12/01/2025
My dear new YouTube Artists!... WHAT DOES A THUMBS DOWN MEAN??? I've had a few of you write to me about creating your YouTube channel and sharing your beautiful jewelry with music and progress videos... but you've gotten some thumbs down on your videos and now you have insecurity. DON'T FEAR THE THUMBS DOWN. As a long time Content Creator, I wanted to address this for our new budding artists so that you can move forward confidently, knowing our art community appreciates and loves new creators sharing new videos for us to learn from! This is good for all artists who are new to YouTube, not just our jewelry artist friends.
A thumbs down in YouTube doesn't mean what you think. First and foremost, they are not relevant to YouTube, nor do they impact your channel or it's distribution. Only YOU see the thumbs down count. And the good news is that it's a growth signal to you.
Pay it no emotional attention and focus on all the THUMBS UPs that you also can see. Keep your focus on the people who are enjoying your videos and what you share. There are far more of them than the thumbs down crowd. I took the time to consult GPT so that you can read it for yourself... you can also find the YouTube Content Creators Handbook and many support videos here so that you can proceed with confidence.
Second and also important to remember... YOUTUBE, wants you here. All the social platforms want you making and sharing quality videos on their platforms. And they want you making quality content... because they make money from quality content creators. And so do we... that's why they have monetization incentives for you to share your content. So the thumbs down is not something you should worry about.
READ UP... and go forth to create your beauty and your beautiful life as an artist! And share it here with us knowing you are loved and supported by this community.
For those of you who wrote to me... hugs you a bunch for reaching out, this is how you grow!! And you should be proud of yourself for not giving up and for asking good questions first. It means you care about what you're doing and you care about your artwork and your future audience, so you're already doing great! I hope this helps you!
ChatGPT...
What a Thumbs-Down Actually Means (and What It Doesn’t)
1. It does not mean your video is bad.
Most viewers hit dislike for reasons that have nothing to do with your content:
They’re in a bad mood.
They disagree with one tiny thing.
They don’t like the title, thumbnail, or topic.
They clicked by accident.
They wanted a different type of tutorial.
They’re reacting to their own frustration, not you.
Creators think dislikes = “I’m not good enough.”
But viewers use it like a “meh” button, or a “not what I expected” button.
It’s rarely a personal attack.
2. YouTube doesn’t punish you for dislikes.
The algorithm doesn’t see a thumbs-down as “bad.”
It sees it as engagement.
Engagement = interaction.
Interaction = signal.
A video with likes + dislikes often performs better than one with zero activity.
Yes — a video with a few dislikes can still get pushed out more.
3. Nobody sees who disliked your video.
There’s no public shame, no permanent mark, nothing tied to your reputation.
Viewers move on in 3 seconds.
Creators should not obsess for 3 days.
4. Dislikes are unavoidable once you reach real audiences.
If you get zero dislikes, it means:
You don’t have reach yet,
You’re still in “friends and family” territory,
Or YouTube hasn’t tested your content with new audiences.
The moment YouTube pushes your video to strangers?
Expect dislikes.
It means you’re actually growing!
A thumbs down isn’t a judgment on your worth as a creator.
It’s a data point.
It’s engagement.
It’s normal.
It happens to everyone.
And it means you’re actually reaching people.
Keep going.
Learn more by researching reputable growth videos... many people share 'how to grow your YouTube Channel' videos and for our new artists, it's very worth the time to watch them so you can move forward and continue to be happy, excited and proud of your choices to share your work.
Much love!! Feel the support!! Have a creative day!!
