How You Can Make Money as a Small YouTuber (the options)

YouTube has been one of the greatest inventions of the last hundred years or so. This might be a heavily debated statement but when you consider the learning and earning opportunities it has opened to people all over the world, it is hard to deny.

Where do you go when you need to learn to tie a tie? YouTube.

Which platform has been the driving force behind so many young, overnight millionaires? YouTube.

With that being said, how do YouTubers make money so that they can continue to provide us with videos?

I have crafted this article today to help you learn how they make their money, and which of the many available options might be best for you as a small or beginner YouTuber. Make sure you check out my article on how much money you can make as a YouTuber when you’re done.

Google Adsense

Most YouTubers start to make their money by connecting their YouTube channel to their Google Adsense account. This places advertisements in the video. Everyone has seen the commercials and trailers that play on YouTube, this is where they come from.
Every 10 or so visitors to a video will see such a commercial, and from that commercial, a YouTuber is paid a small amount of money. The goal therefore, is for the YouTuber to get a lot of views in order to get paid a lot of money. For more exact amounts check out my article on how much YouTubers can make per 1000 views
While it may seem like a pretty easy way to earn money, if you have good content, it is a way to get enough money while building popularity to justify starting a YouTube Channel. However, if your content is not popular, you will miss out on a lot of money.

YouTube Red Views

Just like with Google Adsense, YouTube Red pays money to video creators for each view. The subscription service is actually known to pay up to 20 times more than an ad watch for a view.

Unlike with Google Adsense, you don’t have control over whether YouTube red views are received or not. It is all based on the viewer.

Sponsored Promotions (Paid Endorsements)

Another good way for YouTubers to make a lot of money is to have sponsored promotions. In these videos a company pays the YouTuber to talk about and demonstrate their product in a video. This can be very beneficial for both parties as it gets both parties publicity from sources they may not have had before.
Some viewers might find sponsored promotions a little bit iffy. There are some things that you can do to help mitigate that. In some cases, you might even be required to do these things. Most importantly, make sure your subscribers know that the video is sponsored. Second, make sure that you are honest in your video. This helps to show people how you really feel about the product.
You might find yourself having a hard time finding sponsors if you do not have many views. Sponsors want YouTubers who will get their product noticed.

Affiliate Marketing

With affiliate marketing you are using a website like Amazon to try to sell other people’s products. Every time somebody buys a product through your special tracking link, you earn a commission. A number of small YouTubers enjoy a lot of success with affiliate marketing through creating ‘top 10’ videos.

For example, top ten best computers. This attracts people to the product and informs them of options. All of which, you have an affiliate link to.

Affiliate marketing is by far my favorite method of earning on YouTube and I will be going into greater depth on how to start earning through YouTube with affiliate marketing in a future article.

Patreon

Patreon is a company that allows you to earn money by your subscribers giving you monthly payments. Subscribers don’t have to pay a lot of money, they can pay as small as $1 a month.

No matter how much money they pay though, it can help. Especially as you get more subscribers and more supporters.

Combine Options

In most cases there are no rules that say you can’t combine the various options for making money on YouTube. That means that you can bring in money from a variety of sources all at the same time.
Making money on YouTube is a great way to make money for yourself. It may take a little bit of time but it is a process that is completely doable. More importantly, it is a process that allows you to entertain and educate others.

You can also use YouTube to transition into public speaking or movies. The world is open to you when your YouTube channel goes big, or even medium-sized.