YouTube is one of the most popular platforms in the US, with more than 74% adults and 77% young viewers. The number of viewers on YouTube is likely to reach 228 million by 2024. Moreover, over 16% of YouTube’s site traffic is generated from the US. Not just viewers, YouTube is also a popular platform for content creators. People can monetize their YouTube channels to gain income. This blog talks in detail about the monetization policy of YouTube and how you can apply to earn income from your channel.
What do you need to know about the YouTube Monetization Policy?
YouTube allows content creators to monetize their content through various means, mainly through advertisement. However, to earn money from YouTube, the creators must be a part of the YouTube Partner Programme (YPP). Let us see what YPP is and learn more about its essential features.
1. What is the YouTube Partner Programme?
The YouTube Partner Programme (YPP) allows content creators to earn money through their content. It offers exclusive access to the YouTube resources and features to the creators. Moreover, the creators can directly reach out to the creator support team for any grievances or queries. The creators earn revenue from the ads made available on their content. As a member of YPP, creators can also access the Copyright Match Tool to ensure that their content is unique and that nobody else copies their content. They also receive access to various monetization features.
2. Eligibility
To set high standards for the platform and ensure quality content, YouTube has specific eligibility criteria for the Partner Programme. Only those creators who meet all the essential requirements are accepted into the Partner Programme. Following are the conditions to join the YPP:
- You must follow the YouTube Channel Monetization Policy, which requires you to comply with all the necessary provisions for monetizing your channel.
- You should be residing in a country where YPP is available.
- The YouTube team must not have put any community guidelines strikes on your channel.
- You should have more than 1000 subscribers to your YouTube channel.
- The total valid public watch hours on your channel in the past year should be at least 4000.
- You must have a linked AdSense account.
After applying for YPP, YouTube verifies the channel and ensures that the creator has not violated the platform’s copyright, monetization, and content policies. Following verification, the partners can access ads and other monetization tools. If you do not meet the eligibility criteria, YouTube will reject your application for YPP. However, you can reapply after a month.
3. How To Apply for YPP?
Applying for YPP is a simple process. As soon as you meet the eligibility criteria, you can apply for the program. YouTube also allows creators to notify them when their subscribers and public watch hours meet the threshold.
To apply, you need to sign in to your channel and go to the YouTube Studio by clicking on your profile picture. Then, you can select the monetization option in the menu.
There are plenty of applications for YPP, and the bar is set high. Therefore, you have to ensure that your application is up to mark. Here is how you can enhance your YPP application:
- The first step is to read the community and other guidelines carefully and ensure there are no active complaints about your channel. Next, review your content, including title, tags, and descriptions, to ensure that you’ve not violated YT guidelines.
- If any video violates the guidelines, you should edit or delete that.
- Next, you have to create an AdSense account. Remember that you need to make only one AdSense account.
- If you are reapplying for YPP, it is advisable to go through the previous rejection email for YouTube. It will help you understand the reason behind the rejection of the application.
4. Monetization Features
There are plenty of ways through which creators earn revenues by YouTube. Let us have a look at all the monetization features of YouTube.
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Advertisement
The most popular way creators monetize their YouTube channel is to run paid ads. They earn revenue from display and overlay of ads during videos. However, you need to know that YouTube does not allow you to display ads for all videos. YouTube does not permit the display of advertisements that contain violence or abusive language. To know more about what ads you can show on the channel, you can go through the advertiser guidelines by YouTube. You should be at least 18 years old to earn ad revenue on YouTube.
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Channel Memberships
Creators can also monetize on Youtube through channel memberships. They offer various perks to members for monthly payments. You should be at least 18 years, having a minimum of 1000 subscribers to earn through channel memberships.
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YouTube Premium Revenue
You can also create content for YouTube Premium customers. You will earn a commission every time a YouTube Premium subscriber watches a video on your channel.
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Merch Shelf
The next monetization feature on YouTube is merch shelf. Whenever people buy branded products shown on your channel, you get a commission. You can also launch your merchandise. For monetizing through the merch shelf, you should be at least 18 years and have a minimum of 10,000 subscribers to your channel.
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Super Chat and Super Stickers
During live streams, many viewers pay money to highlight their stickers and messages on the chat stream.
5. Alternate Channel of Monetization
If you are not a part of the YouTube Partner Programme, you can still earn money through the YouTube Shorts Fund. It rewards thousands of creators every month. The minimum age of the creators for receiving a bonus under the YouTube Shorts Fund in the US is 13 years.
6. YouTube Monetization Policies
All YouTube creators need to follow YouTube’s monetization policies to earn income from their channels. It includes following YouTube’s community guidelines, terms and conditions, copyright, and AdSense policies. To run ads, you must also follow the Advertiser-friendly content guidelines. YouTube also recommends its creators post quality videos that do not encourage negative behavior.
Various Strategies for Monetizing YouTube
Generating revenues through your YouTube channel can be tricky, especially if you are a beginner. Even if you get accepted into the YPP, you might not start earning immediately. Here are a few relevant tips and strategies for monetizing YouTube.
1. Explore Affiliate Marketing
One of the best ways to monetize YouTube these days is to start affiliate marketing. The majority of people these days go through YouTube to check out the reviews of particular products or services. Therefore, you can partner with various brands for advertising their products.
2. Stay Active
After you get into the YPP, you should stay active on YouTube to earn money. Be consistent with your posting. It will help you gain more subscribers that will eventually help you gain more revenues.
3. Create Engaging Content
The most important thing to keep in mind while posting content on YouTube is that your content should be engaging. You should add a call to action (CTA) at the end of the video. You can also promote your YouTube channel on other social media platforms.
4. Sell Merchandise
Another strategy that you can adopt to monetize your channel is creating and selling your merchandise. Once you have enough subscribers and have built a personal brand on YouTube, you can launch your products like mugs, t-shirts, or bags to earn money. You can promote your merchandise in your videos and also leave purchase links in the description box.
How To Learn Monetizing YouTube?
Monetizing YouTube might seem like an easy task. However, you can only be a part of YPP if you have at least 1000 subscribers. It can take a minimum of 5-6 months of hard work and effort to create content on YouTube and attract an audience. Creating content and marketing the same requires strategic planning that comes with a lot of research and experience. If you want to start your content creation journey or build a personal brand that can help you earn through YouTube, it will be best to pursue a certificate course in digital marketing. You can check out the Advanced Certificate in Digital Marketing and Communication course offered by upGrad. This course allows you to acquire specialization in branding and communication or social media and content marketing. It covers topics like fundamentals of brand position and building and implementing engagement strategy that will be beneficial for monetizing YouTube.
Conclusion
YouTube’s various monetization features can help you earn passive income through your channel. To start YouTube monetization, you need to meet the eligibility criteria and have a minimum number of subscribers. upGrad’s Advanced Certificate in Digital Marketing and Communication is one of the best courses to learn the fundamentals of marketing and branding. It is a short-term course that will teach you the nitty-gritty of digital marketing, such as SEO, SEM, Social Media & Content Marketing, Branding, Marketing Analytics, and much more.
