Digital Media Concepts/Youtube Monetization

Overview on YouTube

YouTube is the largest video sharing platform on the internet. It is free to access but users can contribute monetarily to creators they enjoy. A notable feature of YouTube is that users can like and dislike videos (although dislikes are hidden) and subscribe to channels. This along with watch time and other factors gives YouTube an idea of which videos are popular/well-received. Channels are a place where users can post their content and engage with other users' contents all across YouTube. You can share near any kind of video you wish although you should comply with the community guidelines. Once you meet certain criteria, you may even be able to make money off of your YouTube channel.

YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world with about a third of internet users participating on the platform in some way. A study by Defy Media showed that 60% of YouTube users would use a brand recommended by a YouTuber.

Types of YouTube Sponsorships

YouTube Creator Award

Integrated Videos

A video where the YouTuber fits the brand into their content in some way. It is the most common type of sponsorship and typically lasts between 30-90 seconds.

Dedicated Videos

A video where the brand or the brand messaging is the main focus. It generally takes more dedication and planning to make it work and you risk alienating part of your audience.

Post Roll/End Card

These are advertisements placed at the end of a YouTube video. Typically last 15-30 seconds.

Shout Out

In this type of advertisement, YouTubers briefly mention the brand and may include a link to the brand’s website in the description. The brand is not the main focus of the video.

Brought to You By

Here, the brand is the sponsor but is not explicitly endorsed in the video. They may be briefly mentioned at the beginning or end and this is the rarest type of sponsorship.

Reasons Not to Accept a Sponsorship

Doesn’t Fit the Brand

Like all forms of targeted media, YouTubers must consider their specific target audience. Cast the net too wide and you risk alienating people, too narrow and you limit your potential for growth. That's why it is important to find your specific niche in the YouTube space and find your target audience. If you deviate from that target audience by introducing ads that don’t appeal to them risks muddy your personal brand. You should be aware of how the ads you show reflect on your channel as a whole.

Negotiations can be Difficult

Negotiating a deal can be a difficult task. Newer YouTubers may find themselves being severely undercut or even scammed in certain cases. It is advisable to contact other YouTubers who have recently come in contact with the brand in order to get a general understanding of how much they got paid. Do your research beforehand and if necessary get a social media lawyer.

Sincerity

General YouTube audiences understand that in order for a YouTuber to continue making content, they must monetize their videos. It is therefore all the more surprising when a YouTuber chooses not to monetize a video. This can be for a variety of reasons but a common reason is they want their video to be sincere. For example, a YouTuber talking about a sensitive topic may choose not to monetize their video in order to not give off the impression that they are making money off of someone else’s suffering.

Brand Expectations

Sponsorships are based on the relationship between the sponsor and the YouTuber. The YouTuber gets the sponsorship money and the sponsor expects to see increased sales. Sometimes managing the expectations of the brands can be problematic for YouTubers. For example, one metric some sponsors use is called Views Guarantee. Under this system YouTubers are expected to get a certain number of views on a sponsored video. Sometimes this pressure can prove to be too much, other times sponsors may deliberately set the Views Guarantee too high.

Legal Reasons

Taking on a sponsor comes with a wide variety of legal tidbits you need to be aware of. The biggest is the Truth in Advertising Law stating you need to disclose if your video is sponsored or suffer a hefty fine of up to $50,000. Additionally, each brand has its own specifics. For example, if a product you advertised ends up harming consumers, you should make sure you aren’t held responsible for that.

YouTube Partners

What is YouTube Partners

YouTube partners is one way through which people with YouTube accounts can monetize their content. In addition, it gives YouTubers access to several other tools such as the Copyright Match Tool and the Creator Support Team. In order to qualify for the YouTube Partner Program (YPP), you need to meet several criteria.

Criteria

1. Enable 2-Step Verification for your google account
2. Follow all of the community guidelines and regulations and make sure there aren’t any active community guideline strikes on your channel
3. Have at minimum 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 eligible valid public watch hours
4. Sign the YPP terms and conditions
5. Be sure you only have 1 AdSense account
6. Get Reviewed

Miscellaneous

The review process typically takes one month for a response. Once you become a YPP member, it is difficult to lose this status. Only YPP members who have been inactive for 6 or months lose their YPP status.

Ads

Once you become a YPP member, you can monetize your videos by playing ads. Although you can not choose the specific type of ad that gets played in your video, you can choose which types of ads play. Ads come in 6 types.

• Display ads are ads that pop up to the right of your video and above your recommended tab.
• Overlay ads are semi-transparent strips that take up the bottom 20% of your video.
• Bumper ads are non-skippable ads that take up your entire video screen. They last 6 seconds or less.
• Skippable/non-skippable ads, these are ads that play before your video, a portion of them must be watched before your video can be viewed.
• Sponsor cards are tiny boxes that appear in your video and display content that may be relevant to your video.
• Mid-roll ads are ads that pop up within the video itself. They are most common among longer videos.

In order for a YouTuber to make money off of ad revenue, it is essential that the view watches the ad in its entirety. YouTube takes approximately 45% of the money generated off of ad revenue with ads generally generating $18 per 1,000 views or around $3-$5 for the same amount of views on the video. It's easy to imagine then how YouTubers who get hundreds of thousands of views on their videos can make a decent amount of money off of ad revenue alone.

Top Grossing YouTubers in 2021

Top Grossing Youtubers

YouTuber	Earnings in 2021 (Millions of $)
Mr Beast	54
Jake Paul	45
Markiplier	38
Rhett and Link	30
Unspeakable	28.5
Nastya	28
Ryan Kaji	27
Dude Perfect	20
Logan Paul	18
Preston Arsement	16