Making money on YouTube is one of the most popular activities for people who want to work online at home. It’s something you can do in your spare time without spending any money. Plus, it is ideal for pairing with other online ventures such as blogging or paid surveys.
There are many ways to make money from Youtube videos. For example, you can create content about your life as a parent, gamer, or student, review products, make DIY (do it yourself) videos, or even sell items online like clothes and gadgets. Plus, there are plenty of ways to monetize the videos you upload so they will generate revenue. In this post, we will break down how you can make money on YouTube for beginners.
Some YouTubers Make a LOT of Cash
There are around four billion people globally who are connected to the world wide web. Every month, YouTube has approximately two billion active users. That’s basically half of the internet! So YouTube is enormous and growing every year, and yes, some people make big money on the platform. In fact, three of the top earners in 2021 include:
Ryans World
This YouTube channel used to be called Ryan ToysReview and is currently the highest-grossing channel in the world. It features nine-year-old Ryan Kaji and his family. He started when he was only three years old, making video toy reviews on the platform. It is reported that the channel pulled in $29.5 million last year.
MrBeast
MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson) is another relatively young YouTube star raking in some serious cash. His main channel centers on expensive and off-the-wall stunts like riding a ferris wheel 1,000 times or freezing himself in ice. The 23-year-old gets around 11 million views a day, translating into roughly $55,000 earned every 24 hours.
RCLBeauty101
Rachel Claire Levin is a household name in the YouTube world, especially among teenagers. The famous beauty guru, social media influencer, and YouTuber goes by RCLBEauty101, the channel she started when she was just 15. Levin has expanded through the years from makeup tutorials to food, lifestyle, DIY, and fashion videos, and she now has 14.5 million subscribers. At 26, she reportedly has a net worth of $13 million.
How Are These People Earning Money on YouTube?
Some people mistakenly think you can just throw up a youtube channel, and the cash will start flowing in automatically, but this is typically not the case (although it has happened). It’s not the videos themselves that make money; it’s the ad revenue from the channel itself. Think of it a little bit like television. TV stations don’t actually earn from the shows they air. Instead, they make money from the ads they run during commercial breaks.
How Much Money Can YOU Earn on YouTube?
There are dozens of YouTube success stories like those listed above, so it’s clearly not impossible to become wealthy by starting a YouTube channel. According to some sources, the average YouTuber makes around $18 per 1,000 ad views, which averages out to approximately $3.00 to $5.00 per 1000 video views. However, there are a lot of factors that go into whether a channel brings in revenue or not, including:
The length of the videos
The quality of the videos
The number of views the videos receive
The number of times ads are clicked on the video pages
As you can see, although creating a YouTube channel can be an excellent side gig that could even turn into a full-time income, it’s going to take a lot of patience, some skill, and a little bit of luck to get there.
So, how do you get started? Let’s cover that next.
Choosing Your YouTube Niche
Perhaps you already know the type of content you want to create for your channel. However, if you haven’t decided yet, this will be your first step. You can’t just upload a bunch of random videos and expect to be successful. You need a specific topic—a niche. This is going to be the foundation of your business, so choose wisely.
It’s essential that you choose a topic of interest to you. For example, if you’re a photographer, you may want to teach others photography skills. If you’re an artist, you may envision your YouTube channel being about art. If baking is your passion, perhaps you can instruct others on how to make the perfect pies. There are literally millions of niches to choose from. Just make sure you pick something that you will enjoy.
Steps To Starting a YouTube Channel
Starting a YouTube channel is one of the few endeavors where you can get detailed instructions directly from Google, and that’s probably the best place to begin. First, however, we’ll briefly run through the steps here before moving on to some different ways of making money on YouTube.
- Go to YouTube and click sign in. It’s on the upper right-hand corner of the page.
- Sign in to YouTube with the Google account you want your channel to be associated with. If you don’t have a Google account, you’ll need to create one. However, you also might want to consider creating a new Google account anyhow and use it specifically for your YouTube activities.
- Head to YouTube settings and click on your profile icon in the upper-right corner of your screen. Then click on “create a channel.”
- Create a name for your channel. This will also create a new additional Google account with its own history and settings that are managed from your main account. Be sure to use the “select custom name” option so you can create a name that is appropriate for your new channel. This is especially important if you are an already-established business.
- Customize your channel by adding a description, uploading a profile picture, and adding links to your social media pages and website or blog (if you have them).
Congratulations! You have just created your first YouTube channel!
How To Make Money With Your YouTube Channel
So, now that you have your channel up and running, what comes next?
The most significant source of income for most YouTubers is AdSense revenue. But to start getting paid for advertisements on your page, you’ll need to be accepted into the YouTube Partners Program. This should be your first goal. To make this happen, you will need to have.
- At least 1,000 subscribers
- 4,000 valid public watch hours over 12 months (this means that altogether, people need to watch 4000 minutes of video content across your channel
- An AdSense account
Once you’re approved for the Youtube Partners Program, you can start earning through advertisements.
In addition to Google AdSense, there are several other ways that YouTubers make money online. As you progress and become more familiar with how the platform works, you may want to consider some of these additional sources of income on YouTube:
- Selling your own merchandise
- Becoming an affiliate partner (selling other people’s merchandise for a commission)
- Creating sponsored content
- Getting your fans to support you financially through Patreon, Kickstarter, or some other crowdfunding source
Closing Thoughts
Finally, as you start getting more involved in your YouTube venture, you might consider adding new equipment such as cameras, microphones, green screens, and new tools for audio and video editing. However, these items can really add up. If you’re looking for a way to finance some new purchases for your business, consider doing surveys for cash. Online surveys are a great way to cover extra expenses and help you get your business up and running without affecting your regular budget.
YouTube is the second most visited site globally (next to google), and thousands of people make an excellent living on the platform. If you choose the right niche, follow the steps, and put in some time and effort, there’s no reason why you can’t do the same.
