How Much Do YouTubers Earn?
Most of a YouTuber's revenue comes from advertising on the platform, with the average YouTuber earning around $18 per 1,000 views. But, if you have 100,000 subscribers or more, that number goes way up, with the average creator earning between $5,000 and $15,000 per month. In essence, increased views and subscribers lead to greater earnings, with top YouTubers making millions of dollars annually.
How to Become a YouTuber
Find Your YouTuber Niche
The first step to creating a successful YouTube channel is to find your niche - a specific area that inspires you and that you want to make videos about. Establishing this is probably the most crucial step in creating a successful YouTube channel. In addition, thankfully, there are no limits to what to choose: sports, fashion, books, health, chess, and more are all options. However, it is important to be as specific to ensure less competition and a higher chance of views.
The key takeaway is that the niche should be of interest and possess some knowledge so that viewers feel they are watching something worthwhile. Plus, this means more motivation to create content, and doing something you’re not so interested in could feel like a chore.
Create a Goal For Your Channel
When defining a niche, it's important to consider the goals for the content. Will the videos be educational, reviews, vlogs, reactions, how-to's, hauls, or something else? Each piece of content should have a clear goal and objective for viewers to take away.
On a broader scale, it's important to think about the purpose of the channel. Is it to entertain, to make people laugh, to educate, or to help? This overarching goal will influence the tone of the channel and guide future content creation.
Get to Know Your Audience and Competition
Before launching a channel, identifying the target audience is crucial for creating focused and successful content. Developing an "audience persona" by considering details such as age, occupation, hobbies, viewing habits, and expectations can guide video production. Additionally, studying the competition on platforms like YouTube is important to understand how to stand out and learn from successful creators. Analyzing what works and what doesn't can provide inspiration, but it's important to avoid copying others, as audiences are looking for fresh and unique content.
Create a YouTube Channel
Creating a YouTube channel is naturally an essential step in becoming a YouTuber. Fortunately, the process is quick, easy, and free; simply visit YouTube and register with an email address to create the channel and upload a profile photo.
Once the channel is set up, customization can begin by adding a channel trailer to provide a brief introduction to the content. A header image can also be included, which can be designed using tools like Canva or Photoshop, or by hiring a graphic designer through platforms like Upwork.
Both the profile photo and header image should reflect the tone and feel of the channel, and maintaining consistent branding throughout the content will enhance uniqueness and memorability.
Brainstorm and Plan Content
The next step is to start brainstorming and planning your content so you can start filling your channel with quality videos. Creating content that is new, innovative, and exciting can take some thought, so it's a good idea to set aside some time to do this. Decide on your content formats and create a content schedule to determine when new videos will be published. Consistency is important, and utilizing a tool like Asana or Trello can assist in creating a content calendar, keeping track of tasks, and saving time in the long run.
Invest in Video Equipment
The type of content you're creating doesn't necessarily require spending thousands of dollars on video equipment. Videos like vlogs, interviews, morning routines, unboxings, and comedy sketches can often be shot on an iPhone, so you don't have to invest much if you already have one. However, for certain types of video, a DSLR may be preferable for higher quality footage. Other useful equipment may include a microphone, tripod, and lighting.
Create High-Quality Content
With content planned and equipment prepared, it's time to start recording the first videos to launch the channel. Creating a script or outline can help maintain focus and ensure an efficient process, regardless of the type of content. It will probably take a few takes before to feel comfortable with the final product, so don't worry about repeating shots. That’s why experimenting with different approaches for the first few videos is highly encouraged to see what works best.
Fortunately, the power of editing can also be used to create a polished and professional video. There are many video editing tools available, such as Cyberlink Powerdirector, Adobe Premiere Pro, Apple iMovie, and Pinnacle Studio Ultimate. You can use them to trim your content, splice it together, add effects, music, text, and anything else you need to make your videos engaging and exciting.
Optimize SEO and Video Descriptions
Even with the highest quality content, if you don't consider SEO and optimizing descriptions, you're unlikely to get many views. That’s because YouTube has a special search engine that promotes specific content related to certain keywords when people search for certain keywords.
So, it's important to add relevant keywords to video titles, tags, filenames, and descriptions so that the videos have a better chance of showing up in searches. With YouTube, you can also assign your video to a specific category, which also increases the chances of being seen.
Promote Your YouTube Channel
In addition to SEO, adding CTAs (calls to action) at the end of videos on YouTube can encourage subscriptions and continued viewing. Alongside guest appearances on larger channels, hosting livestreams, and responding to viewer comments, this can help build viewer relationships and keep them coming back.
In addition to this, there are other ways to engage with your YouTube audience and promote your channel. Successful YouTubers actively use social media to share video updates, post relevant content, and connect with new audiences. Just remember that different platforms attract different demographics, so it's important to focus your efforts where your audience is most active; for example, Gen Z tends to prefer TikTok.
Monetize Your Channel
Having dedicated subscribers on YouTube is the only way to effectively monetize your account and there are many ways to do so. These include:
| Features | Requirement | |
| YouTube Partner Program (YPP) | Access to different resources and monetization features including adding paid ads to your content. | 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 total views. |
| Channel Memberships | Offering paid monthly memberships from $4.99 in exchange for exclusive content. | 1,000 subscribers and in the YPP. |
| Sponsored Content | Partnering with brands to do paid reviews and promotions of products or services. | There's no set number of subscribers, but brands like working with YouTubers who have a lot of reach so that their product reaches a big audience. |
| YouTube Premium Revenue | Individuals pay YouTube to go ad-free. You'll get a cut of the revenue based on how many views your videos get. | 1,000 subscribers and in the YPP. |
| Merchandise Shelf | YouTube allows you to sell branded merch directly through your channel. | 10,000 subscribers and in the YPP. |
| Donations | Platforms like Patreon allow your subscribers to give you donations directly in exchange for additional content. | There's no set number of subscribers needed, but it usually works best with a dedicated and loyal fan base. |
| Affiliate Marketing | Signing up for affiliate programs and including links in your content and video descriptions is a great way to make more sales and earn more commission. | An active affiliate program account. |
| Livestreams | When you're live streaming, viewers can purchase stickers to ensure their message is seen in the live chat, with the funds going to you. | 1,000 subscribers and in the YPP. |
| Licensing Content | If you create viral content, you can license it through platforms like Jukin Media and earn a fee. | Viral video content on YouTube. |
Use YouTube Analytics
A successful YouTube channel doesn't have flat, repetitive content, so it's important to keep improving. Luckily, YouTube's analytics feature helps you track your channel's progress and see what to change or keep the same about your content. There are many different metrics to analyze, including:
- Number of views and watch time per video.
- The number of people who have subscribed, and unsubscribed, from your channel.
- The estimated revenue from your monetization techniques.
- Data on how people are discovering your content.
- How well your videos are engaging people.
- The demographics of your audience.
- Overall patterns to explain which content performs best.
With this info in hand, it's crucial to keep an eye on what content is resonating with your audience. For instance, if a fashion haul video rakes in 300% more views than other content, it'd be a smart move to create more haul videos. Analyzing this data can also show you what elements to replicate in future videos, promoting continuous improvement and growth.
Key Factors Affecting Your YouTube Earnings
The following factors mean the difference between making good money on YouTube and making no money at all. So make sure you always keep them in mind when creating content.
- Audience: With a larger audience comes more views and more money. However, it's also important that your audience is highly engaged, as this will help you get the most out of any sponsorships, donations, memberships, and merch sales.
- Subscribers: The number of subscribers you have affects your eligibility to join the YouTube Partner Program, which gives you access to most monetization features. You need a minimum of 1,000 subscribers to take advantage of this.
- Niche: Some niches attract more subscribers and viewers than others. For example, beauty, gaming, and finance are some of the most popular and lucrative topics on YouTube right now.
- Number of monetization methods: If you're able to use a lot of different monetization methods at the same time, you'll have a higher earning potential.
Conclusion
Many people around the world have their sights set on becoming a top-level YouTuber. However, because there's a lot of competition on the platform, it's important to invest a lot of time and effort into understanding your audience and competitors, as well as consistently brainstorming, planning, recording, and marketing high-quality, engaging content.
It's also a good idea to keep an eye on your video and audience analytics so you can make improvements and develop your channel. As your channel grows, you'll also be able to monetize it and make YouTube a profitable venture. If you put in the time and do all of this, you'll be well on your way to becoming a successful YouTuber.
