- Getting your YouTube channel monetized
and earning revenue from your videos is awesome
(dramatic music)
but it's also a trap if you're not careful.
It is by some margin the least lucrative way
to make money on YouTube. (fingers snapping)
So here's five ways to bring in more cash
and turn your YouTube channel into a business.
But first, let's address the elephant in the room.
(elephant trumpeting)
What is wrong with YouTube monetization?
The basic answer is, well, actually,
there's nothing wrong with YouTube monetization.
It is an amazing achievement for small creators
and if you haven't got there yet,
here's a quick five-minute guide.
The problem is perception.
When many creators reach monetization,
they feel that's the end goal
when in truth, it's just the beginning.
If you were to look at an income pie chart
for the biggest creators, most of them would make 25%
or less from YouTube ad revenues
and there are many reasons for this.
First of all, YouTube takes a huge cut from ad revenue.
CPMs from niche to niche vary wildly.
If you're a gaming channel,
you might earn $1.50 per 1,000 views.
Whereas, and I can't quite believe this, but thanks
for the tweet, Paddy Galloway, telecomes tutorials can earn
up to $50 per 1,000 views.
Unfortunately, however,
high CPMs don't always align
with the creator's passion and topic.
Trends affect revenue.
Seasons affect revenue.
At times, it feels like everything
but what the creator does affects your ad revenue
and that ultimately is the problem with ad revenue:
a lack of control.
From day to day,
you can't rely on what your ad revenue is going to be
because YouTube controls everything.
But therein lies the trap.
Because YouTube controls everything,
they make it incredibly easy for you to just turn
on monetization and bring in some revenue.
Having said that,
if you are looking to maximize your ad revenue,
and I can't believe I'm saying this,
but I'm guilty of it myself in the last couple of months,
make your videos at least eight minutes long
because it allows you to really annoy your viewers
with mid-roll ads.
(upbeat music)
So if you want to earn a lot more revenue,
then you do have to put in the work, but it is worth it.
Now, the fact that advertisers will pay to put videos
on your adverts means that they do see value
in your channel, and this naturally leads us
onto the second way advertisers compare you:
through paid sponsorship deals.
This business relationship is between you and the sponsor.
All of the negotiation takes place totally separate
from YouTube, and it'll be up to you
to create content that sells the virtues
of the product the brand wants you to promote.
Now, YouTube is fine with you doing this
but it is critical that you tick this box to ensure
that your viewers know there is sponsored content
in the video.
It's important because it's a legal obligation.
Now, be careful not to jump into the common mistake
and take the first sponsorship deal that's offered to you.
The chances are it might not align.
For example, when I was a tech channel
and I was making videos about Android apps
and how to record your iPhone screen, I was inundated
with offers to review Bluetooth headphones and speakers,
which while in the tech space wasn't really my forte.
I accepted those products, I did reviews on them
and all of those videos tanked.
The first general rule of thumb
is would you use this product every single day
if you weren't being paid to talk about it?
Now, if the sponsor and the product
and the channel and the target audience do align,
how much should you as a creator charge the sponsor?
According to WebFX, a channel
with 10,000 subscribers could charge $200 a video
whereas a channel
within million subscribers could charge $20,000.
But honestly speaking,
if you charged by the subscriber account,
you're probably undervaluing yourself.
Engaged viewers are far more important.
If you can tell a sponsor that you get X number
of views on this type of video with these types
of comments where you can guarantee a decent sales pitch
of the products, then you've got more
of a bargaining chip to play with.
We know of channels that have made thousands
of dollars from sponsorship deals
with far fewer subscribers than what you might think
and to learn more about those channels,
check out the video over here
after you finish watching this video.
By now, for 99% of you,
this thing is probably getting on your nerves
but I know for a fact the over 1% are saying to themselves,
that's really cool.
I want one, shut up and take my money.
That's where affiliates comes into play.
Affiliate marketing is big money right now
and it's likely to be so for a long time to come.
And it's relatively simple to set up.
Demonstrate products on your videos, add a purchase link
to your description that pushes your audience to buy them.
All sorts of companies offer affiliate partnerships.
Amazon being the biggest and most obvious
but even here at vidIQ, we have an affiliate program.
Check it out in the link in the description.
But of course, as with sponsorships,
the products have to match the channel.
If you're a beauty channel, it might be a little difficult
to sell those gaming mouses to your audience.
And yes, if you are wondering, I just shaved my head,
that's the risk you run when you film on different days.
Each affiliate program
will likely have different requirements,
but unlike a sponsorship deal
that is usually a one-off,
once you're in an affiliate program,
if you know how to sell,
it can become a very regular and profitable income stream.
And again, be open and transparent with your audience.
If you have affiliate links
that you're going to profit from, do let your audience know.
More often than not, they'll be happy to support you.
And as a final thought, to maximize your affiliate income,
look for subscription-based products.
If a customer finds a product useful, they'll keep paying
for it on a regular basis, which means you get paid as well.
And as of time of recording,
this hasn't got an affiliate link,
but if there is one in the description.
(upbeat music)
What many creators don't realize
when they join the YouTube Partner Program
is that there are a lot more ways
to earn income besides ad revenue.
And they're all listed here.
One such method are supers,
be it a Super Chat, Super Stickers and Super Thanks.
And these are just some of the lovely people
in the vidIQ community who have sent us Super Chats
and stickies during our live streams
over the last couple of weeks.
We encourage this during the live Q&A portion
of the streams, but we still make sure there's lots
of valuable information for free,
which is why we don't do channel audits by Super Chats only.
Now, absolutely, cultivating an engaged audience
that's willing to part with cash does take time,
but with all of the most successful creators,
that is a common thread.
And in the most extreme cases, you only have your audience
giving you Super Chats on YouTube,
they'll be buying your chocolate bars in Walmart.
For many years, creators who didn't livestream were left out
of this Supers opportunity.
But now, just below this video,
there is a Super Thanks button
if you want to donate to your favorite creators.
You don't have to do that now.
There's no real way we can say thank you, but thank you.
Next on the direct YouTube monetization list
are memberships.
This is where you offer exclusive perks
to your biggest fans.
It could be anything,
like exclusive content, live streams, or loyalty badges.
As a reminder, subscriptions mean a constant flow
of income, so it can be very lucrative.
But what also comes with this income
are expectations from your members
and responsibilities from you as a creator.
If you don't do what you've promised, they'll stop paying
and also consider how scalable your perks are.
It might be fine to do custom artwork for five members
but what happens when you get to 100, 200, 1,000?
The beauty of memberships, as well as Supers,
is that because they're integrated directly
into YouTube, they are incredibly easy
to turn on and set up.
The downside is YouTube's cut.
For each Super and membership,
YouTube will take 30% of the revenue, which compared
to services like Patreon is pretty aggressive.
By only focusing on ad revenue
as an income for your YouTube channel,
you are leaving so much money on the table,
money that you could invest in Bitcoin.
I will be fascinated to know what the actual value
of Bitcoin is when you watch this video.
Having said all of that, if your main focus is ad revenue
on YouTube, then I have some awesome news.
You can now earn ad revenue on YouTube Shorts.
Just imagine those tens
of millions of views coming into your channel.
That can only mean one thing, right?
(dramatic music) (splatting sound)
Oh no, it's rubbish, isn't it?
If anything, revenue
from YouTube Shorts emphasizes why you need
to diversify your income beyond ad revenue.
But if you do wanna know how much you'd earn
from YouTube Shorts,
then this video is the next one for you.