Video-sharing platform YouTube is nearing its twentieth birthday, and what a monster of a milestone! In 2021, social media management platform Hootsuite noted that 1.7 billion unique visitors access the site per month, more than Amazon, Wikipedia and Facebook. Roughly 81% of internet users have watched content on YouTube at least once, and two-thirds of U.S. users access the site every single day.
However, with its exploding popularity, YouTube has also seen an astounding increase in the number of content creators hoping to earn good money on its platform. Stories abound of early content creators who earned millions, and even now, popular Youtubers regularly report hefty earnings from its monetization program. But is 2022 too late to join the ranks of million-dollar video creators?
Once upon a time…YouTube paid a lot
YouTube’s monetization program has grown steadily harder to access as its platform has rocketed to everyday household usage. While the site had hardly monetized when it was first launched, within five years it had introduced its YouTube Partner Program and added targeted pre-roll ads across its platform.
In the early days, YouTube’s monetization program was open to everyone. Anyone could sign up for the service, start uploading videos and immediately begin making ad money. But this led to some accounts earning money off copyrighted material. As a result, in 2017 parent company Google announced that YouTube creators would need 10,000 lifetime channel views in order to qualify for monetization. Shortly after, in 2018 the company further tightened its monetization qualifications to a minimum of 4,000 viewing hours in the previous 12 months and 1,000 channel subscribers, which is where they remain today.
Obviously, the largest impact has been felt by smaller content creators. When everyone could earn ad money off their videos, Insider estimated that YouTube paid out more than $1 billion to the music industry alone. As the company restricted its monetization qualifications, however, the number of people who could share ad revenue with YouTube decreased.
By Q2 2022, YouTube posted quarterly earnings of $7.34 billion in ad revenue – a 4.8% increase year over year. According to Insider, Google shares 55% of its ad revenue with the video creator, amounting to $3-5 every 1,000 views. If you haven’t qualified for monetization, though, all those ad dollars go straight into YouTube’s pocket.
How long it really takes to monetize on YouTube
Since Google has limited ad revenue to higher-performing content creators, most potential Youtubers focus on reaching that first milestone: monetization. While there are a number of policies with which a YouTube channel must conform, the major limiting factors to monetization are logging enough viewing hours and attracting enough subscribers.
Viewing hours is the more accessible goal. For example, if you publish a 10-minute video that’s viewed 100 times, you’ll have earned 1,000 minutes of viewing time – 16.6 hours in total. If you can gather at least 500 views per 10-min video, you could log those 4,000 hours with just 48 videos.
Attracting enough subscribers is the hard part.
In 2020, Insider reported that a mere 0.4% of YouTube channels grab the majority of views. As a result, VidIQ estimates that it takes 15.5 months of consistent uploads to hit 1,000 channel subscribers. Tubebuddy concurred, finding that the average Youtuber would need to upload 3 videos per week for a year to reach that magic number.
Basically, you can expect to upload about 150 videos before you log enough viewing hours and gain enough subscribers to qualify for monetization through the YouTube Partner Program.
How to improve YouTube visibility
In order to qualify for monetization and begin earning income, an aspiring Youtuber needs to get more views. Some creators go to extremes (and end up in the news), but in reality, improving algorithm visibility is the number one point on which to focus.
Unlike on Google search, YouTube users generally find videos through the homepage and suggested videos. The YouTube algorithm focuses on finding the right video for each user and then enticing them to keep watching. The more content users consume on YouTube, the more revenue the video platform can make. Same deal for content creators: you need to hook them with fresh, appealing content and then reel them in with related and exciting subjects.
1. Focus on keywords
Because YouTube’s video discoverability is based on its search engine, you’ll want to focus on keywords to make sure your content is ending up in front of the right viewer. Just like with writing a blog post or web copy, keyword research helps viewers find you and your content. Try using Google Adwords and SEMRush to narrow down your primary keywords.
Make sure to add your keywords in four places: in the video’s file name (i.e. video_name.mov), in the video’s title, in the YouTube video description (ideally in the first two lines) and in the video’s script (the SRT file used for closed captions and subtitles).
2. Maximize video appeal
The goal here is to entice people to watch your video without coming off too salesy. To maximize your appeal, upload a custom thumbnail for all your videos, ensuring a consistent visual style across the channel. Write a catchy title, one that has enough intrigue you just can’t help clicking on it. And lastly, write an interesting and relevant video description, since the first sentence will show up on search as an excerpt.
3. Keep people watching your videos
Once you have someone watching one of your videos, make it easy to keep watching your content and to stay within your channel’s ecosystem. It’s a good way to convert viewers into subscribers.
To plug more of your content, use: cards (recommending relevant content in your video), end screens (end with a call to action that has your viewer watching another video), playlists (group together categorically similar content) and subscription watermarks (those subscribe buttons that hover at the bottom of the screen).
4. Cross-promote
YouTube doesn’t really care where you bring in the views. According to the site’s product team, “the algorithm only pays attention to how the video performs in context.” That means, if it does well on the homepage, YouTube will promote the video on more homepages. If you’re focusing on qualifying for monetization, then your primary focus will be increasing the view count and engagement.
In that case, focus on bringing in additional interest from outside. You can use YouTube ads, blog posts, social media cross-promotion and partnerships with other brands/channels to pull in more viewers. In fact, embedding a YouTube video in your blog or website is actually a great way to improve your Google SEO ranking as well as your YouTube video view count.
5. Up your viewer engagement
In order for your audience to grow, you need to nurture your relationship with your viewers. Part of the appeal of YouTube is how close your viewers feel to you versus a traditional celebrity.
Engage with viewer comments, letting them know you care and find their ideas interesting, and interact with other channels to grow your network. Try to respond directly to comments or host Q&As. Live streams also increase engagement. Cross-channel promotion, wherein you and another Youtuber appear in the same video or similar-themed videos, can help grow your network as well.
6. Improve quality through experimentation
Lastly, YouTube rewards creators who give viewers what they want – quality content. Just like with a blog or website, when you’ve found your niche, dig deeper and become the go-to on that subject. It not only helps with branding, but it lets potential viewers know what to expect when they see more of your content.
Content series perform very well, for example. If one subject absolutely blows up, lean into it and expand your content on that idea. Be creative and experiment until you find your niche. YouTube doesn’t punish your channel for low-performing videos, so view every new upload as a chance to interact with your viewers and discover more of what interests them.
How Youtubers make money
That said, there’s a generally simple, four-prong formula for how Youtubers earn big money through the platform.
Ad revenue
Once you’ve qualified for monetization, YouTube proceeds to share ad revenue for all those video ads that interrupt your non-premium viewing time.
As mentioned before, YouTube generally pays out $18 per 1,000 ad views or $3-5 per 1,000 video views, which equates to roughly $300-500 for a video with 100k views. Youtubers only get credited for an ad when the viewer watches 30 seconds or more, so if a user skips every ad, the earning potential drops and vice versa. If you’re earning $500 a video, by uploading 10 videos in a month, you’ll have earned $5,000. So the more videos you publish and the more viewers you have, the more you can earn.
Affiliate income
Another major revenue stream comes from affiliate income.
Youtubers often mention products and services that they enjoy, demonstrating how to use it, why they love it and answering common questions. They’ll often include a link in the video description or within the video itself, and if you click it and purchase an item, the content creator gets credited for that referral.
Affiliate commissions can pay 1-10% of the product’s sale price (or even more!), so depending on the product category, affiliate income can quickly stack up. You can find appropriate affiliate programs through platforms like Lasso.
Best of all, you can benefit from affiliate income before qualifying for YouTube’s Partner Program, making it a good choice for monetizing a smaller YouTube channel.
Merchandise
If a channel really takes off, one way to monetize is by selling channel or brand merchandise. Popular products include t-shirts, sweatshirts, mugs and bags, and many dropshipping options mean that content creators who also sell merch won’t have to get too involved in the nitty-gritty of managing inventory. Assuming a popular Youtuber sells merch at a standard 30% retail markup, the potential for earning good money off this revenue stream is huge.
Sponsorships
One other important income stream for Youtubers is sponsorships.
Usually Youtubers will promote brands that have products they believe in, like a car channel sponsored by a major tire brand or a lifestyle vlogger sponsored by a skincare brand, and rates are highly negotiable. Platforms like Air Media Tech, Grapevine Village and MakrWatch match creators with possible brand sponsors and help creators grow their channels. In 2020, Statista found that a channel with over 1 million subscribers can earn a minimum of $7,332 per sponsored video. Channels with 100,000-1 million subscribers could earn a minimum of $1,306 per sponsored video. Essentially the larger your audience, the more you can earn.
Youtubers can also create paid communities, where they offer premium content and products to members through their own website, app or membership platform Patreon.
Recent examples of high-performing Youtubers
One great example of a newer YouTube high-performer is That Little Puff, a channel created in August 2020 that follows the cooking adventures of seven fluffy cats and their owners. Capitalizing on their popularity in TikTok, That Little Puff was born on YouTube only one month later. Although it took a while for it to climb to stardom, That Little Puff quickly hit its stride in July 2021 when YouTube rolled out YouTube Shorts to all U.S. users. Now, the channel boasts more than 14 million subscribers and has more than 8 million views on its most recent short videos. The creators behind the scenes monetize through ads, brand sponsorships and an e-commerce shop that sells pet-related items.
Another high-earner is Andrei Jikh, the creator behind the self-named finance channel Andrei Jikh. Launched in 2015 and currently clocking over 2 million subscribers, Insider reports the finance guru earned $1.6 million in YouTube ad revenue over three years. Jikh monetizes through ads but also heavily promotes his own finance course and masterclass, coaching sessions, affiliate partners and has a Patreon where members can sponsor him in exchange for exclusive stock insights.
Bottom line
The potential to earn a lot of money on YouTube still exists even now, making YouTube a great option for increasing your income and building wealth. Although it’s harder to monetize through YouTube’s Partner Program, since smaller channels will need to meet minimum qualifications first, there are still a multitude of ways to monetize a YouTube channel that hold plenty of earning potential. Focus on building your channel community through social media management and keyword research, qualifying for ad revenue, promoting affiliate products, selling merchandise and pursuing sponsorships to increase your YouTube video earnings. Popular new Youtubers all develop multiple revenue streams to beef up their income, and you can too.
