Those were some fun times! But I'm certainly no Danielle Smith. Still, in late 2011 she convinced me to monetize my channel, so I decided to give it a try. I figured I'd run ads at least until I earned $100, the minimum balance to receive check from the YouTube gods. It took about 14 months to hit that mark.
My first month went well. I don't remember the exact amount earned--maybe $15? It was enough money that I imagined I'd be able to cash out in 6-10 months. But on my ad-year anniversary I was still short of my goal.
Late last year Google cut me a check for just over 100 smackaroos. Is YouTube advertising worth it? Is the money I make worth the potential annoyance it may cause my viewers?
At this point, I think so many people (even businesses) run ads that it's almost expected. Also, it's it's pretty easy to click the ads off. So, I'm not going to quit my day job, but as long as I'm creating fresh video content, I will keep running ads.
YouTube is the second largest online search engine, so I dare say that most folks who watch my videos are not subscribers or even regular viewers, they're just curious peeps searching YouTube for a new product, how to do something, or a cool Minecraft video.
In general, product videos receive the most views and provide the biggest bang for the Adsense advertising buck. Some of my how-to videos are popular, but don't seem to be backed by ad dollars. And the more personal video updates tend to be watched by my friends and subscribers, but they rarely receive more than hundreds of views (if that), and they don't bring in a significant amount of money.
Money aside, all that those videos helped prepare me for moments on live TV, and I did four TV segments last year! I've been approached by some of the mom vlogger networks, but I'm not convinced I have much to gain through them and I'm not willing to sign a contract that runs longer than 6-8 months because that's a long time in the social media world.
I know money is a much-discussed topic among social media moms, but those conversations often take place behind closed doors or in secret Facebook groups. I'm not making so very much on my videos that I feel a need to closely guard my secrets nor am I making so very little that it's embarrassing (is it?) and I report the income to the IRS, so what the heck? I figured I'd share. If you willing to share YouTube tips or talk publicly about your experience monetizing social media outlets, leave a comment below.
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