How To Make A Money Making Youtube Channel is a question many aspiring content creators ask, and at money-central.com, we’re here to guide you through the process of building a profitable YouTube presence by sharing proven monetization strategies and effective content creation tips. If you’re ready to transform your passion into a lucrative online venture, let’s explore strategies for channel memberships, affiliate income, and how to leverage YouTube analytics.
1. Join The YouTube Partner Program (YPP)
Is joining the YouTube Partner Program the first step to monetization? Yes, the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) is often the essential first step for creators looking to monetize their content. It allows you to tap into various income streams, including ad revenue, YouTube Premium revenue, fan funding, and shopping features. YouTube has paid out over $50 billion to YPP members in the last three years, making it a worthwhile endeavor if you meet the eligibility criteria.
Being part of the YPP provides numerous advantages:
- Ad Revenue Sharing: Earn money from ads displayed during your videos and Shorts.
- YouTube Premium Revenue Sharing: Get a portion of the revenue from YouTube Premium subscribers who watch your content.
- Fan Funding: Utilize Super Chat, Super Thanks, and channel memberships to allow fans to directly support your channel.
- YouTube Shopping: Offer your products to your audience directly through YouTube.
- Creator Support: Access YouTube’s creator support resources for assistance and guidance.
- Copyright Match Tool: Protect your original content with YouTube’s copyright protection tools.
While joining the YPP is beneficial, it’s not the only way to make money on YouTube. Directing viewers to your store, affiliate partners, or creating sponsored videos can also be lucrative strategies, as noted by YouTube marketing expert Brendan Gahan. However, most monetization methods are easier, or only possible, with YPP membership.
How to Qualify for the YouTube Partner Program
What are the key requirements to join the YouTube Partner Program? To qualify for the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) and access monetization features, your channel needs to meet specific criteria. These include subscriber count, watch hours or Shorts views, adherence to YouTube’s policies, and location in an eligible region.
Here’s a detailed breakdown:
- 1,000 Subscribers: Your channel must have at least 1,000 subscribers.
- Watch Hours or Shorts Views: You need either 4,000 valid watch hours in the past 12 months or 10 million Shorts views in the last 90 days.
- Compliance with YouTube’s Policies: Your channel must be in good standing with YouTube and follow all monetization policies.
- Eligible Region: You must reside in an eligible region where the YPP is available.
Once you meet these milestones and ensure your channel complies with YouTube’s guidelines, you can apply for the YPP through YouTube Studio’s “Earn” tab. Meeting these requirements opens the door to various monetization opportunities and support features, as outlined by YouTube’s official guidelines.
2. Enable Ads on Your Videos
Is enabling ads the simplest way to generate income on YouTube? Yes, turning on ads for your videos is often seen as the simplest initial step to generate income on YouTube. Once accepted into the YouTube Partner Program, you can enable ads on your long-form videos, allowing YouTube to display pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll ads to viewers.
YouTube Ads
Here’s how it works:
- Automated Ad Placement: YouTube’s ad platform is almost completely automated, making it easy to start earning.
- Ad Types: YouTube shows viewers a combination of pre-roll and post-roll ads, which may or may not be skippable.
- Mid-Roll Ads: For videos longer than eight minutes, you can choose to place ads in the middle, either automatically or manually.
- Earnings Reports: Monitor your ad earnings in the Revenue tab of YouTube Studio, which provides monthly estimated revenue for videos with monetization enabled.
However, it’s important to note a few considerations:
- Demonetization Policy: YouTube’s demonetization policy can be cautious, potentially affecting ad revenue for some content.
- Revenue Split: YouTube retains 45% of ad revenue from standard videos and 55% from Shorts, as indicated in YouTube’s revenue sharing guidelines.
Looking Beyond Ads for Revenue
Why should you consider additional revenue streams beyond YouTube ads? While YouTube ads provide a simple way to monetize your videos, relying solely on ad revenue may not yield significant income. YouTube’s demonetization policies and revenue splits can impact earnings. Complementing ad revenue with other strategies can enhance your earning potential.
Exploring alternative revenue streams:
- Diversification: Combining ads with other earning strategies like fan funding, merchandise sales, and affiliate marketing diversifies your income.
- Stability: Relying on multiple income sources provides stability if one revenue stream fluctuates.
- Engagement: Additional revenue streams can enhance audience engagement through exclusive content and perks.
- Growth: Investing in merchandise, courses, or other offerings can drive channel growth and create a loyal following.
According to a report by New York University’s Stern School of Business in July 2025, creators who diversify their income streams tend to experience greater long-term financial stability and growth on the platform.
3. Enable Fan Funding
Should you let your audience support you with fan funding? Yes, enabling fan funding allows your audience to directly support your channel through tips, monthly payments, and exclusive perks. YouTube’s fan funding features, such as Super Chat, Super Stickers, Super Thanks, and channel memberships, can provide a sustainable income stream.
Patreon example
YouTube offers several ways for fans to contribute:
- Super Chat and Super Stickers: Viewers can purchase colorful messages and alerts during livestreams and video premieres, highlighting their comments in the chat box.
- Super Thanks: Fans can send tips directly on regular video uploads to show their appreciation.
- Channel Memberships: Fans pay a recurring fee for exclusive benefits, such as channel badges, custom emojis, exclusive content, and members-only live chats.
Utilizing Fan Funding Features
How can you effectively use YouTube’s fan funding features? Effectively using YouTube’s fan funding features involves offering valuable incentives, engaging with your audience, and promoting these options strategically. By creating tiered membership levels with increasing benefits, you can cater to different levels of support.
Strategies for effective fan funding:
- Tiered Memberships: Offer up to six membership levels with increasing benefits, such as exclusive content, early access, and personalized shout-outs.
- Engagement: Actively engage with your audience during livestreams and premieres, acknowledging Super Chat and Super Thanks messages.
- Promotion: Promote your channel memberships and fan funding options in your videos, end screens, and community posts.
- Value: Ensure the benefits you offer are valuable to your audience, such as exclusive content, behind-the-scenes access, and personalized interactions.
Offering valuable incentives and actively engaging with your supporters can create a stronger bond with your audience, resulting in increased financial support.
Exploring Other Fan-Funding Platforms
What are some alternatives to YouTube’s fan-funding options? While YouTube offers fan funding features, platforms like Patreon provide alternative ways for creators to source donations outside the YouTube ecosystem. Patreon allows creators to offer additional content, access, and perks in return for regular donations.
Alternative funding platforms to Patreon include:
- Ko-fi: A platform where fans can donate to creators as a one-time or recurring payment.
- Buy Me a Coffee: Similar to Ko-fi, this platform allows fans to support creators with small donations.
- Memberful: A membership platform integrated with WordPress, offering flexible subscription options and community features.
- Substack: Primarily for writers, Substack allows creators to offer paid newsletters and exclusive content to subscribers.
While you may need to invest in additional content to reward donors, these platforms offer a familiar way for your audience to support you on an ongoing basis.
4. Sell Products and Merchandise
Should you consider selling products and merchandise on YouTube? Yes, selling products and merchandise allows you to monetize your brand, engage your audience, and create a sustainable income stream. YouTube Shopping provides easy ways for fans to shop directly from your content, whether it’s branded merchandise or products you recommend.
T-shirts on Website
YouTube Shopping enables creators to:
- Open a Storefront: Create a storefront on your channel to showcase your products.
- Connect an Online Store: Link your existing online store to display products around your videos.
- Tag Products: Tag your products or products from other brands in your videos.
According to YouTube internal data, over 160,000 creators use YouTube Shopping to sell on their platform.
Setting Up YouTube Shopping
What is the easiest way to set up YouTube Shopping? The easiest way to set up YouTube Shopping is by connecting your Shopify store to your YouTube channel. This allows automatic syncing of your product listings, and customers can check out on YouTube or visit your store for a more in-depth shopping experience.
Key steps to set up YouTube Shopping:
- Connect Your Shopify Store: Integrate your Shopify store with your YouTube channel.
- Sync Product Listings: Automatically sync your product catalog to your YouTube channel.
- Tag Products: Tag products in your videos to make them directly shoppable.
- Manage Sales: Manage all your sales from Shopify, ensuring a seamless shopping experience for your customers.
If you don’t have an online store, you can start one with a free trial on platforms like Shopify.
Promoting Merchandise
How can you effectively promote merchandise on your YouTube channel? Promoting merchandise effectively on your YouTube channel involves integrating product mentions seamlessly into your content, using engaging visuals, and offering exclusive deals to your audience. By creating a compelling narrative around your products, you can drive sales and build brand loyalty.
Strategies for promoting merchandise:
- Integrate Product Mentions: Incorporate your products into your videos naturally, showcasing their features and benefits.
- Use Engaging Visuals: Create high-quality visuals of your merchandise, including lifestyle shots and product demos.
- Offer Exclusive Deals: Provide exclusive discounts and promotions to your YouTube subscribers to incentivize purchases.
- Promote on Social Media: Use other social media platforms to promote your merchandise and drive traffic to your YouTube channel.
Roman Atwood, a successful YouTube creator, sells a variety of merchandise under the Smile More brand, demonstrating the potential of branded swag.
5. Work with Brands as an Influencer
Is working with brands a viable way to monetize your YouTube channel? Yes, collaborating with brands as an influencer can be a lucrative monetization strategy. Brands are increasingly investing in influencer marketing, spending their advertising budgets on creators who’ve already built a loyal audience.
This creates opportunities for creators to negotiate deals in exchange for exposing their audience to branded products.
Establishing Your Baseline Fee
How can you determine your baseline fee for brand sponsorships? Establishing your baseline fee for brand sponsorships involves assessing the number of views your videos typically receive and multiplying that amount by a rate per view. This rate can vary depending on factors like your audience demographics, content quality, and niche.
Brendan Gahan suggests starting with a rate of 5¢ to 15¢ per view to determine your flat fee. Depending on your leverage, target audience, content quality, and niche profitability, you might negotiate a better deal if the brand is a good fit.
Factors influencing sponsorship rates:
- Audience Size: The number of subscribers and average views your channel receives.
- Audience Demographics: The age, gender, location, and interests of your audience.
- Engagement Rate: The level of interaction your audience has with your content, including likes, comments, and shares.
- Niche: The specificity and profitability of your channel’s niche.
Maintaining Transparency
Why is transparency important when partnering with brands? Transparency is crucial when partnering with brands to maintain trust and credibility with your audience. Endorsing products you genuinely like or believe in ensures your recommendations are authentic and resonates with your viewers.
Transparency involves:
- Disclosing Sponsorships: Clearly indicate when a video is sponsored or contains affiliate links.
- Authenticity: Only endorse products you genuinely like or believe in.
- Honest Reviews: Provide honest reviews and opinions, even if they are critical.
- Viewer Trust: Uphold trust with your audience by being transparent about your partnerships.
According to a study by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), influencers must clearly disclose their relationships with brands to avoid misleading consumers, ensuring ethical marketing practices.
6. License Your Content to the Media
Is licensing your content to media outlets a potential income stream? Yes, if you create a viral video with mass appeal, licensing your content to media outlets can be a potential income stream. TV news outlets, morning shows, online news sites, and other creators may reach out for rights to use your videos.
If your video goes viral, you can license your content in exchange for money. TV news outlets, morning shows, online news sites, and other creators might reach out about rights to use your videos.
Listing Your Videos in a Marketplace
How can you make your videos easier for media outlets to find and purchase? To make your videos easier for media outlets to find and purchase, you can list them in a marketplace such as Jukin Licensing. These platforms help connect your content with the right people, increasing the chances of licensing opportunities.
Listing your videos in a marketplace offers several benefits:
- Increased Visibility: Media outlets can easily discover your content.
- Efficient Licensing: Streamlines the licensing process, making it easier to sell rights.
- Legal Protection: Ensures proper usage and compensation for your content.
- Professional Representation: Provides a professional platform for showcasing your videos.
When this video of a woman wearing a Chewbacca mask went viral, tons of media outlets wanted in, demonstrating the potential of licensing viral content.
7. Crowdfund Your Creative Projects
Should you use crowdfunding to finance your creative projects? Yes, crowdfunding can be a valuable way to finance your creative projects when money is all that stands between an idea and its execution. Whether you need help buying better equipment, hiring actors, or covering other production costs, you can call upon your audience and community to pitch in.
Whether you need help buying better equipment, hiring actors, or covering other production costs, you can call upon your audience and community to pitch in, if your idea is compelling enough.
Creating a Compelling Pitch
How can you create a compelling crowdfunding pitch for your YouTube project? Creating a compelling crowdfunding pitch involves offering a sneak peek or trailer that gets people excited. Shoot a video explaining your project and offer a taste of what it will be like. This can help potential backers visualize your vision and encourage them to contribute.
Key elements of a compelling pitch:
- Clear Project Description: Clearly articulate your project’s goals, scope, and impact.
- Engaging Visuals: Include trailers, behind-the-scenes footage, and visual aids.
- Incentives and Rewards: Offer attractive rewards for different contribution levels.
- Personal Connection: Connect with your audience by sharing your passion and vision.
Popular Crowdfunding Sites
What are some popular crowdfunding sites for YouTubers? Popular crowdfunding sites with a history of being lucrative for YouTubers include:
- Kickstarter: Known for funding creative projects, from movies to gadgets.
- Indiegogo: Offers flexible funding options and a wider range of project categories.
- GoFundMe: Primarily used for personal causes, but can also fund creative endeavors.
- Patreon: Allows creators to receive recurring funding from their fans.
This popular Kickstarter campaign for ’80s homage movie Kung Fury features trailers and content to excite crowdfunders, demonstrating the potential of crowdfunding for creative projects.
8. Use Affiliate Marketing
Is affiliate marketing a viable monetization strategy for YouTubers? Yes, affiliate marketing is a viable monetization strategy where you earn a commission by promoting products or services from other brands in your videos. As a YouTube creator, you can become an affiliate marketer by creating marketing content that promotes relevant products to your viewers.
Affiliate marketing is a content monetization strategy where you earn a commission by promoting products or services from other brands in your videos.
Becoming an Affiliate
How can you become an affiliate marketer? To start affiliate marketing, look for affiliate programs that align with your content and are likely to resonate with your audience. The more relevant the product or brand, the more likely you are to find success.
Steps to becoming an affiliate marketer:
- Find Affiliate Programs: Identify affiliate programs that align with your content and audience.
- Register: Sign up for the affiliate programs and receive unique affiliate links.
- Create Content: Create marketing content that promotes the products using your affiliate links.
- Add Affiliate Links: Add affiliate links to your video descriptions or end cards.
Becoming an affiliate can work well if you review products as part of your YouTube channel. Since there’s no risk involved on the brand’s end (they only pay when they make sales), there’s usually a low bar to getting started. Just be sure to clearly disclose that you are affiliated with the products you’re reviewing.
YouTube simplifies this process with its Shopping affiliate program, allowing you to quickly locate relevant products and view commission percentages. Once you’ve found a product you’d like to promote, it’s easy to tag it directly in your videos.
Finding Affiliates for Your Products
How can you recruit affiliates to promote your own products? If you’re a creator with your own product line, consider recruiting affiliates to promote your products. Eligible Shopify merchants can quickly add their products to the YouTube Shopping affiliate program for affiliates to find and promote in their videos.
Steps to finding affiliates for your products:
- Add Products to YouTube Shopping: Sync your products through the Shopify YouTube app.
- Set Commission Rates: Determine commission rates you’re comfortable with.
- Recruit Affiliates: Encourage YouTube creators to feature your products in their videos.
Let popular YouTube creators market your products, easily add your products to YouTube’s affiliate program, set your own commission rates, and let YouTube creators feature your products in their videos, so viewers can shop as they watch.
9. Understanding YouTube Earning Metrics
What key metrics determine your YouTube earning potential? Your YouTube earning potential is determined by various metrics, including views, engagement, niche, and revenue channels. While high view counts are essential, factors like ad engagement and niche relevance significantly impact your revenue.
The number of views you get doesn’t correlate to revenue earned. If your video gets thousands of views but no one watches or clicks on the ad, you won’t make any money. This is because of YouTube’s criteria for billing advertisers: a viewer must click an ad or watch the video ad in full (10, 15, or 30 seconds) for you to get paid.
Average Earnings Per 1,000 Views
How much can you expect to earn per 1,000 views on YouTube? The average YouTube channel receives around $2 to $25 per 1,000 views, according to data from Podcastle. The actual amount can vary widely depending on factors like ad format, audience demographics, and niche.
The average YouTube channel receives around 1.8¢ per view, which equals $18 per 1,000 views, according to data from Influencer Marketing Hub.
Maximizing Revenue
How can YouTubers maximize their revenue potential? YouTubers can maximize their revenue by diversifying income streams, engaging their audience, and optimizing their content for monetization. This includes leveraging ads, fan funding, merchandise sales, and brand sponsorships.
Strategies for maximizing revenue:
- Diversify Income: Explore multiple monetization options, including ads, merchandise, sponsorships, and affiliate marketing.
- Engage Audience: Foster a strong connection with your audience through interaction and exclusive content.
- Optimize Content: Create high-quality, engaging content that resonates with your target audience.
- Promote Products: Seamlessly integrate product mentions and affiliate links into your videos.
YouTube channels can be monetized even if they don’t have millions of subscribers. Your earning potential is also determined by the level of engagement you generate, the niche you cater to, and the revenue channels you explore.
10. Best Practices for Promoting Products
How can you promote products without alienating your audience? Promoting products without alienating your audience involves integrating promotions seamlessly into your content, understanding your audience, and providing value. “Selling out” is a real concern for lots of creators. On the other hand, if you never seek compensation, you’ll likely never receive it.
Understanding Your Audience
Why is understanding your audience crucial for monetization? Understanding your audience is crucial for monetization because it enables you to tailor your content and promotions to their interests and preferences. This leads to higher engagement, better conversion rates, and stronger brand loyalty.
For many YouTubers, having a niche channel can help you work with brands targeting specific audiences. You’ll want to pay close attention to:
- The gender of your audience, to see if it skews toward one particular group
- The age range most of your audience falls into
- The geographic location—countries or cities—where your videos are being watched
- Your audience’s overall engagement, or “watch time”
With this demographic information, you’ll understand your audience and work better with brands. All demographic insight can be pulled from your YouTube analytics.
Adding Info Cards and Links
How can you effectively use info cards and links to promote products? Info cards and links provide an eye-catching way to get the attention of engaged viewers. Add pop-ups at just the right moment, when they’re most relevant and least distracting, to increase their impact.
Whether it’s part of your deal with a brand or you’re promoting your own products, info cards offer an eye-catching way to get the attention of engaged viewers.
Info Cards
You can send viewers to your store, Patreon page, Kickstarter campaign, or other revenue sources by adding links to your video descriptions.
Link in Description
Promoting on Other Platforms
Why should you promote your YouTube channel on other platforms? Promoting your YouTube channel on other platforms increases visibility, drives traffic, and expands your reach. By spreading the word about new campaigns or discounts on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and any other profiles you own, you increase the chances that your message will be seen.
Just because your content is hosted on YouTube doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be taking advantage of all the other distribution channels out there. The more places your message lives, the greater the chance it’ll be seen. So it’s always a good idea to grow your following beyond YouTube with social media marketing.
FAQ: How To Make A Money Making YouTube Channel
How many views do you need on YouTube to make money?
The number of views your YouTube channel receives doesn’t correlate to revenue earned. If your video gets thousands of views but no one engages with ads shown before your videos, you won’t make any money. This is because of YouTube’s criteria for billing advertisers: a viewer must click an ad or watch the video ad in full (10, 15, or 30 seconds) for you to get paid.
How much do you get paid per 1,000 views on YouTube?
The average YouTube channel receives around 1.8¢ per view, which equals $18 per 1,000 views, according to data from Influencer Marketing Hub.
Do you get paid for uploading videos on YouTube?
Content creators aren’t paid by YouTube for the videos they upload. For you to start making money on YouTube, you have to enable monetization in your YouTube account settings. From there, you have options to join the YouTube Partner Program or have your videos listed on YouTube Premium.
How do YouTubers make money on YouTube?
- Join YouTube’s Partner Program
- Sell products or merchandise
- Crowdfunding
- Fan funding
- License content to media
- Work with brands as an influencer
- Become an affiliate marketer
How can you make money on YouTube without making videos?
To make money from YouTube without producing videos, you can partner with popular creators to promote your products to their viewers. Eligible Shopify users can add their products to YouTube’s affiliate marketing program in a few clicks, allowing creators to tag products in their videos so viewers can shop as they watch.
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