You've been cutting your podcast clips down to 59 seconds and wondering why they're not getting traction.

Here's the thing: the rule you've been working around no longer exists. Since October 2024, YouTube Shorts accepts videos up to three full minutes — and if you haven't adjusted your content strategy yet, you're leaving your biggest discovery opportunity on the table.

In this episode, Mark — co-founder of Podcast Studio Glasgow and one of Scotland's most experienced podcasters — breaks down exactly what changed, why it matters, and how to act on it today.

Timestamps:

00:00 YouTube Shorts Update

00:49 What Changed to 3 Minutes

01:51 Why It Matters for Podcasts

03:00 The 60 Second Problem

03:56 Three Minute Clip Advantage

04:19 Four-Step Shorts Workflow

05:01 Algorithm and Discovery Boost

05:54 Services and Free Resources

06:32 Wrap Up and Contact

The rule change (and why most podcasters missed it)On 15 October 2024, YouTube quietly tripled the maximum length of Shorts from 60 seconds to three full minutes. Any vertical or square video up to three minutes now automatically qualifies as a Short and enters the algorithm-driven Shorts feed — on desktop, in the browser, and in the app.

Why YouTube is the platform you can't ignoreYouTube isn't just a video hosting site. It's the world's number one podcast discovery platform, and the numbers back that up:

• 34% of weekly podcast listeners say YouTube is their most-used podcast platform — ahead of Spotify and Apple Podcasts
• 1 in 3 podcast listeners say YouTube is where they first found a show they went on to follow
• 1 billion+ monthly podcast viewers worldwide
• 400 million hours of podcast content are watched on TV screens every month in 2024
• 84% of Gen Z listeners discovered new podcasts on YouTube

Why 60 seconds was killing your clipsGetting a genuinely useful podcast moment down to 60 seconds meant stripping out all the context that made it worth watching in the first place. You'd lose the setup, the build, the punchline. What you were left with was a promotional clip — something that told people your show existed, but didn't make them want to listen. Three minutes changes that entirely.

The four-step workflow — every episode

1. Pull the best three minutes — the moment, the exchange, the bit that made you lean forward in the edit
2. Export vertical at 9:16 — if you record multi-camera, this is minutes of work
3. Upload as a Short with a strong title, thumbnail, and link to the full episode in the description
4. Let the algorithm work — completion rate is the signal, and three minutes of genuinely engaging content completes far better than a truncated 59-second clip

The barrier to being found on the world's biggest podcast discovery platform has dropped. Record something good. Pull three minutes. Edit it vertically. Upload it. If you're already recording video, you're sitting on the raw material right now.

• Read the full blog post: YouTube Just Gave Podcasters Three Minutes — Are You Using Them?
• Our post-production package — we handle the clip creation, vertical export, and Short optimisation for you. Details at podcaststudioglasgow.com
• Free resources on the blog:

Scotland's longest-running professional podcast facility is based at 279 Abercromby Street in Glasgow's East End. Multi-camera setups, cinema-grade cameras, and professional post-production — so every session produces content that's ready to publish, clip, and distribute.

podcaststudioglasgow.com