Can You Make Money on YouTube and How Do You Do It? 

Hey guys! Update for you, there’s a little miss info in here. The whole time I have been reading my pay per video as the CPM- this is what the advertiser pays and then you split it with Google! So the numbers are about half per 1k as I said 😅 sorry about that! I’m still new to this. With that being said for those wondering my payouts have been: $216 - for end of April $1557 for all of may and looking to be $1k for June. I hope this helps give some more insight!

During covid because I could not jam at local bars I started "Burlington Bill" on you tube. Nothing fancy just some of my originals and some covers. It is fun. It also led to me writing a theme song for a very well known Sailing site. Sailing into Freedom started using my song on Episode 265 at the one minute mark. Fun stuff. Keep up the good work Tim you do it proud! Burlington Bill busking on the road and here on you tube.

I think its your honesty and straight talking about what your life is like is what attracts your audience. I'm sure lots of your viewers (like me) are guitarists and would have loved to have travelled the journey you have been on and continue on. Maybe some would have tried that life but got waylaid by raising a family, or having to choose a solid, safe career that would ensure security for their family. With your honest approach and insights into the life of a working musician it is great fun to follow you along the way and get a feel for what its really like. I especially like the gig videos but equally enjoy your hang out videos. Keep it up. I think you'll have great success on youtube with your approach.

Very good video!!!!! Thank you for your insight. Great to see you using your passion!

Fun video Tim. I have often wondered how it all worked. Like you, I had thought I needed studio equipment and whatnot. Thanks for clearing that up in a very encouraging way. After watching your videos I can attest to the saying, "The cream will rise." Keep plugging away and you will rise.

A few of your videos ago.. the guys in Lanco were sassing you for filming a little bit and I remember thinking they’re gonna regret that because your gonna blow up way bigger than the band lol People are gonna end up going to Lanco shows because of you and your videos. Im looking forward to seeing all of your success to come 🤘 🎸

Found you by accident. Been doing music since I was 13 and now I am 72. Love your passion and I started watching your stuff last month and love the channel.

I think people like your honesty and straightforwardness.

Tim, you are a natural at this; you are genuine and likable. that comes across and is no small thing. I'm not even a guitar player and I watch all the time. I play piano and do follow some piano guys - and some have such huge egos it is a turn off. Keep doing what you're doing. And if Lanco tours my way, my wife and I are going !

Once again Tim, your content is amazing. I love music and guitar specifically; you take me inside a place that I couldn’t go otherwise. Congrats on 10K, hopefully 100K is on your horizon.

You’re up to $45 so far! 😂 Blowing me out of the water. Love your channel! I love the behind the scenes. Cool stuff.

Great stuff Tim! Thanks for the insight.

I like your production values Tim. Keeping it real keeps me watchin’.

Lanco will benefit from your videos Tim. I had never heard of the band before and now look for live performances on RU-vid. If you come to Toronto I'll be at the show.

It's your honest and down to earth approach to the music business that is so enjoyable. You're on a journey and you are bringing us along for the ride!

Thanks,I watch your channel here and their .im no pro on guitar but .its fun watching you show what really goes on in nashville.

I watch a lot of you tube and you are easy to watch because you are humble and honest. I love to learn from others and I like to come along on your adventures. Good luck and keep up the good work!

Don’t change a thing Tim, just keep doing it from the heart RAWK On

Congrats on 10K!

I’ve gone all in on my RU-vid channel and it’s fun to meet new people and share my drumming experience with people. I really enjoy your videos good stuff.

Congrats on 10K , Thanx Tim ,great info,great video.

You are doing great! I want you to succeed in both fields, just stay away from drugs and watch your health. Thanks for the great videos! (stay humble)

I looked up "personable" in the dictionary and your picture was there . . . you seem like good authentic dude, not full of yourself and happy to be interacting with everyone . . . keep up the good work. All the best on your journey in music.

Thanks for being so open about how much money can be made.

Way too go. Cheers 🍻

As far guitar content goes Ola Eglund has a killer RU-vid rig! But I like what you do Tim. I'm with you.

Tim, you are a down to earth, humble guy. Your personality will continue to contribute to your success. All the best.

Thanks for sharing the information! I enjoy your videos. Good luck with it!

Excellent work here Tim. I have watched you grow from about 1k subscribers & its awesome.

Tim, great video, man. Great tips. I've had some other harp player's ask me if I had a RU-vid channel, that they could look up. And I don't have one yet. But I really appreciate what your putting out, it's really inspiring for my own research. Keep rockin it!

10K subs. Congrats Tim!

Really enjoying your videos!

I had a channel in the early days of YT, before it was monetized. I'm a leather craftsman BTW. I filmed custom projects I was doing, but, man, the number of times I had to stop, move the camera and the editing of all those clips....It took 5 times the normal time to do one job. Plus, the quality was nowhere near what you see in the very professional videos nowadays. There wasn't the competition 12 years ago like there is now. Before I deleted my channel, I had a few that were over 100k views. If I had stuck with it, got better lighting, etc, I think I might have had something by now.

Thanks for the great information…you’re honesty is impeccable

10,000 subscribers! Congrats!!!

Your fine, keep doing what your doing.

Thanks for sharing this information. I wondered if the time/effort invested was worth it. I enjoy your content, and will recommend your channel to others!

Thanks for your honesty Tim Subscribed

Over 10K in subs!! Awesome man, keep it up.

Great Info..Congrats on your success 👍

I like your style Tim! Someday I’ll hopefully get to work with you !

I'll admit what caught my eye was a video you made playing the Silver Sky SE you're holding in this video. I have that guitar and wanted to hear you play. I subscribed and I watch everything you post. Thanks for letting us come along on your journey.

Tim, I appreciate the way you give direct answers to questions on here when possible, your one of the more likable folks on youtube by far. You ever gonna sing one of your originals on here?

Hey Tim, I've been following you for a few weeks now and I want to tell you that your videos inspired me to finally start my own RU-vid channel (beyond just posting random guitar clips every now and then). I'm just two videos in and still very much in that initial grind stage where I'm hardly getting any views. But I plan to post weekly and stick with it for a few months just to see what will happen. At the very least, my videos can be a time capsule for me to document what's going on in my life in 2024. Thanks for the push to get started and I'm happy to see your channel growing!

Very insightful and interesting video on the business of being a RU-vid content creator. Having watched a lot of RU-vid stuff by people documenting their daily lives (I'm thinking here of the so-called "Van-lifers" who make videos about traveling in their vans), I suspect there can be increasing pressure, as the views and subscribers (and RU-vid income) grow, to come up with new, compelling stories each week. Let's face it - most people's day-to-day lives aren't all that content-worthy. I've watched some of those people basically burn out from the constant demand to make new, compelling videos that will sustain and grow their subscriber base and viewership. There can be the temptation to show every day as wonderful and fun and exciting ... when it isn't. i don't suggest that this is your situation, Tim - I think you do a great job of keeping it real, and you've tapped into something of real interest. Just pointing out potential pitfalls of RU-vid content creation as a "career" for anyone considering that option.

Interesting

Great videos!

Thanks!

useful information...thanks

Hi Tim! Greetings from N.E. Ohio. IMO, one of the best things about your videos is that they are "low fi". I hope they stay that way. Nothing turns me off more than " over production ". I enjoy watching your posts not just for the information, but because you are sincere and engaging and passionate. You're also very natural on camera and I feel like I'm talking to one of my friends in person. Keep up the great work! P.S. - you should check out the Sunday night jam session at Dee's Lounge in Madison-would love to see you in action on their live stream!

Thanks for sharing your perspective! I personally enjoy watching channels where the creator really enjoys the thing that their channel is focused on. So like, you enjoy playing guitar and talking about life as a guitarist and it shows. That kind of genuine content is better to watch over the stuff some people do where it's like "let's do this big clickbait-y thing to try and make as much money as possible. Ya know? edit: at 8:42 you literally addressed this after I typed my comment lol

Now we have Uncle Larry and Nephew Tim

Keep it up! Great content. GoPro angles are great so I can cop your licks😬. Do you still do lessons ?

I just found your channel I am enjoying it. How about a few clips about songwriting?

I can’t believe how fast you got to 10k subs!

Good video Tim. You did not mention that people just clicking on the "thumbs up" button helps get you better placing on You Tube. Keep rocking!

Just subbed 📈👍🏽

Hey Tim, Congrats on the 10k and I'm proud to be one of them! I do have a question... When your videos are playing and an ad comes up, do you still get paid if the video/ad is skipped after the 5 seconds (when it says Skip Ad)? Thanks, again. I enjoy and look forward to your videos. It's inspiring and I might dip the toes at some point!!!

Thanks for making this, I've been thinking of trying doing content. No clue how to get started though

Hey Tim! Hope your Friday is going well

That makes sense why google pushes channels with alot of views.... you do a search and completely unrelated stuff comes up but it has alot of views... but people are like wow!! 10 million views that must be something good to see and click on it... you see a add google get's payed. I'm glad your doing good with your channel and it does show that you enjoy it and the people you meet. And it seems like you would do it even if it wasn't monetized.

Once in a while post a Lanco tune, how to play, then your notoriety will increase as well?

Tim Aven, RU-vid Millionaire. Please get one of those rubber ear microphones, then watch your subscriber base go through the fricken roof.

Let’s get this vid to a mill!

To me good sound is most important for watchability. A phone close up in a quiet room is very adequate sound. For the gig video’s better mics would help.

Great vid mate - great info 😃👍 You come across as really genuine and authentic. But at the start you said you're 30!?!? That can't be true!? 😦 😜👍

Tim, I'll maybe watch this video 1 X million times . Lol. And that will help pay off your debt.

Congrats on 10K my man. I crossed 5K and finally got monetized so it’s been pretty exciting. Like you, my biggest passion is music and sharing that keep on crushing my man. Perhaps, we shall do some kind of Collab in the future.🎉

The biggest idea that Tim talked about is don't wait til you are at any certain level, that applies to everything, the sooner you start, the sooner you will get good at whatever it is.

20 dollars is an enormous average rpm. Probably because your videos tend to be longer and music and money are good topics for ad buyers. Greetings from Switzerland, I like your videos because they let me have a view on somebody living a very different life.

Heading to 100K subs soon

The people I've seen who's channel grows the fastest are the ones who pump out the most content. They don't let up. They are posting 2 or 3 or more times a week. That way, the viewers have variety and they don't lose interest in the channel. All of the topics that are involved with being a professional musician are interesting to musicians and other curious individuals. Basically, those who work the most at putting out content get the most results. This approach also allows the creator to modify the quality of their work due to more feedback. Be relentless and don't stop, kind of like the music game. Using all the platforms also gets "cross pollination". Someone watches a short on Facebook and SHARES a link to RU-vid stuff, etc... It seems to me, that you would have to devote a ton of your time and effort towards growing your channel and that might interfere with your professional career. People become obsessed and they pull it off but they work VERY hard. Merch for example, takes investment, time and promotion.

I believe that you will have a video with a million views at some point in time

Great Video. I watch all your Videos and enjoy all. I watch on my TV and don't think I can comment, at least I haven't found away yet. Also I'm a Premium subscriber so how do you get paid for us. Stay Strong.

Titles and thumbnails are probably the biggest driver of views and any title that refers to how much money can be made at whatever subject always does well. This video will do as well as your "how much I make as a musician in Nashville" video.

You’ve got a likable personality though. Im not so sure mine is all that likable.

I'm a Premium member... and don't see commercials for two years now. I use YT a lot... and def get my $ worth! How do Premium views show up and do those views count the same for you?

I know you said the shorts don't make much but does the length make s difference, money-wise besides that?

Tim, if someone walked into a bar in Nashville and your band was playing and say they got 1 minute of ya playing then maybe talked to a few customers... would they have to get your written permission or the bars permission or that of the customers before posting it?

Tim, do you make money from subscribers that pay monthly to not have ads?

What happens if you have a video that gets a million views but don’t have 1k subscriber necessary to monetize?

I've been just putting up shorts but this is making me think I could do a bit more...I've managed to get 360 subscribers without even asking, maybe I can do better!

Ive been building guitars and posting them for over a decade and im lucky if i have 100 views…….

You may want to think about some affiliate links at this point.

Logrythems decide who makes what on RU-vid! for instance, if your viewers ( Like ) your videos it helps your pay base somehow, Etc.

If you get a $20k payday are you going to pay off debt or buy a new guitar? Both?

It's often said that the first 50 videos are going to suck, might as well get them out of the way now.

average pay per million views is $1800. Ten million views = $18K.

Tim talk less play more !!

Cross pollinating is a great way to grow. I know a few that add 10k a month by working with others, and using names and titles that come up in the searches.