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YouTube has emerged as a lucrative platform for creators to generate income from their videos, with over 122 million daily users making it the second most popular search engine globally. If you have high-quality content that people want to see, you can succeed as a creator and unlock your YouTube channel’s earning potential, as is often the case with Instagram influencers or bloggers. But the great question is how to make money on youtube?
So, this guide will provide an overview of the latest YouTube monetization policies and guidelines for 2024, exploring different ad formats, placement strategies, and methods to attract advertisers and target your audience effectively. From joining the YouTube Partner Program and earning through ads to selling products, merchandise, or exploring brand partnerships and sponsorships, you’ll learn how to make money on YouTube and maximize your revenue streams.
Join the YouTube Partner Program
Eligibility Criteria
To join the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) and start monetizing your channel, you must meet specific eligibility criteria. These requirements ensure that creators have built a solid foundation for their channels and are committed to creating quality content that adheres to YouTube’s guidelines.
- Channel Requirements: Your channel needs to have at least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 valid public watch hours in the past 12 months. Alternatively, you can have 1,000 subscribers with 10 million valid public Shorts views in the last 90 days.
- Content Policies: Your channel must comply with YouTube’s Community Guidelines and AdSense Program Policies, covering topics like copyright, nudity, hate speech, and violence. Ensuring your content adheres to these policies is crucial for maintaining eligibility in the YPP.
- Monetization Policies: In addition to the channel requirements, you need to comply with YouTube’s Monetization Policies, which outline the types of content that can be monetized and provide guidelines on ad placement, video metadata, and copyright usage.
- Valid AdSense Account: To receive payments through the YPP, you need to have a valid AdSense account linked to your YouTube channel.
Application Process
Once you meet the eligibility criteria, you can apply for the YPP through YouTube Studio. Here’s the step-by-step process:
- Review Base Terms: Read and accept the YouTube Partner Program Base Terms, which contain general terms that apply to all monetization features on YouTube and how your content can impact your payments.
- Sign Up for AdSense: If you don’t have an existing AdSense account, you’ll be prompted to create one during the application process. YouTube will guide you through the steps to link your new AdSense account to your channel.
- Submit Application: After completing the previous steps, your application will be marked as “In Progress.” YouTube will review your channel to ensure it meets their policies and guidelines, typically within a month.
If your application is unsuccessful, you can appeal the decision within 21 days or keep uploading original content and reapply after a 30-day period. If this isn’t your first rejection or reapplication, you can try again after 90 days, ensuring your channel follows YouTube’s policies and guidelines.
Post-Approval Steps
Once approved for the YPP, you can start monetizing your channel through various features in YouTube Studio, such as Watch Page Ads, Shorts Feed Ads, Memberships, Supers, and Shopping. To turn on these monetization features, review and accept the relevant module terms.
After choosing your monetization strategies, you’ll be able to manage ad preferences, turn on monetization for your uploads, and more. YouTube provides a list of FAQs for creators who have just joined the YPP to help them get started.
It’s important to note that YouTube may turn off monetization on channels that haven’t uploaded a video or posted to the Community tab for six months or more to maintain a healthy, active ecosystem of channels.
Sell Products or Merchandise
Selling Your Own Products
YouTube creators can sell their own products or merchandise directly to their audience. This allows them to leverage their brand and connection with viewers to generate additional revenue streams. There are two main approaches creators can take:
- Fan Merchandise: This includes traditional branded items like t-shirts, water bottles, or other apparel and accessories featuring the creator’s channel name, logo, or catchphrases. Fan merchandise allows viewers to express their support and connect with the creator’s brand.
- Original Products: Creators can also develop and sell their own original products, such as digital downloads, online courses, physical goods, or services related to their content niche. This approach requires more effort but can potentially yield higher profits.
For new creators, starting with fan merchandise is a cost-effective way to establish an online store for their brand. Many print-on-demand services cater specifically to YouTube creators, making it easier to sell merchandise without the need for inventory management or upfront costs.
Promoting and Marketing Merchandise
Once a creator has set up their merchandise store, promoting and marketing the products to their audience is crucial. Some effective strategies include:
- Announcing new merchandise releases through videos on YouTube and social media channels like Instagram and Twitter to generate buzz.
- Including links to the merchandise store in channel descriptions, video descriptions, and social media bios.
- Highlighting new product additions or collections in videos and posts.
By leveraging their existing platform and audience, creators can drive traffic and sales to their merchandise store, further monetizing their YouTube presence.
Utilizing YouTube’s Built-In Features
YouTube also provides built-in features to help creators sell products and promote their merchandise. These include:
- YouTube Channel Links: Creators can add up to 14 links to their YouTube channel, directing viewers to their merchandise store, social media platforms, or other relevant websites.
- YouTube Shopping: Eligible creators can join YouTube Shopping to tag products in their videos, allowing viewers to easily purchase featured items.
Affiliate Marketing
In addition to selling their own products, creators can also engage in affiliate marketing by promoting and earning commissions on third-party products or services relevant to their audience. This approach allows creators to monetize their content without the need for developing their own products or managing inventory.
YouTube’s vast and diverse audience makes it an attractive platform for companies to partner with creators through affiliate marketing programs. By recommending products they genuinely use and believe in, creators can provide value to their viewers while generating additional revenue streams.
Explore Brand Partnerships and Sponsorships
Types of Sponsorships
There are several types of sponsorships that YouTube creators can explore to monetize their channels. These include:
- Product Reviews: This sponsorship happens when a brand sends free products in exchange for a video review or mention. Depending on the size of the YouTube channel, there may be extra compensation alongside the free product.
- Affiliate Partnerships: This sponsorship model gives creators a percentage of the money viewers spend through their affiliate links. Commissions can range from 5% to 30%, providing a scalable way to supplement income as a YouTube creator.
- Paid Sponsorships: This is viewed as the traditional influencer collaboration, where brands pay YouTube creators a fixed fee to talk about their products, services, or company. This can range from a single video to a multichannel campaign spanning several videos and sponsored posts.
Creators don’t have to choose just one of these sponsorship models. Doug Cunnington, creator of Niche Site Project, says: “As a seasoned YouTube content creator with a knack for internet marketing and SEO, securing sponsorships for my channel has been an integral part of my journey. I’ve delved into various sponsorships, including product reviews, affiliate marketing, and sponsored videos. The array of sponsorships helps diversify my income, and each type offers a unique dynamic to my audience.”
Retaining Brand Partners
Focusing on retaining previous brand partners can be beneficial for both creators and brands. From the creator’s perspective, it’s cheaper to retain existing clients than constantly seeking new ones, as it saves time and effort on outreach and pitching.
For brands, working with creators they already know and trust leaves less uncertainty, as they know what to expect from the partnership. To retain brand partners, creators should leave a great impression at the end of each campaign by going above and beyond, such as sending a campaign wrap-up report detailing the partnership’s success.
Additionally, creators should keep in touch with previous brand partners every few months, even when not expecting anything in return. This helps maintain top-of-mind awareness and keeps the conversation going.
Pitching to Previous Brand Partners
When pitching to previous brand partners, creators can focus on presenting a specific idea they want to bring to life with the brand, rather than reiterating their background and offerings, as the brand is already familiar with them.
Leveraging Brand Partnerships in Your Niche
If a brand decides to partner with another creator in your niche, it presents an opportunity for you to reach out and propose ways to expand the campaign’s reach. Highlight how your audience aligns with the brand’s target market and offer to create additional assets or introduce the brand to other creators in your niche.
Negotiating Paid Sponsorships
While accepting free products can be valuable when starting out, creators should know their worth and negotiate paid sponsorships when promoting a brand to their audience. This provides the brand access to potential customers and can drive actual revenue, making free products an inadequate payment.
Creators should illustrate to the brand why they should be paid, even if other creators in the niche accept freebies. This helps break the cycle of brands expecting free promotion.
Conclusion about how to make money on youtube
In the ever-evolving landscape of YouTube monetization, creators have an array of opportunities to turn their passion into a sustainable income stream. From joining the YouTube Partner Program and earning through ads to selling products, merchandise, or exploring brand partnerships and sponsorships, the key lies in understanding your audience, delivering value, and continuously adapting to new trends and platforms.
As we look ahead to 2024 and beyond, the possibilities for monetizing your YouTube channel are vast and varied. Whether you opt for traditional ad revenue, venture into e-commerce, or collaborate with brands, the potential for success lies in your ability to create compelling content, engage with your audience, and leverage the tools and resources available to you. Embrace the journey, stay true to your vision, and unlock the full potential of your YouTube channel.
