Did you know that you can create a successful career on YouTube? Ask the Swedish videogame vlogger that goes by the name Felix Kjellerg aka PewDiePie and he will confirm these claims. According to Forbes ranking, this personality grossed 12 million US dollars which sparked a fresh wave and raised a lot of eyebrows about earning a living from YouTube videos. However, you cannot achieve this status unless you become a professional YouTuber. The good thing is that a journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step. Here are some tips on how to become a professional YouTuber.
Understand YouTube Economics
Let no one cheat you that the YouTube platform lends its success on shoestring success. The truth of the matter is that video creators have other expenses apart from what they spend on the microphone, camera, computer equipment, and editing software. Therefore, apart from investing in the best video editing tools you need to have a clear understanding of the economics of this platform.
According to reports, YouTube cuts 45 percent of the ad revenues of the content creator. In addition, the Patreon donation platform will cut 10 percent of the tips that your viewers leave. Sponsored content pays quite well but it can significantly reduce the number of subscribers. In fact, Kjellberg has publicly spoken about the challenges that small creators encounter on this platform.
Yes, you can make money on YouTube but you need to have hard work, persistence, realistic expectations, and a true love for what you are doing. Greed will take you off the track before you even think of beginning. Here are some things to put into consideration as you start out.
Select a Channel Topic
Some of the popular subjects on YouTube include beauty vlogs, comedy, and video games. These topics form some of the most popular YouTubers on the global market. You can be sure of having a long list of interested viewers if you have interest in one of these fields. It will be quite easy to develop a target audience if you choose a topic that is already popular on YouTube. However, you will struggle so much if choose a popular topic that you don’t have interest in. therefore, make sure you get a top genre that is quite popular.
The other challenge with these popular genres is that they have a lot of competition. You can still develop from a non-popular genre as long as you think that is where your interest is. The approach may require a lot of patience but it’s one of the attributes of professional YouTubers. Having a lot of persistence and patience can still help you develop a non-popular genre. You may not stand the test of time even if you choose a popular topic that you don’t have a lot of interest in it. Balance between these two elements as you choose the YouTube topic you wish to cover. This is the initial step in becoming a successful YouTuber.
Choose Your Target Audience
After getting your topic, you need to narrow down to your target audience. YouTube income streams vary depending on the target audience you choose. Ask yourself whether you are targeting adults or kids. Unlike kids, parents have a higher possibility of using Ad block while watching the YouTube videos. The implication is that the creator will not earn ad-network credit from those views. Most adults also use Patreon in donating to YouTubers. Therefore, you need to be keen as you choose between adult and kids audiences. Evaluate the potential that they have to bring earnings your way.
Children content that parents support is also good because parents can support their children on such platforms. Don’t waste time on audiences that will bring very little your way. Apart from comparing between adults and kids content, you may wish to develop a more detailed audience-member persona. Pay close attention to your early subscribers and confirm whether they can help you to focus on your content.
The most important thing is to make sure that you identify with the target audience in some way. There should be at least one demographic attribute that helps you to associate with your target audience. You will find it very hard to interact with people who you don’t feel as though you are part of them.
Make Several Videos That Target Your Audience
You just need to make several YouTube videos that target your audience and keep on making more. The only way you can keep existing viewers happy and gain new subscribers is to keep on uploading new videos. Your viewers will be longing for the next release you are going to make and they will even recommend their colleagues.
For instance, Olga Kay, who is a celebrity with YouTube channels for beauty, fashion, juggling, video game play and her pet dog uploaded at least twenty new videos every week in the early 2014. Even though she has slightly reduced her pace in the modern days, she still updates her YouTube channels on a regular basis. People will lose interest in your platform if they are not expecting anything new.
However, you will lose the number of subscribers if you upload so much of meaningless content. The content of the video should add value to your viewers. No one to keep on watching videos that don’t make any sense. You’d rather reduce the number of videos you are going to upload than upload content that will do more harm than good to your platform. The content should be highly informative and entertaining. You need to upload the kind of content that is capable of going viral online.
The start with the kind of equipment that you already have. The truth of the matter is that you need to invest in high-quality equipment like the DSLR camera, high quality video editing software, laptop. However, don’t worry if you don’t have such a high-end camera gear. I have come across several professional YouTubers who use their smartphones to produce several popular and entertaining videos. Just make sure that you invest in a camera that has the capacity to produce high quality images.
Brittany Maddox provides a very detailed explanation on how to use your iPhone to shoot, voice cover, and even edit YouTube videos using low cost apps and equipment. Some of the things he includes in his explanation is the use of an expensive tripod. He also advices the se of the back camera of your phone to enhance the quality of the pictures. You may also need to invest on the iMovie software for the purposes of editing your videos. Maddox also walks hos viewers through a quick guide on how to edit the videos.
Therefore, you need to pay close attention to the quality of the images and the content itself. It does not make any sense to upload high quality pictures yet the content of the videos is out of context. On the other hand, you can have a very good message for your target audience but the image quality puts you off. You can get a trusted partner to view your video before you can upload it on your platform. Remember the primary intention is to get new views and retain the existing ones. You cannot achieve this objective if your quality is wanting.
Think About How You Will Earn Money
YouTube provides several opportunities for people to earn money. That is why we begun by looking at the economics of YouTube. The effectiveness of each YouTube audience heavily relies on your target audience. One method of earning can be more applicable to a certain topic and not the other. You can share with other YouTubers who handle your topic to see what gives them more money. You can get a lot of inspiration from the success stories of other YouTubers.
Mah-Dry-Bread, one of the most experienced bloggers produced a video entitles ‘YouTubing for pay.’ In his content, he cautions newbies to be keen while signing up for the first time on ad network offers. He says that once you hit a mark of 1000 subscribers, you will begin to hear from legit ad networks that will place on-screen and pre-roll ads on your videos. They will be able to release a small payment each moment one of those ads are viewed.
Therefore, you need to concentrate on building a high-end platforms and people will begin having interest in it. What demotivates most new comers is the desire for early gratification. Go slowly and concentrate on uploading high-quality content. According to this professional YouTuber, its recommended to join a network that will allow you to opt out with a notice of 30 days.
There is a high likelihood of hearing from potential sponsors as the popularity of your channel continues to increase. Therefore, you need to focus on building your profile and the other things will follow. Sponsored content can be highly lucrative to content creators. However, Gaby Dunn of the renowned Just Between Us production echo that most subscribers tend to dislike sponsored video. Therefore, make sure that there is an excellent match between your target audience and the sponsor. The content should make sense to your viewers or else it will compromise the quality of your channel. Let the sponsored content cover topics that are related to the theme of your platform. For instance, I don’t expect you to ad baby cartoons on an adult site that focuses on cooking. These are two distinct topics that don’t marry in any way. Your viewers may think that you are taking them for a ride and you need to avoid developing such an attitude.
The three common ways of making money from YouTube include sponsored content, YouTube ad networks, and Patreon donations. You can earn money from either one or several of them. Patreon donations can assist YouTubers who have older viewers to cover their expenditures. Mah-Dry-Bread endorses Patreon to all the YouTubers to hedge against the sponsor and ad income that is quite unpredictable.
We have YouTubers who use their channels to be a springboard to other streams of revenue. Olga Kay does the sale of lovely know socks, and Britain YouTube Star KSI has now extended his clothing brand and a new career rap. Therefore, take every opportunity to maximize the earnings you get from YouTube. However, remember quality is the primary driver of results.
Set Up a Website for Promoting Your YouTube Channel
Most of the professional YouTubers do maintain a website where they embed and link to their videos, direct the visitors to their YouTube channel share new content and even link to the patreon page just in case they have one. Some of the ideal examples include Michellephan.com that Phan uses to promote her book and host her popular beauty blog. Lindseystirling.com has all her forthcoming international excursion dates. Also, visitors can buy knee socks that look like pets from Kay Olga’s MooshWorld.
You may not be having a concert tour or book to share with your viewers. However, you can use the website to advertise your consultancy services, personal merchandise, speaking engagement, and any other related products that your audience will find to be useful. Therefore, a personal website plays a critical role in your journey towards becoming a professional YouTuber. Just get a good host and developer and you will have your website up and running.
Conclusion
Building a career on YouTube is like building a career anywhere else. It will take you a lot of persistence, patience and the willingness to learn. One thing I want to tell you is that it will not happen overnight. Earning from YouTube is not one of those pyramid schemes that promise you great returns all over a sudden. You have to take a lot of time and invest a lot of effort in this. These sentiments are also echoed by Jim Chapman who is a UK vlogger. He goes ahead to state that you need to do it for fun and even include other related topics. Just make sure that you enjoy what you are doing to get maximum benefits from your efforts.
