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Retention rate
The proportion of a video still being watched at each moment, and the graph that shows exactly where people left.
The single number matters less than the shape of the curve. A sharp drop in the first seconds is a hook problem. An even decline is a pacing problem. A cliff at twelve seconds means there is something at twelve seconds.
Platforms weight watch time heavily, so retention is one of the few metrics that changes distribution rather than merely describing it. A video that holds people is shown to more people.
It is also the fastest feedback loop in this work. The graph names the second to re-edit, without needing anybody’s opinion about whether the video was good.