From free viewers to paid subscribers: The Business Case for Monetizing Content Beyond YouTube
by Aram Marno
9 July 2024
12 min read
Introduction
YouTube is an essential platform for numerous content creators, offering a means to generate income from their passions. As the second most visited website globally, YouTube's extensive reach makes it an excellent venue for audience acquisition and engagement.
However, it has its constraints. Primarily an advertising medium, YouTube doesn't allow creators to fully own their audience relationships or secure consistent revenue streams. Therefore, it's crucial to explore additional monetization avenues beyond YouTube.
Monetizing Content on YouTube
YouTube remains an excellent platform for building an audience and engaging fans, offering several monetization options. The primary revenue source for creators on YouTube is advertising. By meeting certain criteria—over 1,000 subscribers, at least 4,000 watch hours in the past twelve months, and additional requirements—creators can join the YouTube Partner Program to earn money from ads on their videos and live streams.
However, this approach has its limitations:
Advertising alone is often neither a lucrative nor predictable source of income on YouTube unless your channel garners hundreds of thousands of views and targets a high-CPM niche. Even for those generating revenue this way, diversifying income streams is essential. The most successful creators utilize multiple monetization strategies, including advertising, brand sponsorships, crowdfunding, donations, merchandising, and membership fees. While many of these options are available on YouTube, such as channel memberships for those in the YouTube Partner Program meeting specific criteria, creators still lack full ownership. YouTube retains 30% of membership revenue, regardless of the charge. Given these limitations, exploring your own subscription service could be a more profitable alternative.
Why Creators Should Consider a Subscription Model Beyond YouTube ?
The online subscription industry has surged in recent years, projected to hit $1.5 trillion in revenue by 2025. Many consumers already pay recurring fees for streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime, as well as software subscriptions like Spotify, Apple, The New York Times, or Canva. This trend has become the new norm for tech pricing.
Why is the subscription model so prevalent, and how can it benefit creators specifically?
Launching your own subscription or membership platform also frees you from the constraints of algorithms, giving you the freedom to experiment with new content. It empowers you to build and engage your community directly and potentially earn more predictable and incremental revenue.
Launching a Video Subscription Business with Cadjin
Leading YouTube creators like Dropout, Sidemen, Watcher Entertainment, and Taskmaster leverage Cadjin OTT to enhance their subscription business and generate additional revenue beyond their YouTube presence.
For example, Miami Fox Streaming utilized Cadjin to launch its own Netflix-style subscription video on demand (SVOD) app. This approach provided a dedicated platform to engage and monetize its most dedicated fans while continuing to use YouTube for brand and content visibility. Cadjin is renowned for delivering the highest quality, ad-free video experiences on the internet.
By integrating Cadjin OTT, these creators have successfully expanded their revenue streams and strengthened their direct relationship with their audiences.
Maximizing Subscription Model Success
If you're ready to launch a subscription service, selecting the right content is crucial. Your audience can already access your content for free on YouTube, so to justify an additional subscription fee, you need to provide added value. Successful strategies our clients have used include:
If you are planning for a membership business, earn sustainable income, and build a community alongside their premium content, Cadjin is the best YouTube monetization alternative for you.
With Cadjin, you can deepen your community engagement by setting up exclusive mailing lists, sending mobile push notifications for new content, linking to an exclusive Discord community and more.
Launching your own subscription service beyond YouTube enables you to build direct relationships with your most loyal fans and earn recurring, incremental revenue. For every 100,000 free YouTube subscribers, creators can expect to generate over $144,000 annually through a subscription-based model.
Take a demo today and see how the content creators earning handsomely from their Cadjin membership site.