YouTube Is a Lousy Place to Make Money

[Reyed Mia (Apprentice, DIU)]

YouTube Is a Lousy Place to Make Money

A friend who's an avid fly fisherman occasionally posts videos of his exploits on YouTube. He'll never forget two things about his little hobby:

The time a fellow fisherman recognized him out on the stream because he had seen his videos (it happened just once), and
When Google deposited $100 to his bank account that he earned through the ads that run at the beginning of his videos (this also happened only once, in about three years).
Granted, the YouTube audience of middle-aged men who while away their spare time watching fly-fishing videos online is rather small when compared with other YouTube demographics, but few of us are going to make any significant change through Google's AdSense program on YouTube.

So the question becomes: What piece of the puzzle does a YouTube channel provide in the success of a small business?

In a small way (a very small way) I think my fisherman friend's first point above gives us an indication of how useful YouTube can be to a small business owner. Even without trying, he achieved a measure of branding success. He was recognized.

For him, fly fishing is just a hobby. However, if he decided to become a fishing guide, for example, he could post a significant number of videos on YouTube and probably do a good job getting his name out to his most valuable prospects.

If establishing your authority has any place in your marketing strategy, creating a good YouTube channel with fairly deep content is a great idea. Jason Calacanis, whose videos are very popular on YouTube, recently put it this way in a New York Times article: "YouTube is an awesome place to build a brand, but it is a horrible place to build a business.

In fact, you might want to steer clear of even joining Google's AdSense program and running ads on your videos. According to those who have been working hard at generating revenue via ads, the odds are heavily stacked against you.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/251108