Earnings Demystified: YouTube Shorts Revenue Split Explained

YouTube Shorts have become a craze in the recent past as creators try to get the best out of them. These are short, vertical videos that are 60 seconds long. Originally a way of YouTube attempting to compete with TikTok, Shorts have become a household name. However, are YouTube shorts monetized? Can you get paid for YouTube shorts? The increasing interest in monetizing Shorts has inspired many creators working on their video creation. This article answers the question of can YouTube Shorts be monetized and explains how the revenue-sharing model works.

YouTube Shorts Editor A cross-platform helps creators edit the vertical videos quickly and easily!

Free Download Free Download Learn More

Part 1. Unveiling the Mystery of YouTube Shorts Revenue Sharing

YouTube launched the Shorts platform in 2021, which gained popularity within a short period. By the end of the first year, some videos had racked up more than half a billion views and counties. This begged the question: can you get paid from YouTube shorts?

Yes, YouTube updated its Partner Program, allowing the revenue-sharing model to benefit Shorts creators. The platform pools all the money it gets from advertisers every month from the Shorts feeds. It then shares that money with creators based on the number of views. Since the launch of this program in February 2023, the previous YouTube Shorts Fund became defunct.

The ad revenue-sharing model on YouTube Shorts may seem complex, but let’s break it down

• Every month YouTube pools all the revenue it generates from ads that appear in the Shorts feed.
• YouTube calculates that is going to the Creators Pool. A chuck of this money goes towards paying for songs used in YouTube Shorts. For instance, only a third of the ad revenue generated from a Shorts goes to the Creator Pool if it used two songs while the rest goes to paying for the music.
• YouTube divides the Creator pool depending on the number of views they contributed. If a creator generated 5% of the Shorts views during a period, they are assigned 5% of the Creator Pool.
• From that amount, YouTube keeps 55% of its share while you get paid the remaining 45%. If a creator’s 5% amounted to $800, then they will receive $360.

So, is YouTube shorts monetized? Yes, the ads-sharing model defines the amount of money a creator can earn from Shorts every month. Depending on the number of views generated, high-performing Shorts can bring in a huge amount of money.

Part 2. YouTube Shorts Monetization: Eligibility Criteria and Earnings Potential

YouTube Shorts provides creators with an exceptional way of making extra income. Let’s have a look at what it takes and what the numbers say:

Eligibility Criteria

If you are wondering, can I monetize YouTube shorts? To start earning ad revenue from Shorts, you need to be part of the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) This is the gateway to YouTube monetization opportunities. With the latest YouTube shorts monetization 2023 policy, the platform lowered the eligibility criteria.

To be eligible to the YPP, you will need:

• At least 500 Subscribers
• At least 3,000 valid public hours in the last 12 months, or
• At least 3M valid public Shorts views in the last 90 days

This means that your YouTube channel must have gained some traction before monetizing your shorts. The following YouTube short monetization 2023 requirements are also needed:

• Live in a region where the YPP is available
• Comply with YouTube’s channel monetization policies
• Have no Community Guidelines strikes on your channel
• Have an active AdSense account
• Have 2-step verification turned on for your Google account

How Much Can You Earn With Shorts

YouTube Shorts have the potential to make a huge amount of money for creators. In fact, YouTube monetize Shorts in a quite generous way. Here are a few examples to give you an idea of the numbers:

• James Seo (573,000 subscribers) - Earned $445.09 from 10.3 million Shorts views
• Riley Lemon (84,000 subscribers) - Earned $76.23 from 1.9 million Shorts views
• Matthew King (212,000 subscribers) – Earned $163.73 from 4.2 million Shorts views
• Hassan Khadair (2.1 million subscribers) – Earned $872.14 from 22 million Shorts views

Part 3. How to Start Earning from YouTube Shorts

Eligible creators start earning from YouTube Shorts when they opt-in to the program. You need to make sure you are eligible and agree to start receiving revenue from your creations.

Are You Eligible for YouTube Shorts Earnings?

Shorts creators growing their channel and are yet to meet the minimum requirements can track their eligibility status by selecting “Notify me when I’m eligible” in YouTube Studio’s Earn section.

When you become eligible, follow these steps to apply for the YPP program:

• Sign in to YouTube on a computer or the YouTube Studio app on a mobile
• Click on your profile picture, and choose YouTube Studio
• Click Earn on the left menu, then select Apply
• Click Start to review your eligibility and accept the base terms
• Click Start to set up an AdSense account. You may also choose to link an existing active one.
• Your application will be in Progress in the Get Reviewed step.

Once you have completed these steps, your YouTube Channel will be reviewed. You can expect to hear a decision within a month of enrolling you in the program.

How to opt in for YouTube Shorts Monetization

After being approved and enrolled in the YPP program, you need to opt in to monetize your channel. Remember that you will not be automatically signed up for the ad revenue-sharing model. Here are a few more steps you need to take:

• Sign in to YouTube Studio
• Select Earn in the left menu
• Click Get Started for every module to review and accept their terms
• Accept the Base Terms and the Shorts Monetization Module to monetize Shorts

Once your Shorts are monetized, track the progress and amount of money earned through YouTube Analytics.

Other Ways to Monetize YouTube Shorts

The YPP program is the only ad-based monetization option for YouTube Shorts. However, there are other ways of earning:

• Selling Subscription Memberships: Turn your YouTube to membership and charge monthly payments in exchange for perks like badges and exclusive content.
• Monetize Livestreams: Features such as super stickers and super chat allow creators to make money when fans pay to send highlighted messages.
• Selling Merchandise and Products: Make additional income by selling branded merchandise like apparel or product lines in your content niche.
• Secure Paid Brand Partnerships: Interacting directly with brands and negotiating sponsorship deals.
• Join an Affiliate Program: An affiliate program will pay you revenue associated with clicks to links hosted on your channel.

Part 4. Edit Your YouTube Videos to Shorts with Wondershare Filmora

To earn more from your YouTube Shorts, you need quality content that keeps your viewers entertained. With Shorts having a limit of 60 seconds, you want to make sure that you cover the most essential footage. Wondershare Filmora is a versatile video editing software that helps creators edit their vertical videos quickly and easily. The mobile app is specifically great for editing shorts on the go:

Free Download For Win 7 or later(64-bit)

Free Download For macOS 10.14 or later

Editing your videos with Filmora is quite straightforward. One of the features that work well for YouTube shorts is the Auto Reframe.

Auto Reframe

The Auto Reframe feature allows creators to resize videos automatically with no editing skills needed. This is a great tool for converting your horizontal YouTube videos to Shorts format. It also boosts your potential audience while saving you precious time and effort you would have used editing. To use this feature, choose any of the following options:

1. Open Filmora and Select Auto Reframe

After opening Filmora, head over to the main interface. You will find the Auto Reframe option on the right side. Click on it to open the reframing feature.

2. Launch Directly from the Video

Click File, followed by Import Media. Select the file that you gave imported in the timeline and right-click on it. Then select Auto Reframe.

3. Use the Tools Option

You may also use the Auto Reframe feature by clicking on the Tools feature on the top menu bar. Then click on Auto Reframe.

Other Filmora Features for Editing Shorts

• Split Screen Video Editor – A choice of pre-made templates to create split-screen videos instantly.
• Add Text to Video – Directly add texts to your videos, including subtitles and captions.
• Text To Speech – Instantly convert your text files to voice and introduce more elements that will enrich your Shorts video.

Conclusion

YouTube Short’s revenue-sharing programs offer a great opportunity for creators specializing in short-form content to earn money on the platform. Once eligible for the YPP program, you can start earning a nice cash bonus monthly. However, you will need to create quality content that keeps your audience entertained and engaged. We recommend using Wondershare Filmora to edit your Shorts and make them more relatable to the audience,

Free Download Free Download Learn More

Part 1. Unveiling the Mystery of YouTube Shorts Revenue Sharing

YouTube launched the Shorts platform in 2021, which gained popularity within a short period. By the end of the first year, some videos had racked up more than half a billion views and counties. This begged the question: can you get paid from YouTube shorts?

Yes, YouTube updated its Partner Program, allowing the revenue-sharing model to benefit Shorts creators. The platform pools all the money it gets from advertisers every month from the Shorts feeds. It then shares that money with creators based on the number of views. Since the launch of this program in February 2023, the previous YouTube Shorts Fund became defunct.

The ad revenue-sharing model on YouTube Shorts may seem complex, but let’s break it down

• Every month YouTube pools all the revenue it generates from ads that appear in the Shorts feed.
• YouTube calculates that is going to the Creators Pool. A chuck of this money goes towards paying for songs used in YouTube Shorts. For instance, only a third of the ad revenue generated from a Shorts goes to the Creator Pool if it used two songs while the rest goes to paying for the music.
• YouTube divides the Creator pool depending on the number of views they contributed. If a creator generated 5% of the Shorts views during a period, they are assigned 5% of the Creator Pool.
• From that amount, YouTube keeps 55% of its share while you get paid the remaining 45%. If a creator’s 5% amounted to $800, then they will receive $360.

So, is YouTube shorts monetized? Yes, the ads-sharing model defines the amount of money a creator can earn from Shorts every month. Depending on the number of views generated, high-performing Shorts can bring in a huge amount of money.

Part 2. YouTube Shorts Monetization: Eligibility Criteria and Earnings Potential

YouTube Shorts provides creators with an exceptional way of making extra income. Let’s have a look at what it takes and what the numbers say:

Eligibility Criteria

If you are wondering, can I monetize YouTube shorts? To start earning ad revenue from Shorts, you need to be part of the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) This is the gateway to YouTube monetization opportunities. With the latest YouTube shorts monetization 2023 policy, the platform lowered the eligibility criteria.

To be eligible to the YPP, you will need:

• At least 500 Subscribers
• At least 3,000 valid public hours in the last 12 months, or
• At least 3M valid public Shorts views in the last 90 days

This means that your YouTube channel must have gained some traction before monetizing your shorts. The following YouTube short monetization 2023 requirements are also needed:

• Live in a region where the YPP is available
• Comply with YouTube’s channel monetization policies
• Have no Community Guidelines strikes on your channel
• Have an active AdSense account
• Have 2-step verification turned on for your Google account

How Much Can You Earn With Shorts

YouTube Shorts have the potential to make a huge amount of money for creators. In fact, YouTube monetize Shorts in a quite generous way. Here are a few examples to give you an idea of the numbers:

• James Seo (573,000 subscribers) - Earned $445.09 from 10.3 million Shorts views
• Riley Lemon (84,000 subscribers) - Earned $76.23 from 1.9 million Shorts views
• Matthew King (212,000 subscribers) – Earned $163.73 from 4.2 million Shorts views
• Hassan Khadair (2.1 million subscribers) – Earned $872.14 from 22 million Shorts views

Part 3. How to Start Earning from YouTube Shorts

Eligible creators start earning from YouTube Shorts when they opt-in to the program. You need to make sure you are eligible and agree to start receiving revenue from your creations.

Are You Eligible for YouTube Shorts Earnings?

Shorts creators growing their channel and are yet to meet the minimum requirements can track their eligibility status by selecting “Notify me when I’m eligible” in YouTube Studio’s Earn section.

When you become eligible, follow these steps to apply for the YPP program:

• Sign in to YouTube on a computer or the YouTube Studio app on a mobile
• Click on your profile picture, and choose YouTube Studio
• Click Earn on the left menu, then select Apply
• Click Start to review your eligibility and accept the base terms
• Click Start to set up an AdSense account. You may also choose to link an existing active one.
• Your application will be in Progress in the Get Reviewed step.

Once you have completed these steps, your YouTube Channel will be reviewed. You can expect to hear a decision within a month of enrolling you in the program.

How to opt in for YouTube Shorts Monetization

After being approved and enrolled in the YPP program, you need to opt in to monetize your channel. Remember that you will not be automatically signed up for the ad revenue-sharing model. Here are a few more steps you need to take:

• Sign in to YouTube Studio
• Select Earn in the left menu
• Click Get Started for every module to review and accept their terms
• Accept the Base Terms and the Shorts Monetization Module to monetize Shorts

Once your Shorts are monetized, track the progress and amount of money earned through YouTube Analytics.

Other Ways to Monetize YouTube Shorts

The YPP program is the only ad-based monetization option for YouTube Shorts. However, there are other ways of earning:

• Selling Subscription Memberships: Turn your YouTube to membership and charge monthly payments in exchange for perks like badges and exclusive content.
• Monetize Livestreams: Features such as super stickers and super chat allow creators to make money when fans pay to send highlighted messages.
• Selling Merchandise and Products: Make additional income by selling branded merchandise like apparel or product lines in your content niche.
• Secure Paid Brand Partnerships: Interacting directly with brands and negotiating sponsorship deals.
• Join an Affiliate Program: An affiliate program will pay you revenue associated with clicks to links hosted on your channel.

Part 4. Edit Your YouTube Videos to Shorts with Wondershare Filmora

To earn more from your YouTube Shorts, you need quality content that keeps your viewers entertained. With Shorts having a limit of 60 seconds, you want to make sure that you cover the most essential footage. Wondershare Filmora is a versatile video editing software that helps creators edit their vertical videos quickly and easily. The mobile app is specifically great for editing shorts on the go:

Free Download For Win 7 or later(64-bit)

Free Download For macOS 10.14 or later

Editing your videos with Filmora is quite straightforward. One of the features that work well for YouTube shorts is the Auto Reframe.

Auto Reframe

The Auto Reframe feature allows creators to resize videos automatically with no editing skills needed. This is a great tool for converting your horizontal YouTube videos to Shorts format. It also boosts your potential audience while saving you precious time and effort you would have used editing. To use this feature, choose any of the following options:

1. Open Filmora and Select Auto Reframe

After opening Filmora, head over to the main interface. You will find the Auto Reframe option on the right side. Click on it to open the reframing feature.

2. Launch Directly from the Video

Click File, followed by Import Media. Select the file that you gave imported in the timeline and right-click on it. Then select Auto Reframe.

3. Use the Tools Option

You may also use the Auto Reframe feature by clicking on the Tools feature on the top menu bar. Then click on Auto Reframe.

Other Filmora Features for Editing Shorts

• Split Screen Video Editor – A choice of pre-made templates to create split-screen videos instantly.
• Add Text to Video – Directly add texts to your videos, including subtitles and captions.
• Text To Speech – Instantly convert your text files to voice and introduce more elements that will enrich your Shorts video.

Conclusion

YouTube Short’s revenue-sharing programs offer a great opportunity for creators specializing in short-form content to earn money on the platform. Once eligible for the YPP program, you can start earning a nice cash bonus monthly. However, you will need to create quality content that keeps your audience entertained and engaged. We recommend using Wondershare Filmora to edit your Shorts and make them more relatable to the audience,

The Complete Guide to Successful YouTube: Eluding These 8 Common Slips

8 Mistakes People Should Avoid as a New YouTuber

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

In the ten years that I’ve been a YouTuber, I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I learned from those mistakes and have helped many new YouTubers start their own channels. Here is a list of eight common mistakes that new YouTubers should avoid, along with tips to do things in a better way.

1. Failing to have a long-term vision

One common mistake that a lot of new YouTubers make is failing to have a long-term vision. Without a long-term vision, you’re more likely to poorly brand your YouTube channel, drop your YouTube channel activity in busier times, and, midway through, change the type of content you create and upload. None of these are good for your channel!

If you can think of the kind of content you’ll love to consistently create and share in the long-run, you’ll not only be able to narrow down your brand and effectively communicate to your audience who you are and what your channel is all about, but you’ll also have a better idea on what to put out next.

2. Choosing an ineffective custom URL

Another mistake I made with my first YouTube channel was choosing an ineffective custom URL. Because my last name is Kim, I wanted to make my custom URL “YouTube.com/kimagination.” But it wasn’t available. So, I took “kimaginati0n” with a zero where the “o” should be. I thought it was a good idea back then but it was a terrible idea.

Choose a custom URL with words that can’t be confused with other similar-sounding words. For consistency across all your different social media accounts, try to choose a custom URL that matches the usernames of all your other social media channels. If the username you want isn’t available, then keep on trying to come up with a good name that is available. When you’ve secured the same username across all your different social media channels, you can then very simply promote yourself and all your social media channels by displaying just the social media icons followed by your one username.

3. Coming up with titles that won’t get searched

Many new YouTubers make the mistake of titling their videos in an ineffective way. Rather than coming up with titles that more people might search, they either come up with titles that summarize what the video is about as a whole or title their videos the way big YouTubers do.

Big YouTubers can take advantage of non-searched, curiosity evoking titles like “You won’t believe what just happened…” because they already have a huge following. Their channels aren’t depending on getting discovered through search. But yours is. So come up with titles that people are actually searching.

As an example, let’s suppose you vlogged your time backpacking around Europe last summer. Don’t title your YouTube video “My Summer Backpacking Trip.” Instead, title it “Going Up The Eiffel Tower | Beautiful View of Paris!” This way, all the people who are curious about visiting Paris, the Eiffel Tower, and seeing what the view is like from the top of the Eiffel Tower might find your video.

4. Failing to have a thumbnail strategy

New YouTubers tend to think about their thumbnail images after they’ve finished editing their videos together. This is way too late in the process for something that is so incredibly important in getting views.

Even before filming, you should think about how you’re going to title your video to get the most views. After that, you should then try to picture, in your head, a thumbnail image that matches your title and creates curiosity and excitement. When you go into filming, you can then make sure to include some footage of you recreating that image.

5. Making weak intros

After you’ve managed to get someone to click on your video through your effective title and thumbnail image strategy, the next challenge is to keep that person watching your video without closing it too early. A typical viewer on YouTube decides within the first ten to fifteen seconds of landing on a video whether or not he or she will stay or leave. This short window of time is so important to set the tone of the rest of your video and build excitement and curiosity in your viewer with an effective, high-energy intro.

New YouTubers often make the mistake of having weak intros. Starting at the beginning of a story makes sense, right? The beginning, however, is not always the most exciting. Consequently, new YouTubers lose their audience’s attention too early on.

To read more on how some of the most successful YouTubers effectively do their intros, check out my blogpost on “How To Edit YouTube Videos Like a YouTuber .”

6. Forgetting to engage with subscribers

An important thing to do as a new YouTuber is engaging with your subscribers. Some new YouTubers, though, are so focused and busy with the production side of things that they forget to do the community side of things, including responding to comments. By not responding to comments as a new YouTuber, you hurt your potential to get more comments consistently from your subscribers. If your video’s comments section is very active, YouTube ranks your video higher in the videos it recommends to viewers.

Connecting with your audience shouldn’t just be limited to YouTube either. Use your other social media channels to connect with your audience as well.

7. Not promoting with social media

YouTube isn’t the only social media platform that people are spending their time on. People are spending their time on all kinds of different social media platforms, like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The more content in all of these platforms that you create to promote your video, the more potential your video has to be seen by their users.

New YouTubers sometimes forget to promote their videos and channel using other social media platforms. Consequently, they miss out on the opportunity to get views from multiple sources of social media.

8. Spamming comments

Commenting on other YouTube videos is another way to get your channel discovered from people reading over comments. If your profile picture and comment appears interesting enough, out of curiosity, people just might click your username to have a look at your channel.

But rather than leaving interesting comments that are related to the video, rather than adding to the conversation, some new YouTubers desperate to get more subscribers make the mistake of spamming videos with “check out my YouTube channel!” comments.

Spam comments annoy YouTubers. It would be much more beneficial to your channel to build good relationships with other YouTubers to possibly collaborate on a video together in the future.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

In the ten years that I’ve been a YouTuber, I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I learned from those mistakes and have helped many new YouTubers start their own channels. Here is a list of eight common mistakes that new YouTubers should avoid, along with tips to do things in a better way.

1. Failing to have a long-term vision

One common mistake that a lot of new YouTubers make is failing to have a long-term vision. Without a long-term vision, you’re more likely to poorly brand your YouTube channel, drop your YouTube channel activity in busier times, and, midway through, change the type of content you create and upload. None of these are good for your channel!

If you can think of the kind of content you’ll love to consistently create and share in the long-run, you’ll not only be able to narrow down your brand and effectively communicate to your audience who you are and what your channel is all about, but you’ll also have a better idea on what to put out next.

2. Choosing an ineffective custom URL

Another mistake I made with my first YouTube channel was choosing an ineffective custom URL. Because my last name is Kim, I wanted to make my custom URL “YouTube.com/kimagination.” But it wasn’t available. So, I took “kimaginati0n” with a zero where the “o” should be. I thought it was a good idea back then but it was a terrible idea.

Choose a custom URL with words that can’t be confused with other similar-sounding words. For consistency across all your different social media accounts, try to choose a custom URL that matches the usernames of all your other social media channels. If the username you want isn’t available, then keep on trying to come up with a good name that is available. When you’ve secured the same username across all your different social media channels, you can then very simply promote yourself and all your social media channels by displaying just the social media icons followed by your one username.

3. Coming up with titles that won’t get searched

Many new YouTubers make the mistake of titling their videos in an ineffective way. Rather than coming up with titles that more people might search, they either come up with titles that summarize what the video is about as a whole or title their videos the way big YouTubers do.

Big YouTubers can take advantage of non-searched, curiosity evoking titles like “You won’t believe what just happened…” because they already have a huge following. Their channels aren’t depending on getting discovered through search. But yours is. So come up with titles that people are actually searching.

As an example, let’s suppose you vlogged your time backpacking around Europe last summer. Don’t title your YouTube video “My Summer Backpacking Trip.” Instead, title it “Going Up The Eiffel Tower | Beautiful View of Paris!” This way, all the people who are curious about visiting Paris, the Eiffel Tower, and seeing what the view is like from the top of the Eiffel Tower might find your video.

4. Failing to have a thumbnail strategy

New YouTubers tend to think about their thumbnail images after they’ve finished editing their videos together. This is way too late in the process for something that is so incredibly important in getting views.

Even before filming, you should think about how you’re going to title your video to get the most views. After that, you should then try to picture, in your head, a thumbnail image that matches your title and creates curiosity and excitement. When you go into filming, you can then make sure to include some footage of you recreating that image.

5. Making weak intros

After you’ve managed to get someone to click on your video through your effective title and thumbnail image strategy, the next challenge is to keep that person watching your video without closing it too early. A typical viewer on YouTube decides within the first ten to fifteen seconds of landing on a video whether or not he or she will stay or leave. This short window of time is so important to set the tone of the rest of your video and build excitement and curiosity in your viewer with an effective, high-energy intro.

New YouTubers often make the mistake of having weak intros. Starting at the beginning of a story makes sense, right? The beginning, however, is not always the most exciting. Consequently, new YouTubers lose their audience’s attention too early on.

To read more on how some of the most successful YouTubers effectively do their intros, check out my blogpost on “How To Edit YouTube Videos Like a YouTuber .”

6. Forgetting to engage with subscribers

An important thing to do as a new YouTuber is engaging with your subscribers. Some new YouTubers, though, are so focused and busy with the production side of things that they forget to do the community side of things, including responding to comments. By not responding to comments as a new YouTuber, you hurt your potential to get more comments consistently from your subscribers. If your video’s comments section is very active, YouTube ranks your video higher in the videos it recommends to viewers.

Connecting with your audience shouldn’t just be limited to YouTube either. Use your other social media channels to connect with your audience as well.

7. Not promoting with social media

YouTube isn’t the only social media platform that people are spending their time on. People are spending their time on all kinds of different social media platforms, like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The more content in all of these platforms that you create to promote your video, the more potential your video has to be seen by their users.

New YouTubers sometimes forget to promote their videos and channel using other social media platforms. Consequently, they miss out on the opportunity to get views from multiple sources of social media.

8. Spamming comments

Commenting on other YouTube videos is another way to get your channel discovered from people reading over comments. If your profile picture and comment appears interesting enough, out of curiosity, people just might click your username to have a look at your channel.

But rather than leaving interesting comments that are related to the video, rather than adding to the conversation, some new YouTubers desperate to get more subscribers make the mistake of spamming videos with “check out my YouTube channel!” comments.

Spam comments annoy YouTubers. It would be much more beneficial to your channel to build good relationships with other YouTubers to possibly collaborate on a video together in the future.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

0

In the ten years that I’ve been a YouTuber, I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I learned from those mistakes and have helped many new YouTubers start their own channels. Here is a list of eight common mistakes that new YouTubers should avoid, along with tips to do things in a better way.

1. Failing to have a long-term vision

One common mistake that a lot of new YouTubers make is failing to have a long-term vision. Without a long-term vision, you’re more likely to poorly brand your YouTube channel, drop your YouTube channel activity in busier times, and, midway through, change the type of content you create and upload. None of these are good for your channel!

If you can think of the kind of content you’ll love to consistently create and share in the long-run, you’ll not only be able to narrow down your brand and effectively communicate to your audience who you are and what your channel is all about, but you’ll also have a better idea on what to put out next.

2. Choosing an ineffective custom URL

Another mistake I made with my first YouTube channel was choosing an ineffective custom URL. Because my last name is Kim, I wanted to make my custom URL “YouTube.com/kimagination.” But it wasn’t available. So, I took “kimaginati0n” with a zero where the “o” should be. I thought it was a good idea back then but it was a terrible idea.

Choose a custom URL with words that can’t be confused with other similar-sounding words. For consistency across all your different social media accounts, try to choose a custom URL that matches the usernames of all your other social media channels. If the username you want isn’t available, then keep on trying to come up with a good name that is available. When you’ve secured the same username across all your different social media channels, you can then very simply promote yourself and all your social media channels by displaying just the social media icons followed by your one username.

3. Coming up with titles that won’t get searched

Many new YouTubers make the mistake of titling their videos in an ineffective way. Rather than coming up with titles that more people might search, they either come up with titles that summarize what the video is about as a whole or title their videos the way big YouTubers do.

Big YouTubers can take advantage of non-searched, curiosity evoking titles like “You won’t believe what just happened…” because they already have a huge following. Their channels aren’t depending on getting discovered through search. But yours is. So come up with titles that people are actually searching.

As an example, let’s suppose you vlogged your time backpacking around Europe last summer. Don’t title your YouTube video “My Summer Backpacking Trip.” Instead, title it “Going Up The Eiffel Tower | Beautiful View of Paris!” This way, all the people who are curious about visiting Paris, the Eiffel Tower, and seeing what the view is like from the top of the Eiffel Tower might find your video.

4. Failing to have a thumbnail strategy

New YouTubers tend to think about their thumbnail images after they’ve finished editing their videos together. This is way too late in the process for something that is so incredibly important in getting views.

Even before filming, you should think about how you’re going to title your video to get the most views. After that, you should then try to picture, in your head, a thumbnail image that matches your title and creates curiosity and excitement. When you go into filming, you can then make sure to include some footage of you recreating that image.

5. Making weak intros

After you’ve managed to get someone to click on your video through your effective title and thumbnail image strategy, the next challenge is to keep that person watching your video without closing it too early. A typical viewer on YouTube decides within the first ten to fifteen seconds of landing on a video whether or not he or she will stay or leave. This short window of time is so important to set the tone of the rest of your video and build excitement and curiosity in your viewer with an effective, high-energy intro.

New YouTubers often make the mistake of having weak intros. Starting at the beginning of a story makes sense, right? The beginning, however, is not always the most exciting. Consequently, new YouTubers lose their audience’s attention too early on.

To read more on how some of the most successful YouTubers effectively do their intros, check out my blogpost on “How To Edit YouTube Videos Like a YouTuber .”

6. Forgetting to engage with subscribers

An important thing to do as a new YouTuber is engaging with your subscribers. Some new YouTubers, though, are so focused and busy with the production side of things that they forget to do the community side of things, including responding to comments. By not responding to comments as a new YouTuber, you hurt your potential to get more comments consistently from your subscribers. If your video’s comments section is very active, YouTube ranks your video higher in the videos it recommends to viewers.

Connecting with your audience shouldn’t just be limited to YouTube either. Use your other social media channels to connect with your audience as well.

7. Not promoting with social media

YouTube isn’t the only social media platform that people are spending their time on. People are spending their time on all kinds of different social media platforms, like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The more content in all of these platforms that you create to promote your video, the more potential your video has to be seen by their users.

New YouTubers sometimes forget to promote their videos and channel using other social media platforms. Consequently, they miss out on the opportunity to get views from multiple sources of social media.

8. Spamming comments

Commenting on other YouTube videos is another way to get your channel discovered from people reading over comments. If your profile picture and comment appears interesting enough, out of curiosity, people just might click your username to have a look at your channel.

But rather than leaving interesting comments that are related to the video, rather than adding to the conversation, some new YouTubers desperate to get more subscribers make the mistake of spamming videos with “check out my YouTube channel!” comments.

Spam comments annoy YouTubers. It would be much more beneficial to your channel to build good relationships with other YouTubers to possibly collaborate on a video together in the future.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Nov 01, 2022• Proven solutions

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In the ten years that I’ve been a YouTuber, I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I learned from those mistakes and have helped many new YouTubers start their own channels. Here is a list of eight common mistakes that new YouTubers should avoid, along with tips to do things in a better way.

1. Failing to have a long-term vision

One common mistake that a lot of new YouTubers make is failing to have a long-term vision. Without a long-term vision, you’re more likely to poorly brand your YouTube channel, drop your YouTube channel activity in busier times, and, midway through, change the type of content you create and upload. None of these are good for your channel!

If you can think of the kind of content you’ll love to consistently create and share in the long-run, you’ll not only be able to narrow down your brand and effectively communicate to your audience who you are and what your channel is all about, but you’ll also have a better idea on what to put out next.

2. Choosing an ineffective custom URL

Another mistake I made with my first YouTube channel was choosing an ineffective custom URL. Because my last name is Kim, I wanted to make my custom URL “YouTube.com/kimagination.” But it wasn’t available. So, I took “kimaginati0n” with a zero where the “o” should be. I thought it was a good idea back then but it was a terrible idea.

Choose a custom URL with words that can’t be confused with other similar-sounding words. For consistency across all your different social media accounts, try to choose a custom URL that matches the usernames of all your other social media channels. If the username you want isn’t available, then keep on trying to come up with a good name that is available. When you’ve secured the same username across all your different social media channels, you can then very simply promote yourself and all your social media channels by displaying just the social media icons followed by your one username.

3. Coming up with titles that won’t get searched

Many new YouTubers make the mistake of titling their videos in an ineffective way. Rather than coming up with titles that more people might search, they either come up with titles that summarize what the video is about as a whole or title their videos the way big YouTubers do.

Big YouTubers can take advantage of non-searched, curiosity evoking titles like “You won’t believe what just happened…” because they already have a huge following. Their channels aren’t depending on getting discovered through search. But yours is. So come up with titles that people are actually searching.

As an example, let’s suppose you vlogged your time backpacking around Europe last summer. Don’t title your YouTube video “My Summer Backpacking Trip.” Instead, title it “Going Up The Eiffel Tower | Beautiful View of Paris!” This way, all the people who are curious about visiting Paris, the Eiffel Tower, and seeing what the view is like from the top of the Eiffel Tower might find your video.

4. Failing to have a thumbnail strategy

New YouTubers tend to think about their thumbnail images after they’ve finished editing their videos together. This is way too late in the process for something that is so incredibly important in getting views.

Even before filming, you should think about how you’re going to title your video to get the most views. After that, you should then try to picture, in your head, a thumbnail image that matches your title and creates curiosity and excitement. When you go into filming, you can then make sure to include some footage of you recreating that image.

5. Making weak intros

After you’ve managed to get someone to click on your video through your effective title and thumbnail image strategy, the next challenge is to keep that person watching your video without closing it too early. A typical viewer on YouTube decides within the first ten to fifteen seconds of landing on a video whether or not he or she will stay or leave. This short window of time is so important to set the tone of the rest of your video and build excitement and curiosity in your viewer with an effective, high-energy intro.

New YouTubers often make the mistake of having weak intros. Starting at the beginning of a story makes sense, right? The beginning, however, is not always the most exciting. Consequently, new YouTubers lose their audience’s attention too early on.

To read more on how some of the most successful YouTubers effectively do their intros, check out my blogpost on “How To Edit YouTube Videos Like a YouTuber .”

6. Forgetting to engage with subscribers

An important thing to do as a new YouTuber is engaging with your subscribers. Some new YouTubers, though, are so focused and busy with the production side of things that they forget to do the community side of things, including responding to comments. By not responding to comments as a new YouTuber, you hurt your potential to get more comments consistently from your subscribers. If your video’s comments section is very active, YouTube ranks your video higher in the videos it recommends to viewers.

Connecting with your audience shouldn’t just be limited to YouTube either. Use your other social media channels to connect with your audience as well.

7. Not promoting with social media

YouTube isn’t the only social media platform that people are spending their time on. People are spending their time on all kinds of different social media platforms, like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The more content in all of these platforms that you create to promote your video, the more potential your video has to be seen by their users.

New YouTubers sometimes forget to promote their videos and channel using other social media platforms. Consequently, they miss out on the opportunity to get views from multiple sources of social media.

8. Spamming comments

Commenting on other YouTube videos is another way to get your channel discovered from people reading over comments. If your profile picture and comment appears interesting enough, out of curiosity, people just might click your username to have a look at your channel.

But rather than leaving interesting comments that are related to the video, rather than adding to the conversation, some new YouTubers desperate to get more subscribers make the mistake of spamming videos with “check out my YouTube channel!” comments.

Spam comments annoy YouTubers. It would be much more beneficial to your channel to build good relationships with other YouTubers to possibly collaborate on a video together in the future.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

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