Some artists believe that the more likes or video views they have, regardless of their origin, will help bolster their perceived value and attract more organic viewers, however this misguided mentality has significant drawbacks. The music industry is tough to break into no matter who you are. The process can be long and grueling, and many may be tempted to find the easy way out. Websites like Youtube and Vevo make it easier than ever for artists to get their music in front of the public, however this makes it difficult for artists to get their work to stand out. Fraudulent activity, such as paying for video views, has become a last resort for some artists, so the question remains: is it paying for video views worth it?

From an artist’s perspective, the short term benefits of paying for video views may be tempting enough to elicit action, especially if they are are uninformed about the consequences. However, artists trying to break into the music scene should always be informed about the policies of the platform they are planning to use, whether it is Vevo or YouTube, before making the decision to buy views. Many services clearly state their stance on buying views. For example,YouTube’s Terms of Services claims “Purchasing views for your videos directly from third-party websites (e.g. paying $10 for 10,000 views) is [downright not allowed].” Any user that has been detected by YouTube will face disciplinary action, such has having their video removed or their account suspended. Purchased video views can be easily detected either through irregular viewership statistics such a sudden spikes in views or if all of the views are coming from territories outside of the regular demographic. Vevo and Vydia also enforce a zero-tolerance stance on fraudulent views.

In addition to the risk of potentially getting your account terminated, purchased views are not guaranteed to help increase your organic fan base or get your video on YouTube’s front page. YouTube has also taken significant steps in filtering out videos that may have paid for video views. They are putting a lot more emphasis on viewer engagement and are making it a determining factor for search rankings and recommended videos. When you buy views, the “viewers” are likely watching your video for only a few seconds, and YouTube’s new algorithm will immediately flag this as misleading and will not take your video into consideration for search rankings. This will ultimately restrict your ability to attract new viewers, which will contradict the reason why you bought viewers in the first place.

YouTube’s initial crack down on artificial video views was initiated by it’s goal to make its service more appealing to premium advertisers. YouTube gains a significant amount of revenue from advertisers, so protecting them is key. Advertisers that buy ad space on YouTube are expecting their commercials to be watched by real viewers, so having false views messes with advertising analytics and hurts YouTube’s relationships with its advertisers. If you are the cause, you will be held accountable. This can have a major impact on your channel’s revenue as well.

Ultimately, paying for video views is not worth your money. Not only do you risk your video being removed, or potentially your account being suspended, but the views you are paying for may not provide the desired result. Paying for video views also takes a toll on one of YouTube’s revenue sources, advertising, which is a problem for everyone. While this subject may seem daunting, Vydia is here to help! Check out our video (https://youtu.be/L9pKVR9mQCQ)  about how to boost video views the right way and if you have additional questions please comment below.