From Edie: Samantha Tschritter shares how authors can make money on YouTube. Learn how audiobooks, SEO, consistent content, and smart marketing helped one author reach monetization.
YouTube for Writers, Part 10: How Authors Can Monetize YouTube with Audiobooks and Consistent Content
by Samantha Tschritter @SETschritter
I started this Youtube vlog series last autumn with visions of grandeur. I knew by the time I published article twelve of twelve on “How to Grow Your Youtube Channel” I would be monetized, have thousands of subscribers, be rich as a result of the thousands of passive dollars I earned each month, and sing, “see guys! It’s easy!”
Crickets.
In order to get monetized, a creator needs, within one year, 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watchtime hours. I have 964 fewer than 1,000. My next twelve-part series for authors will be on “How to Remain Humble as an Author.”
I did not get monetized on Youtube this year, but assisted several others in doing so. To learn more about the process of Youtube monetization for authors, I interviewed Heidi Gray McGill.
How’d she do it?
Consistency, keyword repetition, and marketing genius.
Consistency:
Influencers who achieve monetization talk about consistency being key. Most of them are referring to uploading videos on a regular basis. In McGill’s case, she constantly, consistently reminded newsletter subscribers to watch the free novella and to send the newsletter subscription link to friends who might be interested in listening to a free audio book.
Author Heidi Gray McGill grew her Youtube channel and newsletter simultaneously by offering value, giving away a novella audio book for free. Newsletter subscribers receive a “Private” Youtube link to Where Hearts Belong when they join her newsletter.
Because the video is “Private,” she receives zero view counts or watchtime hours for that audio book. However, McGill stated that almost every audio book listener subscribed to her channel when they saw that she had more audio books listed on her profile. She linked Where Hearts Belong to an eleven-hour audio version of her first book, Desire of My Heart.
With multiple hours-long books loaded on Youtube, McGill reached the required 4,000 watchtime hours within nine months.
Does giving away an audio book for free on YouTube detract from sales in other markets? No. Because the audiences are different, they aren’t in competition with one another. Also, McGill makes more revenue from her Youtube monetization than all of her other audiobook sales combined.
Keywords:
If you have been reading this Youtube series, then you have heard me mention keywords a time or two. If you need a memory refresher, read:
or
or
One specific detail about keywords that McGill taught me was the exact same keywords need to be in your title, your description (multiple times), and within your tags.
How did Edie Melson earn “Writer’s Digest: Top 101 Websites for Writers” 10 years in a row? Keywords played a large role. Melson writes each title and introduction herself after researching which words will perform the best.
Are you noticing a pattern? Keywords make a difference because they send your content to the appropriate audience.
Marketing Genius
I met Heidi Gray McGill in 2023, when I first moved to Simpsonville. We attended a writing retreat together and shared ideas back and forth long after everyone else headed to bed. When we finally admitted that we were getting tired, we looked at our watches—it was 2 a.m.! There are traits and strategies I admire about Heidi, that I hope I have in myself, and that I believe lead to success in the industry.
- Offer followers, readers, and subscribers value.
- Share what you know with other creatives. A rising tide raises all boats.
- Be doggedly persistent. If you give up, you won’t succeed.
- Keep learning. There’s always a new skill available to master.
- Stay humble. The moment we stop being teachable is the second we stop learning.
- Remain Christ-centered at all costs. This life isn’t it. Paul says, “whatever was to my profit, I now consider loss” (Philippians 3). Jesus says “Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6) Fleeting, meaningless. This world is not our end game.
McGill’s strategy to make money is to give away value for free. The concept seems counter-intuitive, but it works.
Tricks That Helped Heidi Most:
- Several ads through Sprizzy.com
- Emails from ThinkMedia.com
- A Phenomenal (Human) audio book narrator
- Tube Buddy
- Encouragement and tips from S. E. Tschritter
McGill considers Youtube her mission field. She is reaching more than a dozen countries with the gospel of Christ, through fiction. If you want to hear more, here’s the link for the monetization conversation between McGill and Tschritter: Make Money on Youtube Using Audio Books
If you haven’t yet, click here to subscribe to the Youtube channel @Writing_Unedited. These videos can help agents’ and publishers’ clients get a leg up on brand awareness and self-promotion.
Risk with Wisdom,
S. E. Tschritter
TWEETABLE
Don't miss the rest of this YouTube for Writers Series!
Tschritter currently resides in Simpsonville, South Carolina with her husband, their three teen and preteen daughters, cats named Pitter and Patter, and their Siberian husky whom she lost the vote to name Onomatopoeia. Nothing refreshes Tschritter’s soul like gardening. She gardens to work through plot holes, writer’s block, character development, and book ideas. Tschritter spends a great deal of time gardening. You can find her on social media at Linktr.ee/LoveSamEvans.
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