Are you tired of dreaming about turning your passion into profit? Well, it's time to stop dreaming and start doing! In this blog post, I'm going to share with you my journey of how I transformed my hobby into a money-making machine on YouTube. From filming DIY projects around my house to now having thousands of subscribers and multiple income streams, I'm excited to show you the story and strategies that helped me turn my love for DIY home projects into a successful YouTube channel and business venture. Of course, you can take an online course about learn how to make money on YouTube, or keep reading. Either way, buckle up and get ready for some amazing insights on how you too can monetize your hobbies on YouTube!
Introduction
I never thought that my YouTube channel would one day make money. It all started out as a simple hobby: filming things around the house that I was doing anyway. We decided to install a basketball hoop in the driveway. Filmed it. Aerated my lawn - filmed it. Cleaned my dryer vent. Filmed! I never expected to make any money from it. I mean, I hoped I would, but had zero expectations. But slowly, one day, I noticed that my subscribers were increasing. It was super slow, but positive nonetheless. I dawned on me that if I keep going, it might be possible to actually to turn my little hobby into a money-making machine.
That's when I started to focus on growing my channel and building an audience. I implemented some strategies and began to see results. Before long, my channel was starting to take off. Not viral growth. But steady upward growth - and quickly approaching 1,000 subscribers, YouTube's threshold for monetization. Within about a year, I monetized my channel! And now, just a couple years later, it's a huge source of income for my family and me!
In this article, I'm going to share with you the strategies I used to turn my YouTube channel into a real passive income each month. If you're looking for ways to monetize your YouTube channel, this is the article for you!
What made me start my YouTube channel?
I started This Better Home YouTube channel because I was passionate about DIY projects and wanted to share my love - and skill - with others. Of course, I realized that there was a lot of money to be made by running a successful YouTube channel, and I decided to start producing content more and more.
I started my channel with just my iPhone and iMovie, its basic editing software. ZERO start-up costs! I would film my projects - home repairs, upgrades, maintenance jobs - and talking about them, and then post the videos on YouTube. I quickly began to grow a following, and started making money through affiliate ad revenue and YouTube.
Today, I produce quality videos - still using my phone, although I made some simple upgrades like a better microphone and a laptop and iPad to handle some more complex editing and publishing when needed. My channel has grown into a successful side-hustle business, and I am able to afford vacations, increase savings and investments, and contribute to my kids' college education using my YouTube earnings. I still have a full-time job, but you never know what the future holds! If you're passionate or knowledgable about something, don't be afraid to start filming - you can turn it into a passive income like I did - you never know where it might take you!
Hear what my wife thinks about my YouTube channel
My early videos and the success I had with them
I started making videos just a few years ago in 2019-2020. My early videos were crude and awkward, but they were slowly gaining traction among many viewers on YouTube. I never imagined that my hobby would turn into a cash, but that's exactly what happened.
In 2021, I started posting videos to YouTube on a more regular basis. I quickly gained a following of loyal fans who enjoyed watching my videos and subscribed to my channel. I was solving people's problems! As my channel grew, I became closer and closer to 1,000 subscribers, the requirement to monetize.
In summer 2021, I finally did it. 1,000 subscribers, baby! I went from $0 to $1,250 in passive income my first month, YouTube and affiliate ad income combined! Amazing leap!
Now, YouTube is my side-gig job, and I'm loving every minute of it. I'm so grateful to have found success with something that I'm passionate about, and I hope to continue helping and inspiring my viewers for years to come!
How I Made Money on YouTube
I started This Better Home as a hobby, posting videos of DIY projects. I quickly gained a following, and realized that I could make money on YouTube by monetizing my channel. I signed up for Google AdSense, and began allowing ads to run on my videos. I also started promoting products on my channel through affiliate links. Every time someone clicked on one of my links and made a purchase, I earned a commission. Suddenly, my YouTube hobby was making me money!
Strategies for Growing Your Viewership
1. First and foremost, grow your YouTube channel organically. This means creating interesting and original content that will attract viewers on its own merits. In order to do this, focus on topics that you're passionate about and have a unique perspective on. Also be sure to post regularly, so that your audience knows they can expect new content from you on a regular basis.
2. Collaborate with other YouTubers who are complementary to your channel. For example, if you make gaming videos, collaborate with someone who makes Let's Play videos or walkthroughs. This will help introduce your channel to a new audience who may be interested in what you have to offer.
3. Take advantage of social media platforms to promote your YouTube channel. Post links to your videos on Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, etc., and make sure to use relevant hashtags so that people can easily find your content. Be careful spending too much time on social media (other than YouTube) because every minute you spend trying to promote your video, is a minute lost developing more YouTube video content! A huge audience is already on YouTube - so stay focused and committed there.
4. Use paid advertising to promote your YouTube channel to a wider audience. This can be done through Google AdWords or Facebook Ads. Keep in mind that you'll need to create compelling ads in order to get people to click through to your channel, so make sure you put some thought into this aspect of your marketing strategy. I don't advise you do this until you have evidence that your channel will soon monetize (or wait until it has). The last thing you want is to spend HUGE money advertising videos no one really cares about. Organic growth is priority.
5. Finally, remember that quality trumps quantity when it comes to growing your viewership on YouTube. However, if you have "good enough" content, and lots of it, you can monetize as well.
Tips for Creating Engaging YouTube Content
As someone who's made thousands of dollars on YouTube, I know a thing or two about creating engaging content. First off, you need to enroll in an online course that teaches you step-by-step how to make money on YouTube.
Here are my other top tips:
1. Know your audience. What are they interested in? What kind of content will they engage with?
2. Be authentic. People can spot a fake from a mile away. Be yourself and stay true to your values.
3. Be interesting. No one wants to watch another boring talking head on YouTube. Find ways to make your content stand out from the rest. That said, big personalities are not required if you have content that helps people solve problems. Which brings me to...
4. Be helpful. If you can help your viewers in some way, they'll be more likely to stick around and keep watching your videos.
5. Keep it fresh. Don't just regurgitate the same old information in every video – find new and exciting ways to keep your content fresh and engaging.
6. Be prolific. Punch out as many videos as you can. Daily? Likely not possibly with a busy schedule - but two per week is realistic. Over the next several months, you can have dozens if not more videos published on your channel. Guess what? People loved to see established channels with committed creators.
How I’ve Managed to Sustain My Income on YouTube
In order to sustain my income on YouTube, I’ve had to be consistent with my uploads and engaging with my audience. I treat YouTube as a job...it actually is my business...even though it didn’t start out that way. When I started, I was posting videos whenever I felt like it but quickly realized that in order to make money from YouTube, I needed to be more strategic. Of course, I still have a "hobby" mentality approach, which means I'm not going to stress myself out too much with content creation and publishing. In fact, there is wise strategy in starting strong - publish as many good-quality videos as you can for the fist six months or so, then scale it back a bit once you have evidence that you are, or will be, monetizing.
I now post videos every week without fail. I also make sure to respond to most (not all) comments and questions left on my videos so that my audience knows that I value their engagement. By being consistent with my content and being engaged with my viewers, I’ve been able to turn my hobby into a sustainable income stream.
Conclusion
With this, we've come to the end of sharing my story of how I turned a simple hobby into an income-generating machine on YouTube. If you are serious about making money on YouTube, check out this online course. What I have learned over time is that success doesn't just happen overnight; it takes hard work and dedication to achieve any dream. This is no exception. However, by establishing efficient systems and a little bit of creativity and perseverance, anything is possible. So to those aspiring entrepreneurs out there who are still working to make their dreams become reality – don't give up! Just remember this success story, it might be exactly what you need for some extra motivation on your journey.
Good luck!
Want to check out my YouTube channel? Visit This Better Home.
Want to turn your hobbies into real income? Enroll in my new online course called The Side Gig Secret: How to Make Monthly Passive Income as a YouTube Creator.
Comments