Monetizing Our YouTube Channel in 78 Days

When we launched our YouTube channel in April of 2024, we set an ambitious goal: to get our brand-new YouTube channel monetized within 90 days. We hit that milestone in just 78 days. In this post we’ll share the four-part strategy we used as well as the challenges we faced and lessons we learned along the way. If you are thinking about starting a new YouTube channel, or you want to accelerate the growth of your existing channel, here is the four-part strategy we used. 

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What Does It Mean to Be Monetized on YouTube?

Before we dive into the strategies, let’s define monetization.

There are two benchmarks for YouTube monetization:

Channel Monetization: With this feature, creators can offer paid memberships to their subscribers, providing perks like exclusive badges, emojis, or members-only content. To qualify for channel memberships, creators need 500 subscribers and 3,000 watch hours within the past 12 months.

Ad Revenue Monetization: Available through the YouTube Partner Program (YPP), ad revenue allows creators to earn a share of revenue from ads shown on their videos. To join, channels must reach 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours within the last 12 months.

For us, channel monetization was not important but earning a share of the ad revenue was a key part of our strategy. Our goal was to achieve this in 90 days. This was a challenging benchmark, especially for new YouTubers. Although some creators do achieve this in under 90 days, it can take creators a year or more to reach. But we were determined to reach it in 90 days as proof that our idea for The Unretirees channel could succeed.

So, how did we get there? We used a four-part strategy.

Step 1: Getting Views

Starting from Scratch

When you’re a new channel, getting views is the first hurdle. We couldn’t rely on just uploading and hoping people would find us, so we needed a strategy to reach viewers fast.

Our Solution: TubeBuddy for Research and Strategy

Our first investment was in Tubebuddy, an essential tool for YouTube creators. TubeBuddy offers tools for optimizing channels, thumbnails, community engagement, and more. We signed up for the Legend Plan. Here’s how it helped us:

•   Keyword Research: TubeBuddy shows search volume and competition for keywords. This allowed us to pick keywords and topics with high search volume and lower competition.
•   Analytics and Competitor Insights: We could analyze top-performing videos in our niche to see how other creators optimized their content.

With Tubebuddy, we felt like we finally understood what makes a video succeed on YouTube.We highly recommend it for anyone looking to grow a channel quickly!

Setting Weekly Goals

We set a goal of 1,000 views per video. Although we didn’t hit it every time, this target forced us to focus on topics, titles, and thumbnails that would resonate with viewers.

Relying on Intuition and Audience Feedback

Alongside Tubebuddy, we used our own experience and audience feedback from Instagram. Our channel focuses on topics related to living abroad and remote work, and we had questions from Instagram followers about these topics. So, we made videos on what people were asking, knowing there was interest in the content.

Outcome: Out of 14 videos, 9 hit over 1,000 views, with our best video reaching 13,000 views.

Lesson: TubeBuddy was crucial. The ability to see exactly what keywords, titles, and topics were trending allowed us to act strategically from the start.

Step 2: Gaining Subscribers

Converting Instagram Followers to YouTube Subscribers

While we were getting views, we also needed subscribers. We found that growing on Instagram was faster, so we tried to convert those followers to YouTube subscribers.

ManyChat for Instagram Automation

We used ManyChat to create automations on Instagram, making it easy for followers to find our YouTube content. Here’s how it worked:

•   We posted Instagram reels with a call-to-action asking viewers to comment with a specific word.
•   ManyChat automatically sent a link to our YouTube video to anyone who commented with that word.

NOTE: Instagram has stated that it will no longer promote content that uses this strategy, however we have continued to use it and it continues to be effective. 

Lesson: Treat your audience well by making it easy for them to find content. Automating links through ManyChat was a game-changer, and we highly recommend it to anyone looking to cross-promote on social media.

Step 3: Increasing Watch Hours

Scaling Up with More Videos

Halfway to our goal, we reached 1,000 subscribers, but we still needed watch hours. With just over a month left, we decided to double our output and publish two videos per week.

The Challenge of Scaling Up

Creating two videos per week quickly became challenging. As new YouTubers, we were still learning the process of scripting, filming, and editing. Publishing two high-quality videos a week wasn’t sustainable, so we scaled back to one video per week to maintain quality.

Lesson: Don’t sacrifice quality for quantity. Focus on creating great videos that provide value to your audience.

Step 4: Creating a Viral Moment

The Power of a Well-Timed Topic

As we neared the end of our 90-day challenge, we needed more watch hours to reach 4,000. Researching other creators who had gone viral quickly showed us that decluttering and minimalism were trending topics. Given our own downsizing experience, we created a video on the topic.

Using TubeBuddy to Fine-Tune Titles

After posting, we found the video wasn’t performing as well as expected. We changed the keyword from “Minimalism” to “Decluttering” using TubeBuddy, and it made a huge difference.

Outcome: The video didn’t go viral, but it generated the most watch hours and brought in a surge of new subscribers.

Going Viral on Instagram

We also created an Instagram reel to promote the decluttering video. Initially, it did okay, but six weeks later, it unexpectedly went viral, reaching over 450,000 views and driving even more traffic to our YouTube channel.

Lesson: Optimize every piece of content with the potential to go viral. TubeBuddy helped us refine the title, and ManyChat automations made it easy to capture new viewers from Instagram.

Final Takeaways: Key Lessons Learned

Invest in Tools Like TubeBuddy: Starting a YouTube channel doesn’t require much, but tools like TubeBuddy simplify growth and help you make data-driven decisions. We wouldn’t have achieved monetization in 90 days without it.

Experiment and Trust Your Intuition: Listen to your audience but also trust your own instincts. If you’re passionate about your content, it’s likely others will be too.

Set Ambitious Goals: Our goal of 1,000 views per video kept us focused and strategic. Setting big goals pushes you to put your best effort forward.

Use ManyChat for Instagram Automations: If you have an audience on Instagram, ManyChat can bridge the gap between platforms and drive traffic to your YouTube channel seamlessly.

Consistency and Patience: It takes time to build momentum, so stay consistent and don’t get discouraged if results aren’t immediate.

Ready to Start Your Own Channel?

We hope this guide inspires you to achieve your YouTube goals. If you’re interested in earning an income online, download our Over-50 Online Income Handbook. It includes 12 different ideas with 90-day action plans so you can start earning quickly and easily.-> GET THE GUIDE

Happy creating!

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