6 Things I’ve Learned Since Starting a YouTube Channel
Once upon a time in 2019 I was pretty confident I was going to get a full time job (again). The salary and benefits were pretty appealing… so, even though I loved my entrepreneurial life, I was going to switch back… for a while. But then, I didn’t get the position.
I kind of freaked out. The decision was a long time in coming and I didn’t have a back up plan for a solid income. I saw that my friend Andrea Jean was doing amazing things over on YouTube and so I straight up begged her to teach me her ways. This was the start of my YouTube journey.
I will be completely transparent and say that YouTube is not my main income source (yet). It has taken me two years to generate a return of mere dollars a day. At first, I had to find other ways to hustle for my hard earned authorpreneur income. But now, I am proud to say my YouTube income stream is flowing and contributing to my earnings each month. I have moved past my beginning and am excited to see where the next phases of my journey will take me.
If you are interested in starting your own YouTube channel or are just curious about the platform (how it works and its earning potential), here are six things I have learned since starting my YouTube channel.
Everything I know about YouTube I learned from one of two sources.
#1 - Andrea Jean of Andrea Jean Co. Andrea is a friend of mine from high school. We were on the same gymnastics team and later went to the same college. It is because I saw her wild success on this platform (read: earning $20,000 a month from YouTube) that I even considered jumping into the YouTube pool. #2 - Trial and Error. You can read all the blogs and watch all the advice videos. But until you get in there and give it a try, you just don’t know what will work for you.
In order to be monetized on YouTube you need to have at least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of watch time (in the last 365 days).
YouTube doesn’t pay just anyone. You need to prove yourself first. The subscribers are easier to get than the watch time. I found success achieving this milestone by sharing my content (both when solicited and unsolicited) in close Facebook Groups of people in my niche audience (middle school ELA teachers). For another tip on how to increase subscribers, watch this video from Andrea. 4,000 hours is A LONG TIME. At this stage in the game, videos that are a little longer (17-30 minutes) are going to help you rack up that time faster. Later on, videos that are shorter (3-12 minutes) are going to be better. (I’ll explain why in a bit.)
Only .25% (or 1 in 400) channels on YouTube are monetized.
Yep. That stat is right. Read it again. It takes a lot of work. For me, it took about a year and a half of 5-10 hours a week to be monetized. I currently make about $15 a week. At first glance you might be flabbergasted that I even bother. But you know what? This is just the beginning. It will only go up from here. And, this money will continue to come to me… whether I do another thing, or not. $15 a week for the rest of my life… for doing nothing. What if I got that number up to $100 a week or $1,000? It’s possible. Andrea currently makes around $600 a DAY on her channels. It is that potential that drives me.
The payment comes from the ads.
Some YouTubers do sponsorship deals, meaning companies pay them to promote their products. I know that some people make a lot of money this way, but Andrea encouraged me not to pursue that line of work because then you are still working for someone else… catering to their demands and requests. It is a less passive way to make money. And there is no guarantee your time and energy pursuing a brand deal will pay off. Andrea has shown me that making videos, lots of them, is a more sure fire way to earn money.
Up above I said longer videos were great when beginning, because they helped you rack up those necessary watch hours. But once you are monetized, shorter videos work better. Why? Because ads are likely to play at the beginning and end of each one. An hour of watch time for two thirty minute videos could mean a potential of 4 ads. That same time spent with 15 minute videos could result in 8 ads. More ads equals more money, thus, shorter videos will provide more opportunity for income generation. Plus, providing what your viewer is wanting efficiently in a succinct amount of time, will lead to greater satisfaction, likely increasing their return to your channel.
Create for a Niche Audience.
Become the expert and go-to channel for a specific group of people. My channel is dedicated to providing resources for Middle School ELA teachers. I know that I have done this, because now OTHER TEACHERS are recommending me and my content in those closed Facebook groups I mentioned before. Another related tip, create a series of videos for your niche audience… something that they’ll come back for again and again. For me, this looks like my First Chapter Friday videos. Each week I introduce a great novel (tell a bit about the book and its author) and then read the first chapter. Teachers use these videos to get their students interested in reading a particular book. It works for me, because there is an endless supply of great books out there to share (and I don’t have to stress about finding good content to create/share) and teachers/students will continue to come back to my channel to see what’s new (or reshare a video that went well for their students last year!). Another example of a series of videos that have worked for me are my trivia videos. A series of videos that have worked well for Andrea on her Fitness channel is this 14 Day 10 minute Ab Challenge. (I just completed my second round of it this week!)
Connect YouTube to Other Income Earning Platforms.
When I mentioned before that I currently make $15 a week on YouTube, what I didn’t mention is that my videos were leading paying customers to another platform, Teachers Pay Teachers. I’ve been in the TpT game, much longer, since 2013. That income stream started small too. Like $20 a month, small. But over the years I’ve built it up to $500+ a month. Part of my recent growth is due to my YouTube videos. Here, take a look.
Here is a screenshot of my sales dashboard for the last 30 days.
4 of the top 5 best selling products are all companion resources to my YouTube videos. Teachers buy the worksheets and then use them with the videos (which I then get paid for via Google AdSense when they watch them). They aren’t going to buy those products and NOT watch the videos. Additionally, those who watch my free videos will learn about the paid resources in the video description box, which will potentially lead to a sale on TpT. So even though my YouTube channel only made $71 last month, my TpT store made $662. One platform feeds the other. It all works together. And both will only continue to grow, with the help of the other. If you can find a way to lead traffic from one paying source to another and back again… that’s where the real magic can happen. The fact that both of these income streams are passive (meaning I don’t have to be clocked in or at my desk to make a sale) is the glittery fairy dust icing on the top of that magical cake!
Here are a couple more random facts.
All of this is to say that when you hear someone declare they “want to be a YouTuber”... maybe don’t roll your eyes. Maybe after reading this article you’ll realize this platform isn’t just an off the wall pipedream. Instead, ask the YouTuber where they are at on their journey. Ask them their niche audience (and then if you know someone who fits their ideal viewer, pass their content along!). Or perhaps after reading this article you’re thinking, “maybe I could do that”. And you’re right. You can. It’s a lot of work, but I’m hopeful that my hard work will pay off and I think yours can too.
One final note. YouTube is not my only gig. It is only one part of my whole authorpreneurship pie. If I had taken time to solely focus on it, my timeline would likely have been shorter. If you read that it took me 18 months to monetize and thought - “I don’t have 18 months to work and wait in order to get paid!” - Don’t worry! It doesn’t have to take you that long. You could reach monetization much faster! In the same breath, if I focused all of my working hours on video creation and promotion (the way Andrea and her husband do for her channels) my income would likely be much larger. I state this not to belittle what I have achieved, but to encourage you… you get out what you put in… and you can get it faster and achieve greater results than I have… if you put in the time and effort. :)
So what do you think? I’d love to hear your comments, questions and ideas.
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