YouTube automation has been getting a lot of attention the last couple of months, but one question often remains unanswered: What is YouTube automation?
Some of the top-earning creators on YouTube do not show their face and do not make their own videos. In this blog we take a look at what is YouTube automation and how to start a YouTube automation channel?
What is a YouTube Automation channel?
What is YouTube automation? YouTube automation is a concept that allows you to manage and publish YouTube videos without showing your face, by outsourcing some or even all the tasks that come with creation of videos. Think about tasks like:
- Finding popular video topics
- Writing a script for the video
- Recording the video
- Editing the video
- Creating a thumbnail & title
- Publishing the video on YouTube
YouTube automation could be useful for content creators that are looking to have more free time and have less stress. YouTube automation is sometimes also called a business model, because you could outsource all the work to freelancers on platforms like Fiverr. Some channels even use AI software to automate the entire production of the videos and sometimes even the publishing of the videos.
How to start a YouTube Automation channel?
Now that the question “What is YouTube automation” has been answered, you might want to learn how to start a YouTube automation channel. Keep reading, because we will help you step-by-step with making a YouTube automation channel. Nearly every step can be outsourced by freelancers on Fiverr or be outsourced with the help of AI software.
Step 1: Make your YouTube Automation channel
The first step is really obvious, you have to make a YouTube account. Creating the account is the easiest task in this step. More difficult is the thinking process that you will have for your channel. Every channel is different so you will first have to think about your branding. How will you be different from other YouTubers in your niche? You will also have to buy or make a logo and banner for your channel.
Step 2: Create and publish your first video
Now that you have created your channel and have decided what niche you want to make videos about, you will have to create your first video. If you do not know what tasks you want to automate, you will have to decide now. Do you want to come up with the ideas and do you want to write the script of the video yourself. Or do you prefer to outsource these tasks to freelancers or AI software’s? These are the tasks that need to be done when creating and publishing a video:
- Come up with a topic
- Write script
- Record the video
- Edit the video
- Create an interesting thumbnail & title
- Publish the video
For each of these tasks you should think about how you want to complete the task, do you want to create it yourself or do you want to outsource the task to freelancers or AI software?
Step 3: Start uploading videos regularly
Once you have created your first video you will have learned a lot about how you can smoothen your video production. You will find new ways to optimize tasks and will create videos with higher quality.
Start creating and uploading more videos to increase the chances of going viral. You will probably have to wait months before you will see any results. Uploading regularly will also show you what is working for your YouTube videos.
Step 4: Monetizing your channel and setting goals
Once you see good results on your videos you will be able to monetize your channel. Think about how you want your YouTube channel to make money. In the next chapter we will explain in detail how to make money with YouTube automation.
Setting goals for your YouTube channel is really important. Setting goals allows you to work towards something and will motivate you to achieve the goals. Achieving goals will also motivate you, because it is often a sign of success. This makes setting goals a circle of motivation.
How to make money with YouTube Automation?
There are multiple ways to make money from an automated YouTube channel. Just like any regular YouTube channel you will have some common and proven ways to earn money from your videos.
These are the best ways to make money from YouTube automation:
- YouTube advertisements
- Sponsors
- Merchandise
- Affiliate marketing
- Paid membership
YouTube Advertisements
The most common way to make money from a YouTube automation channel is the money you receive from YouTube advertisements that are displayed in your YouTube video. Not every creator has the ability to generate money from YouTube ads. You will need to apply to the YouTube Partner Program.
To apply to the YouTube Partner Program, you will need to have at least 1000 subscribers on your YouTube channel and 4000 valid public watch hours. You can also apply if you have 1000 subscribers and more than 10 million valid public YouTube Shorts views.
Once you have successfully applied to the YouTube Partner Program you will have the possibility to add YouTube ads in your videos. With YouTube ads, the average CPM (costs per 1000 views) is different in every country, niche and month. For example, in Decembre the CPM is often higher, because more brands want to advertise on YouTube. The higher the CPM is, the more revenue you will receive for every 1000 views.
The average CPM is around $1 – $3 per 1000 views. This means that on average you will get $2,000 for 1 million views. Other interesting metrics to know are RPM and CPC. RPM is the revenue per 1000 views and CPC are the costs per click. These metrics both influence the revenue you can get on a video.
Interested in the CPM rates per country? Check this blog: YouTube CPM Rates by Country in 2023
Sponsors
YouTube videos are often interesting for brands, because you can target specific audiences in a more personal way. This is why YouTubers often have sponsored advertisements in their videos. These sponsored advertisements are usually around a minute or less. The price of these sponsored ads is often based on multiple factors. Sponsors look at these factors:
- Niche
- Total subscriber count
- Average amount of views
- Engagement on your videos
- Average watch time
Sponsored ads are usually the main source of income for YouTubers. Most YouTubers get in contact with brands with the help of their management or agency.
Merchandise
Some YouTubers utilize branding to keep subscribers personally connected with their YouTube channel.
Merchandise such as clothing, mugs or other products can be valuable if your channel has a big fanbase. YouTubers like MrBeast and DudePerfect generate millions of dollars in revenue each year from selling merchandise.
Once you have added a branding to your YouTube channel, you can think about selling merchandise. If you publish cooking related content on your YouTube channel, you could sell your own book with the best recipes you know.
Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is a performance-based marketing strategy that allows YouTubers, to earn a commission by promoting and driving sales or actions for another company’s products or services. A lot of big companies utilize affiliate marketing, because it is a mutually beneficial agreement.
Do you want to learn more about affiliate marketing? Read our blog: Affiliate Marketing: an introduction
Paid membership
The last popular income source is from paid members. YouTube offers memberships for channels to have monthly paying members. This means that creators get paid monthly by some of their fans. Members often get certain perks like early access to videos. Not every subscriber will become a paid member, but some subscriber might want to support your content by becoming a paid member.
There are also external platforms like Patreon or Buy me a Coffee that allow fans to become a monthly paying member.
How much money can you make with YouTube automation?
Most YouTube channels make money based on their views. Not every video you upload will be popular, most of them will probably fail. If a video on your channel has a lot of views, it will be more likely to get more money from merchandise, affiliate marketing and donators. Some YouTube automation channels make $0 whilst others make $10K+, it all depends on how much time and effort you (or your team) put into your YouTube videos.
There are a lot of videos online about YouTube automation, so if you are interested in real examples of YouTube automation channels you can find a lot of informative videos with a quick search on YouTube.
This video by Jamie Owers gives a realistic and interesting example of an automated YouTube channel:
Interested in digital marketing on different types of social media platforms? Read our blog: Digital Marketing in the Era of Social Media
Is YouTube Automation worth it?
A lot of courses and online gurus claim that YouTube automation can help you reach financial freedom or generate an additional passive income source. However, not everyone will reach financial freedom or even generate any money at all. But is YouTube automation worth it?
Making a YouTube automation channel will take a lot of time and money before it is set up as passive income source. Besides, not every automated YouTube channel will be profitable. For example, if you are in a low CPM niche you are more than likely to not make profit with your videos. It is important to take a good look at the different types of niches that you can start a YouTube channel about.
Just like any regular business, YouTube automation utilizes the strengths of outsourcing work to generate revenue. This makes YouTube automation an actual business model or potential side hustle. However, if you want to succeed with YouTube automation you will need to have a lot of time and dedication and even then, it can still be uncertain if you will earn any money.
We hope that you have learned what YouTube Automation is and how to start a YouTube automation channel for yourself.
