How to make money on YouTube
While it's possible to earn a significant amount of income from your YouTube account as a content creator, it's also not the easiest.
500 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute worldwide.
The numbers don't lie.
So the competition is quite intense and make lots of money online is getting more difficult.
Here are some powerful strategies you can use to unleash your earning potential on YouTube.
1. YouTube monetization: Use affiliate links on YouTube.
Promoting affiliate links can be a huge earning opportunity for channels that offer in-depth tutorials as well as insightful product reviews.
For example, if you recommend a product and a user visits your link to buy it, you'll start earning commissions.
You can put these links in the first few lines of your description and talk about your link in the content of your video.
The publication of affiliate links on YouTube bears a typical resemblance to promoting affiliate links on your blog.
Therefore, you should not put affiliate links everywhere in your YouTube content just for the monetary benefit (after all, you want your videos to be considered exclusive content that your audience can't get anywhere else).
Remember that people will only follow these links if they think you are a reliable resource.
To build trust with your audience and get more subscribers, help them solve real problems and offer tutorials.
As a bonus, you can create videos that offer solutions that you've already done yourself.
There are numerous affiliate programs you can join.
You can join lots of different programs in one place on a popular affiliate network like Shareasale or Awin.
2. Become a YouTube partner and earn money from video ads.
For many YouTubers, ads are YouTube's main source of revenue.
As a YouTube partner, you earn money in a variety of ways.
You can earn money from ads placed before your videos, channel memberships, or Google AdSense banner ads.
However, there are a few basic rules to follow before becoming a certified YouTube partner, as well as a few prerequisites to get started.
In addition to complying with YouTube's advertising policies, you need to earn a minimum of 4,000 hours of video viewing on your channel in the last 12 months and have 1,000 subscribers
There is no concrete timetable or format for obtaining these 4,000 fundamental hours. You can get 100 hours each on 40 YouTube videos or any combination to reach your total of 4,000 hours.
For example, the famous international hit Gangnam Style took five months to reach one billion views.
However, Despacito became a viral video much more quickly, rushing to 1 billion views. In just 97 days.
After reaching the 4,000 hour threshold and earning your place as a YouTube partner, you can start earning money from ads.
However, you may not always be able to base your YouTube revenue generation on advertising alone.
There are other ways to consolidate your earning potential on YouTube.
Broadcasting a live stream here and there is also a great way to make money. People love the live element and the real-time factor.
If you have a loyal fan base that is watching your feed religiously, they will definitely want to buy from you.
In addition, YouTube has introduced the possibility of having a super cat and super stickers.
With these features, your premium YouTube subscribers can buy chat messages that are different from regular messages, which can be placed at the top of your chat comments.
This means that there is another source of income that you can take advantage of. This can be a great way to make money with your fans, in addition to the ads you have on your videos.
3. Earn money on YouTube by funding your fans.
If you've built a loyal fan base, encouraging them to fund your channel through crowdfunding can help you fund your new videos and make a profit.
A crowdfunding platform like Patreon simplifies the process of paying for your content.
For just one dollar, your fans can subscribe to their favorite channels, and even leave with exclusive rewards from their favorite YouTube content creators.
Tipee is another service that allows you to benefit from a combination of recurring and one-time donations.
For-profit and non-profit channels take advantage of this fan funding from their audiences to keep their video operations running smoothly.
As long as the type of content you create is engaging, entertaining, or valuable, you'd be amazed at how your viewers are opening the floodgates of generosity.
Understanding the demographics of your audience is also critical to deciding how to ask for donations.
4. Control your SEO on YouTube.
For video creators who haven't yet built a significant following, you need to kick things up and maximize YouTube's SEO this year.
To do this, do keyword research as you normally would. However, think a bit differently based on what people are looking for on YouTube.
Next, make sure you're using high-value keywords in your video title, description, and tags.
Once launched, you can check out your YouTube report “Traffic Source: YouTube Search” to get an idea of what people are looking for when they find your hosted videos.
In general, Google provides video results for keywords like”How to do it”, “reviews”, “tutorials” and terms Funny video.
There are also five factors wrenches YouTube SEO ranking to take into account:
- Number of comments
- Subscribers after watching a video
- Inches up/Inches down ratio
- Video length
- Click-through rates in YouTube search results
The basic principles of search engine optimization (SEO), like having quality content and being linked to quality channels, remain relevant in YouTube search results.
Remember that it will be increasingly difficult to rank on the first pages of Google for competitive keywords.
More videos are uploaded to YouTube every minute than all other video databases combined!
SEO is therefore not done overnight (but it can be accelerated thanks to these strategies).
One benefit of YouTube that can be used to your advantage is that it's easy to form partnerships and collaborate with the right people.
By allowing another popular YouTube partner to feature you in their videos or vice versa, you can attract a crowd of new viewers to your own channel.
But for this option, make sure you choose a relevant, high-traffic influencer that has a similar (or ideally larger) following as yours.
To find potential collaborators, search for other YouTubers on YouTube and find those who have a channel similar to yours.
You can also search for potential collaborators on Google by typing: “your keyword” + “collaborate.”
You may also consider doing “shout-outs” for other popular channels in exchange for mentioning your channel.
By collaborating with other creators, you could attract new fans who didn't know your channel before.
5. Get the most out of your YouTube marketing funnel.
Optimize your YouTube channel for sales. Choose your niche, become a YouTube partner, and start planning your sales funnel.
YouTube is a way to get your message out there, but you can make more money by using YouTube in unison with a blog.
That way, you gather more email addresses and eventually sell products to your fan base.
For example, if you're writing a blog post about an affiliate product that you recommend, reuse that content and create a YouTube video that's embedded in the article.
Then refer YouTube users to your blog and affiliate links to earn commissions and increase blog readers.
Another great option is to connect your YouTube channel to a e-commerce platform like Shopify and to sell derivatives. Here are some great merch stores on YouTube that you can be inspired by.
6. Become an Amazon influencer.
The Amazon influencer program is becoming more and more popular.
This influencer program allows you to maximize your presence on YouTube (social media in general) to earn money through Amazon recommendations.
After joining the program, you can review and recommend products and refer your visitors to Amazon to buy through affiliate links.
When your visitors click and make a purchase on Amazon, you get your share of the commissions, typically 8 to 10%.
In addition to product reviews, Amazon also offers content creators the opportunity to promote their own products. This means that if someone buys your product, you will receive the full profit from the sale.
You can also monetize your audience by taking advantage of the Amazon affiliate program without even having to fulfill an order yourself.
However, keep in mind that this program is not open to everyone.
The number of followers on social media and other parameters determine the chances of approval of Amazon influencer marketing programs.
7. Explore additional earnings from YouTube Red subscribers.
YouTube Red allows users to pay $9.99 to watch YouTube without ads.
Even without YouTube ads, content creators can still make money and earn 55% of revenue, depending on viewing time.
Opinions are divided as to whether YouTube Red increases or decreases CPM rates.
With YouTube Red, your watch time matters, so check your YouTube Analytics stats to see metrics like watch time and video engagement.
How much money can you make on YouTube?
The short answer: that depends.
By using ad monetization, affiliate links, and selling sponsored placements in your videos, you can maximize your earning potential.
On YouTube, there are lots of ways to make money. This can be done from advertisements on a CPM, CPV, and CPC basis. With cost per impression (CPM), A typical YouTuber earns $7.60 for 1,000 views.
However, according to the Google settlement, creators receive 55% of revenue generated by ads and Google keeps 45% of them.
If you use the affiliate marketing As a channel owner, advertisers make payments using a variety of models — typically cost per sale or cost per lead.
Here, your earnings are directly linked to the number of conversions and sales commissions you get from advertisers.
You can also sell sponsored product placements in your videos.
YouTube is quite favorable to advertisers in this regard, as the platform earns money by selling short mentions or more extensive product recommendations to brands looking for visibility.
However, if you've been successful in creating a measurable audience on your channel, brands will pay you.
The amount of money can range from $20 to $50 for every few thousand YouTube views they get on your channel.
For example, if their video on your channel reaches millions of views, you can dance at the bank for between 20,000 and 50,000 dollars.
This strategy is a better way to monetize when you're not generating millions of views.
How much money do YouTubers make?
For thousands of YouTubers, that answer may be nothing, or almost nothing.
For popular YouTubers, that can add up to a million dollars or more per year.
Earning money is becoming increasingly difficult, as advertising revenue can vary from $0.35 to $5 per view, with $1 per 1,000 views being the safest hypothesis.
The profitability of your channel is linked to both your views and your niche.
YouTubers in highly regarded niches like listicles, news, celebrity gossip, makeup and beauty, and popular fails are rapidly earning revenue with millions of views.
There are also YouTube revenue calculators to help you understand how much you can earn based on video views and engagement.
How many views do you need to make money on YouTube?
As soon as you reach a $100 balance, YouTube pays you.
And can you make money with YouTube by paying subscribers?
YouTubers have just set up a subscription service for YouTubers with a high number of followers.
The components of a successful YouTube channel
Now let's see what you need to do to have a successful YouTube channel.
Channel Art
This is the image that appears at the top of your channel. It's a great place to put a call to action or something really catchy.
A photo, logo, and text that relates to what you do.
This gives the viewer an idea of who you really are and what they will be able to do by engaging on your channel.
Call to action in the art chain
It's a great place to place a call to action.
This tells viewers what you want them to do next: your products, other social profiles, etc.
Profile photo
A nice profile photo is a must! It is an image that will always be visible because it is in the lower left corner under each of your videos.
Make sure the photo you choose is up to date.
If you're using a personal photo, a smile is contagious, so put one on!
YouTube channel name
It could be anything — just make sure it's relevant to your content.
Channel trailer
A YouTube channel trailer is a short video that plays when the viewer arrives on your new YouTube home page. Make sure the video is engaging, interesting, and brief!
The video will be your first impression even before the viewer has access to your content.
The first few seconds are the most crucial. Making sure your channel trailer has an impact is critical.
Treat it like a movie trailer and give the audience a glimpse of what's to come.
A voiceover is optional, but you need to make sure your visuals match what you're saying.
CTA and description of the channel trailer
Again, this is your first impression of offering value to your visitors.
Use a call to action to invite people to participate in your free masterclass, an audit, lead magnet, etc...
The description then tells viewers what the video is about and what they will get by watching it.
Recent downloads
This section shows the latest videos you've uploaded.
It's the perfect place to show off your most recent videos and to get people to check out your content.
If you have playlists, they can also be presented here to make it easier for the viewer to consume your content.
FAQs
How do I make money on YouTube without ads?
If you're not making a lot of money with ad views, there are plenty of other ways to generate revenue from your channel. Here are some of the best options:
1. Add affiliate links to your video descriptions to recommend products and earn commissions on each sale.
2. Sell merchandise, T-shirts, and physical products related to your e-commerce platform.
3. Sell digital products, online courses and eBooks.
4. Grow your audience and get brand sponsorship on YouTube.
5. If you are an expert in your niche, sell coaching and consulting services and charge an hourly rate.
Is it hard to make money on YouTube?
Making money on YouTube is no easy task and, yes, you have to work hard. According to YouTube community guidelines, you need to have 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of viewing in the past 12 months to join the YouTube Partner Program. You then need to generate a large number of views and monitor your cost per view (CPV) to see how much money you get from ads.
If you don't have millions of views, affiliate marketing is a great way to monetize your channel. You can review products or conduct product tutorials and place affiliate links in your video description. Thus, you can earn commissions on each sale and earn more money than your advertising CPV.
I recommend that you create a blog and link it to your YouTube channel. You can thus promote affiliate links both on your YouTube channel and on your blog, and integrate your videos into your blog posts to get more visits (and improve your SEO).
Where can I find video editing software to make videos on YouTube?
This list of the best video editing software is a good starting point.
In addition, YouTube Studio is an application developed by Google that allows you to edit videos, add intros and outros, speed up or slow down the pace of your video, change the music in your video, and more.
If you want to be able to make changes later (for example, edit an old video again), it is recommended that you make a copy of your original file.
Summary.
Making money on YouTube is possible, but it's hard to make money with YouTube alone.
It's critical to have a platform that's yours, like a blog, and to use YouTube as a secondary traffic stream.
One of the advantages is that YouTube SEO is not yet as competitive as organic SEO.
If you can get started now and start generating traffic, you'll be in a better position in 2020, when the competition is more fierce.
My advice: Start a blog with a high-end marketing funnel, then join YouTube as a secondary way to build your email list and generate affiliate revenue.
The best way to do this is to start a blog with Bluehost along with your YouTube channel.
Reminder: here's how to get started:
- Go on Bluehost.com and click “Get Started.”
- Choose your hosting plan ($2.95/month is the cheapest with my link).
- Enter a new website domain name or select the one you already have.
- Enter your account information, account plan, and billing information.
- You can uncheck the add-ons Sitelock Security and Codeguard Basic.
- Click on Submit and you are ready to go!
Try Bluehost
Feel free to use some of these YouTube monetization tips to launch your channel and grow your audience of eager viewers this year.
Recommended resources: For more inspiration on how to make money with video, check out my reviews on best video editing software and my guide to selling online courses.
