Meet your smart
influencer manager.
Nowadays, the common folks are setting the trends and driving opinions, and they are doing it on YouTube. They have become more influential than traditional celebrities, earning money through spreading ideas and creating videos with millions of views, and skyrocketing engagement.
Many people are still skeptical about earning on the internet. You, like many others, might also be wondering how to make money on YouTube!
To unlock Youtube’s earning potential, let’s talk about numbers for a second. YouTube, the second largest search engine after Google, processes 3 billion searches every single month! And has 230 million active users worldwide.
At first, one might assume these people create & share content for entertainment purposes only. And sure, they might have started out that way in their early days, but we’re here to tell you that most of YouTube’s channels aim at making money— a lot of it.
At its basics, making money from YouTube used to be as simple as uploading great content, generating views, and earning a share of advertising revenue. But YouTube does not stop at the basics. There are many other ways to earn money on YouTube. That’s why we are going to talk about the 6 best strategies of how to make money on YouTube.
There are many ways to make money and Succeed on YouTube. Joining YouTube’s Partner Program (YPP) is one of the best ways to do so.
Simply put, the program allows creators to monetize their content with automated advertisements. The concept is pretty basic - you join the YouTube partner programs and earn ad revenue through ads that show before, during, or after your videos.
As an example, let’s say that you have a wildlife or natural science channel on YouTube, and halfway through one of your videos, a Discovery commercial plays talking about the latest Discovery documentary movies.
For easy math, we’ll assume that ‘Discovery’ is willing to pay $1 for that placement on your entire video.
Once that commercial pops up to the viewer, Google (YouTube’s owner) will take $0.45, and you will earn $0.55 in your partner account.
Plus, through this program, creators can benefit from a wide range of features and resources. This includes tips on technical or service aspects, learning to navigate policy and copyright guidelines, getting answers to channel management questions… etc.
There are a few restrictions on who can join the program.
First, please check if YPP is available in your country.
Secondly, you should have no active Community Guidelines strikes on your channel.
Another important aspect you should know is that you will only be able to benefit from monetization if you’ve reached 1000 subscribers on your channel & 4000 hours of watch time in the past year.
So, let’s assume that your country is eligible for YouTube’s Partner Program. Now let's look into a step-by-step guide on how to join the program.
Let’s start with helpful information about your account. Create a new YouTube account or log into your existing one. As we mentioned earlier, you will only be able to join the program if your channel has 100 subscribers and 4000 hours of watch time. So, if you are relatively new to YouTube, work harder to boost your channel.
You can check our article about YouTube SEO, you’ll learn more about how you can get more organic attention to your channel
However, there are many good tools available out there to help you get more of those precious YouTube views! For instance, Mysocial features. We will talk about those tools in detail a little bit later.
After you log in, tap on your profile picture on the top-right corner of your screen. You will see a drop-down menu. From there, open YouTube Studio. Click the Dollar icon on the left side of the menu and go to Monetization.
If your channel meets the requirements, go to the Review Partner Program tab on your channel. If you don't meet the minimum requirements, you can tap Notify Me When I’m Eligible.
Finally, accept the contract!
Creating an AdSense account and linking it to your channel is a crucial step towards getting paid on YouTube. Setting up the account is quite simple. You can follow YouTube’s guidelines to AdSense Accounts.
But that is not the only way of making money on YouTube. You can also benefit from YouTube Premium revenue, meaning that you will receive a part of the subscription fee if a premium member watches your video.
To maintain your place in YouTube’s Partner Program you must NEVER violate any of the YouTube community guidelines. This includes but isn’t limited to spam/deception, sensitive content, banner ads, violent/dangerous content, misinformation, or regulated goods while creating videos.
You can learn about all of their guidelines here.
As an online content creator, you must attract a large enough number of subscribers before you can expect to make any real money with this strategy. But you can start small & gradually build up to the level where you’re making a consistent income from your merch sales.
In business, it’s better to show, not tell.
And what can be a better promotion vehicle for your brand than YouTube? The platform where almost 5 billion videos are watched every single day!
As you’ve already noticed, referring to statistical information is our favorite way of giving argumentations. So, here comes a number: 90% of digital consumers in the US use YouTube actively.
I believe that this is the reason why after YouTubers reach a solid number of fans, they often decide to launch their own brand & create merch for their supporters.
I am sure you have seen it.
Take for example VanossGaming or just Vanoss, a Canadian gaming YouTuber. The main element of Vanoss’ merch is the logo— simple, yet, very attractive. The holographic elements catch the eye & the colors really pop!
Now, let’s talk about how to sell your products and merchandise. Here, you will see a step-by-step guide on how to secure everything you need from product manufacturer to dedicated landing page.
In the previous section, we covered the features that are available through YouTube’s Partner Program. One additional function of this program is the Merchandise Shelf.
Depending on how many members you have, say over 10,000 subscribers, you’d be eligible to launch a merchandise shelf on your channel. This allows you to sell merchandise directly on your channel below your videos, like an eCommerce site.
Selling branded swag is easier than it seems. You can order pre-made designs or use print-on-demand (POD) services to create your merchandise. Amazon offers a Print-On-Demand (POD) option. All you need to do is simply upload your copyright-free artwork, choose a product type and color. When a product is sold, Amazon will take care of production and shipping.
Pro-tip: Start your brand with one or two items & involve your audience in deciding what the items should be. This way, you won’t struggle to store the products…
Alternatively, you can find a manufacturer who can store & deliver on their own.
The next thing you will need is a separate website or a landing page. YouTube has an approved list of merchandise sites. Use that list to be able to link it directly from your videos.
Selling merch remains one of the best ways to make money on YouTube. You can earn three to five figures every single month with your merch! Kursgezagt can tell!
Collaboration with brands is yet another answer to the question of how to make money on YouTube!
When it comes to marketing, brands gleam with excitement at the opportunity to partner up with YouTube influencers. Especially when appealing to millennials and niche audiences. And, there are good reasons behind it!
A YouTube influencer is a trendsetter that social media users trust to identify the hottest products and trends.
YouTune influencers have a huge advantage when it comes to marketing products. They interact with the audience and establish friendships. When influencers talk about a certain product, it conquers the hearts and minds of the audience better than any professional ad.
Brands understand this logic and are ready to pay, and pay well!
Yet, brands are highly selective when choosing influencers to partner with, and discovering good collaboration opportunities is not always easy. Luckily, there are features that make things easier. Let’s take Mysocial’s BrandOutreach feature.
Of course, you can reach out to brands via Instagram DMs and other channels, however, there is a high chance you won’t get a response quickly (if you get any). Mysocial’s app is the most convenient way to connect with brands. There, you have access to 3,000+ sponsors that you can contact easily.
All you need to do is open Mysocial’s app and go to the sponsors' section. You will see recommended brands, their content, and the contact details of dedicated marketing specialists.
If you are reaching out to a sponsor for the first time, this feature will make your life easier. Just click on the email address of a person you want to contact, and it will open up a predefined template of the text you should send. Feel free to edit and personalize the email!
Collaborations are not the only way for earning money from youtube in 2022. Crowdfunding is rapidly becoming a standard business model for the funding of many sorts of products and services. It should, therefore, be no surprise that YouTube influencers have discovered this & many are encouraging their supporters to help them out financially.
As a YouTuber, you’re contributing your advice, opinion, and voice to the internet without forcing your audience to pay for admission.
So, if you’re producing good content, your audience might want to be a part of that through donations. Because they love what you’re doing and they want to see more of it!
YouTube understands that! That is why YouTube added a Sponsor Button! A new and highly anticipated feature by many influencers and viewers!
There are certain requirements your channel should meet in order to get the sponsor’s features. Luckily, YouTube has created detailed guidelines about channel membership and eligibility criteria.
But, even if you are not eligible for YouTube’s Sponsor Button, you can always find other ways for making money on YouTube through donations. Let’s explore some alternatives!
YouTube has created a list of approved crowdfunding sites to choose from.
You will find popular crowdfunding sites like Patreon, a crowdfunding website designed to serve “artists and creatives.” And because ongoing support is in-line with the consistent content that YouTubers produce, Patreon is massively popular in the YouTube community.
Tell the audience why you need donations. Detail your specific goals so that people know exactly what they can expect if they decide to donate. Creating high-quality content requires time, energy, and funds - people should know that (or at least get a reminder)!
Many YouTubers monetize their channels with affiliate links. They earn a commission when a viewer purchases a product they’ve recommended— typically through a link in the video description.
YouTubers earn money if they’re marketing certain products in a video and viewers buy that product through affiliate links. The exact amount varies depending on the brand they’re partnering with— usually between 5% and 50%.
Sounds great, right? But with millions of YouTubers creating content, how can you ensure that brands notice you?
Well, Mysocial (again) has a great answer to that question! Mysocial grants you access to a list of more than 3,000 sponsors across all niches. This feature enables you to choose your favorite brand, contact its influencer marketing manager, and get deals in record time!
Before you rush and try to get brand deals for your YouTube channel, make sure you make an engaging and appealing MediaKit. A MediaKit is simply your influencer’s CV or Resume. It includes the latest statistics about your videos on YouTube, your channel as a whole, and also all your pages on other social media accounts!
Usually, a MediaKit is a PDF file that has to be updated manually every single time you want to use it. Which isn’t very convenient when your goal is to contact tens or hundreds of sponsors in the future! You certainly don’t want to keep on updating, re-updating, and then re-updating the re-updated file…
Instead, you can use Mysocial’s MediaKit maker. It’s a self-updated influencer MediaKit that once you create, you can share with your potential sponsors without having to check if the data’s updated.
Mysocial’s MediaKit gives potential sponsors an in-depth understanding of, not only who you are, but who your audiences are, how engaged they are, and why you can be a great fit for the brand’s campaign.
This is a very easy-to-use feature. All you have to do is go to MySocial and link the YouTube account you want to generate a MediaKit for.
We recommend you check our VERY quick video on YouTube if you still have any micro-doubt about making a mediakit or getting sponsors on YouTube!
Alternatively, you can use Mysocial’s TubeView - An amazing feature if you want to Share YouTube analytics reports with the brands, sponsors, and agencies you collaborate with. To learn more, you can always visit Mysocial’s page.
It goes without saying, the app is available on both IOS and Android.
We had quite a drill down didn’t we?
I have one more awesome suggestion about how to make money on YouTube.
You can be earning money from YouTube in 2022 by licensing viral video content to the media. Media outlets are always on the hunt for high-quality content, and whenever videos become super popular, they want a copy to replay for their respective audiences.
And those respected media outlets know that good content costs a lot of money!
The positive news is that it doesn’t have to be only viral videos that you share with them. You can also share timely footage that they deem newsworthy, and many companies will pay you for using your video.
If you have any successful viral video content that media outlets might be interested in, make sure they are easy to find.
Let’s discuss simple steps you can take to license your content to the media outlets:
And that’s a wrap! You now have all the information about the top 6 strategies on how to make money on YouTube.
Also, don’t start a YouTube channel with the sole purpose of making money because things can get really messy. You should love creating videos to be able to put in the hard work at those times and push through growth plateaus.
Visual content is eating the internet, and as a video creator, YouTube is an incredible place to get credit and earn money for your hard work and amazing content! So, when are you going on the YouTube trend?
