A playlist is a next click
On a small channel, a playlist is how someone who finished one video finds the next one without hunting the uploads tab. It is not a growth setting. It works when the videos in it make the same promise. "All uploads" is already a list YouTube gives you. A playlist named after the topic is the one you control.
Group by the promise, not by the month
Put the studio-setup videos in one playlist and the beginner tutorials in another. Mixing them because they were filmed in March makes the second video feel unrelated. Order the playlist so the clearest video is first. A new viewer may start there instead of on your homepage.
The mini-audit can show which recent videos have no links in the description. Those are the ones that should point at the playlist.
Link it where the viewer already is
Add the playlist URL in the description, after the two-line summary. The description generator leaves room for that link. End screens and cards are set in YouTube Studio. The public Data API does not return them, so an audit should tell you to check Studio rather than pretend to score them.
Keep the playlist in the plan you save
When a new video matches a playlist, the upload is not finished until the playlist includes it and the description links back. Paid plans keep the written fixes and the calendar so that step is on the checklist. The free tools stop at the draft and the public metadata.
Questions
How many playlists does a small channel need?
One per promise you actually repeat. Two clear playlists are easier to maintain than ten that each hold a single video.
Should every video be in a playlist?
Put a video in a playlist when there is a sensible next video. A one-off with no follow-up does not need its own playlist.
Can an audit see my end screens?
No. End screens are not in the public Data API. Check them in YouTube Studio. The description link is the part a public mini-audit can see.