Glossary
Creator glossary for Shorts, TikTok and Reels
29 terms in plain English, from RPM and reused content to safe zones and SRT files. Each one links to the guides, answers and calculators that go deeper.
Monetization
Content IDYouTube's automatic system that matches uploads against copyrighted audio and video and files claims for the owners.CPM (cost per mille)What advertisers pay per 1,000 ad impressions, before the platform takes its share.Inauthentic contentYouTube's policy name for mass-produced or repetitive videos, such as near-identical uploads made from a template.Reused contentYouTube's name for videos built mostly from someone else's material without enough of your own commentary, editing or story added.RPM (revenue per mille)What you earn per 1,000 views on YouTube, after YouTube's share is taken out.Shorts revenue sharingHow YouTube pays Shorts creators: ads from the Shorts Feed go into a monthly pool, and you keep 45% of the share allocated to you.TikTok Creator Rewards ProgramTikTok's program that pays eligible creators for original videos that are at least 1 minute long.YouTube Partner Program (YPP)YouTube's program that lets creators earn money from ads, memberships, Super Thanks and Shopping.
Growth
Audience retentionHow much of your video people watch, shown as an average percentage and a graph of where viewers drop off.Brand dealA paid agreement where a company pays you to feature its product in your content.Engagement rateLikes, comments, shares and saves divided by views (or followers), shown as a percentage.HookThe first one to three seconds of a short video, built to stop the viewer from scrolling past.Link in bioThe single link a profile allows, usually pointing to a page that lists all your links, products and offers.Viewed vs. swiped awayA YouTube Studio metric for Shorts showing what share of people chose to watch your Short instead of swiping past it.
Editing
Aspect ratioThe shape of a video, written as width:height. Shorts, TikTok and Reels use 9:16 vertical video.B-rollExtra footage you cut to over your main shot, such as close-ups, screen recordings or stock clips.BitrateHow much data each second of video uses, usually in megabits per second (Mbps). Higher bitrate means larger files and more detail.Burned-in captionsCaptions that are part of the video image itself, so they show for every viewer and can't be turned off.Jump cutA cut that removes a pause or a mistake from one continuous shot, so the video jumps forward slightly.Safe zoneThe middle area of a vertical video that isn't covered by the app's buttons, captions and username.SRT fileA plain-text caption file that lists each line of speech with its start and end time.
Music and audio
Tools
AI avatarA computer-generated presenter that speaks your script on camera, sometimes modeled on a real person.AI clippingSoftware that finds the best moments in a long video and turns them into vertical short clips automatically.AI voice (text-to-speech)A synthetic voice that reads your script aloud, used for voice-overs without recording yourself.Content repurposingTurning one piece of content into many, such as cutting a long video into Shorts or a podcast into clips and posts.Cross-postingPosting the same short video to several platforms, such as Shorts, TikTok and Reels.Faceless channelA channel where the creator never appears on camera, using voice-over, screen recordings, animation or stock footage instead.WatermarkA logo or text an app adds to your exported video, often on free plans.
Reviewed on 2026-11-05. Platform rules change: each term links to a page with its sources.