Two years after YouTube introduced the short-video format, creators are now able to start sharing in advertising revenue similar to traditional long-form monetization. As of February 1st, 2023 YouTube Shorts creators will now be able to earn money off of their Shorts videos. Here is everything you need to know about monetizing your YouTube Shorts content.
What are Shorts and are people watching them?
Shorts are YouTube’s response to short form video content that is thriving on competitor platforms like TikTok and Instagram. These videos are optimized for mobile with a vertical 9:16 ratio and 60 second maximum length.
YouTube is reporting that there have been over 5 trillion views since its inception1. Its view count is consistently growing with now over 140 million daily views and a projected user count of over 1.5 billion2.
YouTube’s dominance in the video space is not slowing down. If you are already a creator on YouTube and part of the YouTube Partnership Program capitalizing on Shorts is a no-brainer.
Is your YouTube account eligible for Shorts monetization?
To monetize any YouTube Channel whether it be for short or long format videos your channel needs to be part of the Creator Partnership Program. This program has the following requirements:
- The monetization thresholds for both long and short form videos start with a channel reaching 1,000 subscribers, and for long form content you also need at least 4,000 hours of public watch time.
- To qualify for you YouTube Shorts monetization you need an additional 10 million Shorts views over the course of 90 days.
Are you set to “Earn”?
Once you are accepted into the Creator Partnership Program and reach the requirements for Shorts monetization you need to accept the terms and conditions to start getting paid for Shorts ads. Keep in mind that even if you have already been paid from the Shorts fund it doesn’t mean you are already signed up for Shorts monetization. To ensure you can benefit from Shorts monetization, go into your YouTube Partner Program portal and select the “earn” tab. From here select “get started” and under “shorts feed ads” accept the terms. Now you are up and running, and will start to see ad revenue come in.
How do Shorts earnings differ from long from video earnings?
With the nature of the shorter length of videos there is a different structure in ad placement resulting in a different structure for ad revenue splits.
- Revenue Split for Shorts is different from the traditional long form content that most creators are familiar with. First, with Shorts creators get 45% of their allocated revenue, versus the 55% they get with long form content. The change is explained by the new split being, 45% to YouTube, like with long form content, while the remaining 10% goes towards licensing the music rights in Shorts videos.
- Ad Placement for long form content is done throughout the videos while with Shorts the ads are solely placed between videos.
- Creator Pool is a new system in which all creator ad revenue is pooled together and divided based on the percentage of views each creator holds.
How to use Shorts to grow your Channel
- Shorts features such as location tagging can help creators expand their reach. By showing their video to a region specific audience these videos are going to be populated on more people's screen in their area.
- The short and vertical structure of the videos helps increase views on mobile devices. Ideal for another type or point of contact for creators who typically are posting longer from content most viewed on desktop.
- With longer form content taking more time to plan, script, film and create these short videos may be the perfect way to keep your audience engaged between longer format video releases. Whether that be teasers for new videos, answering questions, interacting with your audience and more!
As time goes on there will be more to learn about how Shorts work within your YouTube strategy. What is your posting strategy to maximize views and earnings? Does posting on Shorts help build a loyal following? Are brand deals going to follow as they are on TikTok?
Creators who are currently at the top of the charts with YouTube Shorts:
Check out some of these great channels and their content that is crushing it with Shorts.
Sources:
- https://blog.youtube/inside-youtube/letter-susan-our-2022-priorities/
- https://techcrunch.com/2023/02/03/google-says-youtube-shorts-has-crossed-50-billion-daily-views/
