It has been six weeks since YouTube began sharing advertising revenue from short-form videos with creators. The announcement saw several TikTokers moving their gaze and short form content efforts on YouTube for the first time.
To gauge whether the monetisation is strong or not, James Seo (no his name is not an SEO pun) has stated that in February, he made about $1,455 for 32.4 million views — about $0.04 for every 1,000 views. “I’m not overwhelmed or underwhelmed,” he told Insider. “I’ll take $1,500 by just posting, I don’t rely on platform revenue so all of this is a bonus.”
Overall, most influencers claimed that although payouts were small, most showed optimism about the future of the program. Interestingly, many were also impressed by the growth potential Shorts provided. Some creators said that while their revenue for Shorts was significantly smaller than what they can earn on long-form videos, the exposure Shorts provide makes posting them worth it.
For example, YouTuber Julia McNamee made $3.15 from eight Shorts on her channel ASMRxBABEE, compared to $585 from long-form content. But her short-form videos were shown 83,000 times in the Shorts feed, providing good visibility, she said.
My favourite insight was that of Riley Lemon. Lemon has 92,000 YouTube subscribers built primarily through short-form content. “Perspective is key here,” Lemon said. “Yes, right now, you wouldn’t be able to quit your full-time job from Shorts alone, however, it presents a unique opportunity to grow your personal brand on YouTube at a rate that hasn’t been achievable for most creators.” It’s giving 2019 TikTok.
It must be remembered here that the great earning potential of short form content isn’t pay per view but rather brand deals, as confirmed by Thomas Walters, founder and Europe CEO of influencer-marketing agency Billion Dollar Boy. Walters stressed that “the real prize for creators is the earnings potential through brand deals.”
Most creators are repurposing TikTok and Insta content for now so it’s certainly worth a shot.
