT reef hobbyist content interesting and some of it a complete waste of my time, but that's subjective of course. I don't like to be reminded to hit the subscribe button, yeah we know how YT works lol. I feel the train has already left the station for a lot of reef related stuff on YT, there's only so much one can talk about that hasn't been repeated a thousand times already. March at FragBox used to be interesting but I can't even watch that anymore, it's just the same thing time and time again.

I've never really turned to YT as a source to "learn" about reefing, but rather as entertainment and to see other hobbyists tanks. I might find 1 in 20 videos on reefing on YT that I watch in it's entirety. I don't know what else is out there for reefing on social media, if it's not R2R or YT I have not seen it because I don't do any of it. I'm lucky to get 5 hours of sleep at night as it is

I edited out a link to what I watch on YT these days, it would derail the thread for sure .

 

[Reefer Matt]

A perspective from the other side of this is that making reefing videos is a great way to both document and share your journey. You don’t always have to make the videos public though, YT is a basically a free cloud service. However, you may get burned out after a while if people don’t respond.
I suggest to keep at it and not focus on likes, subs, or community engagement, and make it about your reefing. If you are consistent enough, people will watch.