American Marketing Association Professional Certified Marketer (PCM) Content Marketing Practice Exam

When looking at YouTube analytics, what does "audience retention" show?

1. what percentage of your videos viewers are watching

2. how many videos each subscriber watches on average

3. how many subscribers you've gained

4. how many viewers are viewing multiple videos on your channel

The correct answer is: what percentage of your videos viewers are watching

Audience retention refers to the metric that shows what percentage of your videos viewers are watching. This figure is crucial for content creators and marketers as it helps to understand how engaging and compelling the content is for the audience. A high audience retention rate indicates that viewers are staying engaged throughout the video, while a low retention rate may suggest that the content is not resonating well with them or that key parts of the video are causing viewers to drop off. This metric can inform various content strategies, such as adjusting the length of videos, improving storytelling techniques, or enhancing the quality of visuals and audio. By analyzing which segments of a video retain viewers’ attention and which do not, creators can make data-driven decisions to enhance their content and improve overall viewer engagement. The other options provide different metrics that, while related to viewer behavior, do not specifically indicate how much of each video is being watched by the audience. For instance, the average number of videos watched per subscriber focuses on subscriber engagement rather than individual video performance, and gaining subscribers is a measure of channel growth rather than direct audience interaction with specific content. Viewer behavior across multiple videos speaks to overall channel performance but doesn’t provide insights into individual video retention.