5 Things I Learned Going From $0 to $7,500 a Month on YouTube
You probably hear a lot of success stories about YouTubers who make a ton of money from views, ads, and sponsorships. But how realistic is it to actually create a successful YouTube channel from scratch? As an ex-JP Morgan investment banking analyst who recently launched a finance & education YouTube channel for full-time work, I’ll be sharing some of my insights from how I went from $0 to $7,500 in monthly revenue through my YouTube channel “rareliquid.”
Why I Started YouTube:
Some finance YouTubers are legit, but the vast majority I came across (even some with 1M+ subs) provided very basic information, or at times, presented facts that were completely incorrect.
As a result, I believed there was an information gap that could be filled. At JPM, I closed 15 transactions valued at over $13 billion and closely followed markets for almost 3 years while working 70–100 hours a week. My goal was to create a best-in-class YouTube channel for finance content.
An Overview of My Income:
On top of YouTube ad revenue, I planned on gaining revenue from Patreon, affiliates and sponsors, online courses, and clothing. My channel has steadily grown for the last six months, and in the most recent month (June 2021), my business made $7,479, which converts to about $90,000 in annual revenue. I expect this to go up as the business continues to scale.
My Top 5 Tips For New YouTubers
Below you will find the five biggest lessons I have learned over the last six months working full-time on YouTube. Whether you’re just starting a channel or are a seasoned expert, I hope you find them helpful.
#1: Build an Expertise / Identify your Differentiator
I think this is what has really helped beyond everything else. Working at JP Morgan as an investment banker for 2 years gave me a lot of experience with valuation, following markets, and other stuff I won’t bore you with.
While I think it’s definitely possible to “build an expertise as you go,” I do think it’s important to do a LOT of research into whatever industry you make videos for and become an EXPERT in that field. If you don’t, your videos are just going to get lost vs. bigger YouTubers or the smaller ones that have put in the time to master their subject matter.
Here are some things you can do to build your expertise / identify your differentiator:
- Take online or in-person classes
- Read books
- Jump on calls with industry experts in your network / reach out to them on LinkedIn
- Brainstorm creative ideas that no one else in your market seems to be doing
- Watch your competitor videos and think about how you can “one-up” them; then make a plan to figure out how you can do that
#2: Adapt to the Circumstances
One key aspect of YouTube is that your product is judged immediately — right after each video, people either watch or don’t, like or dislike, and comment positively or negatively. Because core metrics like view count and ad revenue are available right after you publish your videos, you can gauge what is working and what is not, and adapt quickly to your advantage.
For example, one thing I noticed is that timing matters greatly in the investing world. One of my videos that did really well was one on Coupang, the “Amazon of Korea,” which recently went public. I researched the company before the IPO so that I could release the video on the day of the IPO. When the video went live, it was a big hit immediately, attracting 5–10x as many views as my other videos.
Always remember that YouTube is essentially a search engine. Especially when you don’t have a big following already, it is helpful to create videos that people are searching for in order to gain more views and build your base. One tool I recommend is Google Trends and Tube Buddy.
#3: Schedule and Consistency Are Key
I set a pretty strict schedule on when to upload my videos. I post every Thursday and Sunday, usually around 8AM PST and sometimes on Tuesdays if I have the time. Generally, I post investing videos on weekdays and career-related videos on weekends.
Being on a consistent schedule is helpful in two ways. First, it allows subscribers to expect when a new video will come out. Just like waiting for a TV show, this encourages viewers to expect and make time for your content. Second, I believe this helps with the YouTube algorithm. Although I don’t have the hard data to prove this, I believe YouTube rewards diligent YouTubers who create and post videos consistently, as it shows that the creator are reliable and serious.
#4: “Quality Click-baits”
Click-baits are frowned upon because they often lack substance or are misleading. However, my biggest hits have been “quality click-baits” that intuitively attract clicks but provide quality information at the same time. These videos have contributed immensely to the subscriber and revenue growth of my channel.
One of my videos that went semi-viral was titled “How I Spent My ENTIRE J.P. Morgan Investment Banking Salary & Bonus ($155,000)” accompanied with a thumbnail of the words “How I Spent $155,000” in big font.
I think this video did well not only because it is an intrinsically “baity” title people would be curious about, but also because I provided quality information on investment banking salaries, how much is left after taxes, and an entertaining story of my spending as well as my reflections.
#5: Set Goals and Keep Track of Your Progress
As you can see in the overview of my progress, I have set ambitious monthly goals and organized them on an excel sheet. Although I did not meet all of them, they served as great reference points by which I could measure up my performance.
According to research by Szu-chi Huang, an associate professor of marketing at Stanford Graduate School of Business, people benefit from focusing on small “sub-goals” in the early stages of a pursuit because reaching the sub-goals increases the sense of attainability for the larger goal.
Starting a YouTube channel is challenging and full of uncertainty. If you’re thinking about getting started, set small sub-goals before you think about the larger ones that will eventually come your way.
Conclusion
I’d highly recommend YouTube as a business platform if you have an expertise you would like to share with others. The lessons I shared are from my own experiences and may not be applicable to you, but I hope they provide some helpful insights on how to succeed in the YouTube world.
