It’s no secret that YouTube is an excellent platform for content creators to reach a diverse audience.
With that reach comes the potential to monetize your channel. If you’ve been following the Raffiti Media blog, you know how many opportunities we believe creators have on the platform.
The newest way YouTube is making it easy for creators to make money from the platform is with YouTube shorts. If you’re new to the game, I’m sure you’re wondering two things: What are YouTube shorts, and do they make money?
The short answer (pun intended) is yes. YouTube shorts can be monetized to make you money as a content producer on the platform.
What Are YouTube Shorts
The platform’s newest feature is YouTube Shorts, which allows users to create short videos that can quickly catch the attention of their audience.
This feature is a game-changer for creators looking to reach a wider audience and find a new revenue opportunity.
By its own definition, Google defines YouTube Shorts as;
“YouTube Shorts is a way for anyone to connect with a new audience using just a smartphone and the Shorts camera in the YouTube app. YouTube’s Shorts creation tools make it easy to create short-form videos up to 60 seconds long with our multi-segment camera.”
In other words, YouTube Shorts are short videos of less than 60 seconds or multiple clips that add up to 60 seconds, created using a person’s cell phone with the YouTube app.
What’s even more, the platform enthusiastically and emphatically states that creators can earn from this new feature. So, again, in Google’s own words, do YouTube Shorts make money? Yes.
To make money using YouTube Shorts, creators will need to participate in the YouTube Partner Program (YPP).
This partnership program is offered when a channel or creator achieves 1,000 subscribers, over 10 million valid public Shorts viewed in the past 90 days, or 4,000 public watch hours in the last 12 months.
Once you meet these thresholds, creators can choose what form of earning opportunities they wish to pursue.
Here’s How It Works
Once accepted into the YPP, creators can access various YouTube creator tools, including YouTube Studio.
This program provides accepted members with ways to earn money through ad revenue from ads displayed on their videos. While the feature is still relatively new, there has been a lot of positive feedback about the earning potential of short, engaging content.
Once a creator meets the threshold requirements and is accepted into YouTube Studio, they are provided a variety of earning opportunity streams, including but not limited to;
- Watch Page Ads
- Short Feed Ads
- Memberships
- Supers
- Shopping
Let’s discuss these monetization opportunities in brief so that you can better understand what Google is offering creators.
Watch Ads: When you have videos and Shorts, the ads played are based on a viewer’s Google Ad settings, meaning that they are tailored to what types of content you’ve previously consumed, whether you’re signed in or not.
For creators, this makes the relevance of your ads crucial for the type of content that they may appear on.
For example, if your ads are for supplements for better cognitive function, they are less likely to appear on a sports-oriented video than on a self-improvement video.
Short Feed Ads: These types of ads appear in videos in YouTube Shorts that are skippable and fast-forwardable.
Their placement on videos is based on the relevancy of the content in the ad and the video they are attached to.
Memberships: As your channel and viewership grow, one way to monetize it is to create paid membership options.
When you run a membership program, you’ll offer badges, perks, and other incentives in return for signing up.
Supers: A unique, exciting way to monetize your YouTube Shorts is through Super Thanks, patronage, and a tip-based earning method on the platform.
When you create memorable content, users can provide you with a Super Thanks tip through a multitude of options, including:
- Promoting your content
- Connecting deeper with your audience
- Increasing transparency as a creator
- Setting fundraising goals
- Recognizing and sharing trends
Shopping: When you develop a loyal following, they want to find ways to support you, and YouTube makes it easy to have earning potential through YouTube shopping, where you can promote and sell your own products from your own YouTube stores.
For creators who take this monetization approach, you can further build brand loyalty by enhancing the buyer experience, which will have a positive long-term effect on your monetization opportunities.
If you’re still wondering, “Do YouTube Shorts make money,” other opportunities exist, such as product placement in ads, sponsorships, and endorsements.
Product Placements: With product placements, you’ll need to disclose that the products you’re reviewing and showcasing are ones that you are being paid to promote.
The platform requires this transparency, which also serves to build better transparency and trust with your audience.
With product placements, you will create content showcasing the product in its best light, typically in use as designed.
For example, if you’re promoting a line of butcher knives, you may create a variety of Shorts that highlight using those blades in ways that are superior to other blades on the market.
Sponsorships: Similar to product placements, with sponsorships, you, as a content creator, will highlight a brand or product in your Shorts as a channel sponsor.
For example, if you’re in the outdoor activity niche, you may have videos sponsored by a company like outdoor equipment and outfitters REI or Columbia.
When you run sponsorships, you’ll disclose that at the beginning and end of the video or Short. For example, in the case of outdoor activities, you may create content and, at the beginning, have a disclosure statement such as, “This video was brought to you by our sponsor, REI.”
Endorsements: Endorsements are ways to be monetized to showcase a product or brand while in use.
Think about NASCAR. Every driver and every car has a ton of brands plastered on the vehicles and the uniforms, which is how they are paid through endorsements.
In short, do YouTube Shorts make money? Yes, they can, but only if you’ve proven that you can create content that people want to consume and do so consistently.
You may strike lightning in a bottle for individual content creators, but doing something sustainable can be challenging.
This is why Raffiti Media, a full-service YouTube management service, was created to partner with creators and provide everything to help you succeed.
With its unique approach to organically growing your channel, including increasing your social media reach and providing unique video production that drives growth and traffic, Raffiti Media is a proven partner for helping you achieve your YouTube objectives.
If you’re looking to take your YouTube channel to a new level and have been thinking about YouTube Shorts as an opportunity, we say go for it.
Keep in mind that you’ll need to grow your channel and stay consistent to maximize your earning potential, so if you want help growing your brand, Raffiti Media is your partner for success.
Contact us today for a FREE consultation about how we can help you grow your channel organically to have a sustainable business opportunity through YouTube.
