YouTube's analytics additions could reveal user engagement better

YouTube Analytics has gotten several boosts in the last few months, which are being introduced to the public today.

While at first glance it looks like a lot of extra tools in the sidebars, these metrics really have the possibility to shape the way YouTube videos are produced and promoted in the future.

At the core of the upgrades is the new "Time Watched" metric, which identifies the estimated number of minutes watched over a given amount of time.

While clicks are important, they don't necessarily reflect how deeply the user was engaged. Of course, it is possible that a video can run through its entirety in the background without the user having actually seen it.

Nothing is going to perfectly identify user engagement, but YouTube looks like it could be on a better path to doing so.

Another improvement is being able to compare metrics in which users can simply compare trends and patterns across two different metrics. This could offer video producers and such with another opportunity to identify the value of a video by comparing time spent watching with estimated earnings, as seen in the screenshot below.

Not only is it helpful about the product currently listed, but it could offer insights and influence how producers work on the next project.

More details about the updates to YouTube Analytics are available on the official YouTube blog.

Screenshots via The Official YouTube Blog