Okay, advertizement revenue is the most obvious fashion to make money on YouTube. But it's not the only way—or, to be honest, the best manner.

(Spoiler: the best way to make coin on YouTube is all the ways.)

YouTube is one-half the net: that's one.9 billion users logging in every month. But at the same time, 500 hours of video are uploaded to the site every minute.

Then you already know this article is not going to be about how easy it is to buy a Swiss scout with the ad revenue from your YouTube views. (Though if you have millions of video views, y'all could probably at least hire ane. Look, don't.)

Read on, and we'll lay out 7 ways to earn income from your YouTube channel, complete with stride-by-stride instructions.

Bonus: Download the free 30-24-hour interval programme to abound your YouTube following fast , a daily workbook of challenges that will aid you kickstart your Youtube channel growth and rail your success. Go existent results after one month.

How to brand money on YouTube

1. Bring together the YouTube Partner Program

The YouTube Partner Program is how regular YouTubers go access to special features on the platform.

Yous don't need to be a partner to brand money on YouTube (just setting up an AdSense account and getting views is enough to handle that), only being a Partner makes it a lot easier.

YouTube Partners take access to multiple income streams: not only video ads, but YouTube Premium subscription fees, and features that tap your loyal fans' wallets directly similar Super Chat, channel memberships and the merchandise shelf (more than on these later.)

Step ane: Offset a YouTube channel

Don't worry, nosotros accept a handy guide for this. It's called 'How to create a YouTube channel.'

Step 2: Brand your aqueduct successful enough that it meets the YouTube Partner Program requirements

To join the program, you lot demand a minimum of 1,000 subscribers and four,000 spotter hours in the previous 12 months.

Here are some ideas for how to get more of those precious YouTube views.

Pace 3: Set up an AdSense business relationship

This is uncomplicated. Simply follow YouTube's official guide to AdSense accounts.

Step four: Explore your new monetization features

Each monetization channel has different eligibility requirements. For instance:

  • Ad acquirement: to earn ad revenue, you must exist at least 18 years old, and you must create content that is advertiser-friendly. Basically, the less controversial your videos, the more YouTube advertisers will exist comfortable running ads on them, and the more money you make.
  • YouTube Premium revenue: if a YouTube Premium member watches your video, yous get a portion of their subscription fee. (This one is automatic, which is squeamish.)
  • Channel memberships: in order to sell channel memberships to your subscribers (i.e., your fans opt in to pay you an extra amount), you demand to exist at least eighteen and accept more than 30,000 subscribers.
  • Merchandise shelf: in social club to sell merch from YouTube'south merchandise shelf, you must be at least xviii years old, and accept at least ten,000 subscribers.
  • Super Chat payments: if y'all want your fans to have the ability to pay to have their letters highlighted in your live chats during your live streams, you must exist at least 18 (and alive in a country where the feature is offered).

Step 5: Submit to ongoing reviews

Every bit a YouTube Partner, your channel will be held to a higher standard, co-ordinate to YouTube. Y'all have to follow not just the YouTube Partner Program policies, but the Customs Guidelines. Not to mention staying on the right side of copyright law.

2. Sell your own merch

Perhaps you identify as a content creator first, and entrepreneur 2nd. (Just retrieve that even Drake sells t-shirts.)

Alternately, you're an entrepreneur first and video creator 2d, which means you probably already have a product, and you lot're designing your YouTube marketing strategy to sell information technology.

Either way, merchandise is a viable way to earn coin from YouTube.

Footstep 1: Imagine and design your production

Merchandise for your channel is meant to both represent and feed your audition's connectedness with you lot. That means your merch should be unique.

Hawaiian YouTube star Ryan Higa launched his milk-based free energy drink Ninja Melk to leverage the popularity of his viral comedy, Ninja Melk. While he likewise sells t-shirts and other merch from his online shop, Ninja Melk's entreatment is wide enough it has its own website.

Pro tip: You might have more than ideas for merch than y'all can possibly stock. So start by dipping your toes in the water with one or two items. But brand sure y'all appoint your audience in the decision-making process. Poll them as to what they want. Or build buzz by offer one-off products related to large subscriber-count milestones.

Step two: Source and/or build your product

In about cases, you lot'll need a manufacturer, supplier or wholesaler to brand and deliver your product. Some suppliers volition deliver it to you, and some volition spare y'all the headaches of inventory, shipping and returns by handling it themselves.

If you're non sure where to beginning, check out Shopify'due south how-to on the topic of finding a brick-and-mortar company to brand your dream a reality.

Stride 3: Create your shop and landing page

You'll need a separate website to handle purchases. If you desire to link it directly from your videos (and you do), refer to YouTube'due south list of approved merchandise sites.

Step 4: Enable your YouTube Partner merchandise shelf

YouTube Partners can as well use the shelf characteristic to sell their aqueduct'due south merchandise. If you're eligible, follow YouTube's instructions to enable information technology.

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Step five: Promote your product in your videos

This is where your charm comes in. Habiliment or utilise your merch in your videos. Characteristic viewers who have bought and are using information technology. (If we were on another platform, we might phone call this 'user-generated content,' or possibly 'solid gold').

And don't forget to add together your store's link to your video descriptions, and include end screens and cards with compelling calls to action.

Ryan Higa showing clips of people using his product on YouTube
Source: Ryan Higa


Pro tip: Don't forget to say give thanks you. Considering information technology'south polite. But also because information technology'southward an excuse to remind people how swell and pop your product is, one more time.

3. Create sponsored content

You lot don't have to be on Instagram to be an influencer. The advantage of the #sponcon strategy is that you don't take to requite YouTube a cutting of your earnings. You negotiate directly with the brand, and they pay y'all directly. No wonder it's a popular way for YouTubers to brand money.

If you lot tin offer brands a large and/or engaged audience—and your content is relevant to their target market place—they probably want to hear from you lot.

For instance, YouTuber Aaron Marino, a.1000.a. Alpha Thousand, is large in the men's lifestyle space. How big? And so large that even his videos that explicate his brand partnerships have brand partners.

Stride one: Find a brand to partner with

Quality is important, when it comes to the names you work with. You probably already have a wish list of dream brands. Whether you're aiming for the stars or building yourself up grassroots-style, make sure you lot perfect your brand pitch before you send it.

As well consider signing up with an influencer marketing platform. These are intermediary websites that assistance marketing teams detect appropriate influencers to work with. FameBit was one of the first to focus on YouTubers, for instance.

Step 2: Brand a deal

According to this recent study past influencer marketing platform Klear, YouTube videos are, on boilerplate, the most expensive type of sponsored content brands can buy from influencers. Basically, YouTube influencers are able to charge more than for their videos than they would for Instagram Stories or Facebook posts, because video is just more expensive to produce.

While your rate will vary on your audience'southward size, date and relevance to your potential partner, know your worth before you lot sign a contract.

Step 3: Be transparent about your #sponsored #ad

Sponsored content is advertising. That means you lot need to make sure you're in step with Google'southward Advert policies. The FTC (U.S.) and ASA (U.One thousand.) both take guidelines of which you lot should be aware, too, if y'all're American or British.

Transparency is skillful for your legal wellness, merely also for your human relationship with your audience. YouTube has a visible disclosure feature to help you make certain your audience is aware that you're advertising to them.

Sponsored content disclaimer on video
Source: YouTube

4. Become an chapter partner

If your YouTube audience is loyal and engaged, just non quite there withal headcount-wise, look for companies investing in affiliate marketing.

YouTubers affiliated with businesses encourage their viewers to visit the brand'southward online store or specific product pages. They so get a percentage of sales made through their — you guessed it — affiliate links.

In terms of setup and logistics, affiliate partnerships are similar to sponsored content deals, and so follow the steps from tip #3 to get started.

5. Get your fans to pay y'all directly

This strategy for making coin on YouTube includes a few unlike income streams, but they all have one thing in common: you have to brand it easy for your fans to show their appreciation with their credit carte du jour.

Step ane: Host live chats where people can use Super Chat

In early 2017, YouTube replaced their previous Fan Funding feature with Super Chat. This is a feature that is only bachelor to YouTube Partners while they alive stream.

Essentially, your viewers can brand their comments more visible—they're highlighted and pinned for a set up amount of fourth dimension depending on how much they pay—in the alive conversation stream.

YouTube Super Chat

Step 2: Encourage your fans to go channel members

Join button on a YouTube Channel
Source: YouTube

YouTube offers the ability to let your viewers pay you to become members of your channel. In substitution, they go custom emoji, badges, and access to members-only exclusives like Live Chats with you.

For instance, Wintergatan is a Swedish ring that too makes elaborate marble machines and posts videos most it to their YouTube aqueduct. They regularly thank their channel members in their videos. They also brand it clear what the money from memberships supports:

Wingarten Join this channel page description
Source: YouTube

You'll need to build out a promotion strategy to convince people to become members, which may or may not include several tiers of membership. Like Super Chat, this feature is merely available to YouTube Partners.

Step three: Encourage your fans to become YouTube Premium subscribers

This step is the last on our list for this strategy because it benefits your aqueduct only indirectly. That said, when YouTube Premium members watch your channel, you get a cut of their subscription fee. (And and so does every other channel they scout.)

6. Use crowdfunding

Soliciting donations online is now commonplace. Whether you're looking to build ongoing revenue from a pool of small monthly donations, or looking to fund a personal, channel-related project, crowdfunding is how many YouTubers make money.

Footstep 1: Gear up up a crowdfunding account

YouTube has a list of approved crowdfunding sites to choose from.

For recurring funding Patreon is a top pick. Meanwhile, sites similar GoFundMe or Kickstarter are best for 1-off campaigns to get a new mic, or new laptop, or new … spleen.

Even household names similar Walk Off the Earth or Veronica Mars (ok, she's a fictional character) have used Patreon to fund their projects, exist they music videos or feature-length films.

walk off the earth crowdfunding page
Source: Walk Off the Earth

Stride 2: Promote your campaign in your videos

Detail your specific goals so that people know exactly what they can await when you've succeeded.

Also, offer enticing perks that stack every bit your fans cull how much they want to donate.

For more information and inspiration, check out this detailed guide to crowdfunding strategies.

Footstep 3: Become beyond YouTube

A successful campaign is a multi-platform matter. Nosotros have some advice on how to promote your YouTube aqueduct (and by extension, your crowdfunding campaign) everywhere else.

seven. License your content to the media

When a video goes viral, every news outlet wants to get their hands on a copy in order to replay it for their audience. Fortunately, established media companies are well enlightened that they need to pay for what they utilise. And voila, you've got yourself some other way to make money on YouTube.

As a content creator, licensing your virtually successful work to the media tin can be as unproblematic as making sure y'all're easy to find.

Step 1: Proceed your contact details updated on your Most folio

Yous never know when lightning will strike. Even if you lot don't take a business manager, set upwards a generic email account that you tin can point to for concern inquiries.

Lilly Singh About page
Source: Lilly Singh

Step 2: Sign up to a video rights marketplace

Jukin Media is a great place to outset. Even if you don't take a viral video similar the Chewbacca mask lady (see below), media outlets often demand timely footage to round out their reporting.

For example, Jukin has an entire catalogue of 'newsworthy' videos that you tin can contribute to, if you happen to take exclusive footage of a major natural disaster, plane crash, or plague of locusts.

Jukin Media video package
Source: Jukin Media

How much money can you brand on YouTube?

Sadly, this age-erstwhile question has i infuriating reply: information technology depends.

The heaven is the limit, as 9-year old YouTuber and multi-millionaire Ryan Kaji's story proves. But getting into 7-digit territory takes a lot of fourth dimension, consistent work and luck.

YouTube revenue relies heavily on AdSense. In simple terms, YouTubers get paid for each ad view on their aqueduct. But rates vary across geographies, demographics, and even industries (software ads may have a higher CPM than, for example, clothing ads).

On boilerplate, YouTubers make between $three and $5 per one,000 video views through AdSense. If your aqueduct is reaching a lot of people, this can stack up to a pretty paycheck. Information technology'south not uncommon for big creators to cash out upwards of $200,000 each month from AdSense solitary.

But even if your aqueduct is trending and AdSense revenue is filling up your bank account, remember that YouTube fame depends on many factors, some (or most) of which are out of your control — the YouTube algorithm can change, equally can your audience'south tastes and needs.

To make certain that the money you make on YouTube turns into a good for you and consequent income, follow our 7 tips and branch out. Merch, branded deals and crowdfunding tin can make you money even if, for whatever reason, your AdSense paychecks go down.

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