What are the Challenges of YouTube Money Earning?

Earning money on YouTube is not a cakewalk as it used to be in the good old days. Therefore, many content creators are looking for other mediums to monetise their content.

A couple of years ago, the change came back in February 2018, when YouTube decided to upscale its criteria. The initial requirement to enter its Partner Program was 10000 views, but it got revised to 1000 subscribers and 4000 hours of viewing time.

This step was taken to keep the platform free from impersonators, scandals, etc. Also, this prevented content creators from any malicious acts. It ensured that every creator must follow YouTube's policies of monetisation diligently. However, it also affected the earnings of content creators who wanted to utilise it as a stable earning option.

It might not be easy to monetise your vlogs, video tutorials, reviews, and other types of visual content on YouTube anymore. However, you will need to gulp down this bitter pill with the help of some strategies that we are going to discuss later.

First, lets us focus on the other challenges that you might face while monetising your content on YouTube:

1. Growing Intrusion of the Advertisers

It is the advertisers who pay YouTube, and therefore, it needs to cater to their requirements first. Also, these advertisers do not like to be associated with certain types of content as they are either too conservative or do not want to put how their audience at stake perceives them.

Therefore, it becomes hard for many content creators to find some big paying advertisers to help YouTube promote your videos more.

The best solution to tackle this issue would be to give a nice thought about the content you are creating to confirm whether it would be acceptable by all means or not.

Videos that highlight sexual problems, LGBT marriages, etc., might be getting sidelined by some advertisers at the moment, but we hope that things will be better soon.

2. Scandalous Issues

Those issues that are scandalous and those that might raise suspicion in people’s minds usually do not get promoted by YouTube.

For example, if your video’s thumbnail shows explicit nudity or pornography in any way, then YouTube will remove it immediately. A video without a thumbnail will not get many views.

You must be careful while selecting a thumbnail, even if it is just a pic of a sculpture with some nudity. This is because YouTube will not check your video’s purpose and content but will only go by what it sees on the thumbnail.

It also avoids promoting content that discusses controversial matters in detail. For example, many content creators are not happy with YouTube because it does not support content creators who focus on alternate history.

Therefore, if you think about making a video on flat earth theory, think twice because YouTube might not like it!

3. Engagement of the Audience

If the viewers do not watch the ads, then YouTube doesn't count it while paying you. It will count a viewer only once a person views at least 30 seconds of an advert.

As a result, most of your viewers do not contribute to your earnings directly. However, if your ads and the content you make are in sync, the viewers will naturally get attracted to it more than usual.

You can also make some videos on how watching an advertisement is essential for your channel to convince your viewers.

4. Subscriber Base

Your subscriber base is key as it will help YouTube decide whether it is worth serving ads on your videos. If your subscriber base is vast, more people will watch your video once uploaded to your channel.

It will indicate YouTube to prioritise your channel over others when it comes to posting ads. Moreover, a good chunk of the money you make from advertising is taken by Google itself. Therefore, you need more subscribers to increase your earnings through YouTube advertisements.

Now let's see which strategies you can adopt to overcome these challenges:

Sell your Merchandise

If YouTube is not helping you earn a good income directly, you can use it as an indirect income source. For that, you will need to sell some goods or services through your YouTube channel.

You can place the URL that redirects your viewers to the buying option to increase the sales. It would be better to sell the products that adhere to the type of content you create. For example, you can sell exercise tips or Yoga CDs if you post fitness related videos on your channel.

Arrange Meetings with your Viewers

If you want to engage your audience and entice them into watching your videos longer, you will need to build a good rapport with them. For that, you can include live meeting sessions with your viewers, and an occasional real meet-up won't be a bad idea as well.

Earn through Affiliate Marketing

One of the best ways of earning from YouTube, even with a small subscriber base, is through affiliate marketing. For that, you will need to sign-up as an affiliate of a company like Amazon, and you can review the products that are in line with your channel's central idea.

By providing a purchase link of the product you are reviewing through the video description, you will direct your viewers to that particular product. If that person purchases the product after getting redirected from your link, you will get a commission from Amazon.

Many YouTubers rely on affiliate marketing, as advertising does not help them generate good returns.

Earning through Influencer Marketing Networks

Some influencer marketing networks like Grapevine help brands find appropriate channels to promote their products and services. These networks allow you to participate in sponsorship programs based on your subscriber base and also determine the price that you can ask from the brands.

For example, you can participate in Grapevine’s sponsorship program if your subscriber base is up to 10K. However, some marketing networks accept content creators who have few subscribers as well.

Conclusion

Earning regularly from YouTube can be a tough ask, especially for the new content creators. However, they must not lose hopes and find new ways of earning income, some of which we have mentioned above. They can also refer to the challenges that we have covered in detail before deciding the kind of time and energy they need to invest to earn well from their YouTube videos.

Also read:

3 Amazing Ways to Make Money Online in India
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What Are the Best Ways to Generate Good Business Ideas?
What are 10 business ideas to start with no money in 2021?

FAQs

Q. Will YouTube Premium affect my earning?

Ans: You will not lose any money, but you can earn some by making your videos available on its Premium version.

Q. Is it necessary to connect to Google AdSense while signing up for the Partner Program of YouTube?

Ans: Yes, it is mandatory to link your channel with Google AdSense as the advertiser's bid based on AdSense’s data.

Q. Will the nationality of my audience determine my earnings on YouTube?

Ans: Yes, it will because the CPM rates vary from country to country. You will earn more if most of your viewers are based in the UK, US, France, and some other affluent countries. However, suppose your audience comes mostly from countries like Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and other developing countries. In that case, your earnings will be much lesser due to the low CPM rates applicable to these countries.

Q. Which are the main reasons due to which the watch time of your videos drops?

Ans: If you alter the kind of videos you usually make or start uploading fewer videos, it might affect the views and watch your videos’ time.

Q. How to check on YouTube whether my lower earnings are due to declining viewership?

Ans: You can check the 'Compare Metric' available in your channel’s Revenue Report to check how your earnings and viewership have increased or decreased over a particular period.

Q. Is it difficult for new creators to earn on YouTube?

Ans: It might be a tough road for them, but hard work will help them to earn better in the future. Also, even after having billions of daily users, YouTube is still a growing community.