YouTube is the best place for aspiring content creators who want to share their talent with the world — but like any platform that's built upon user contributions, there are rules. One of those rules is known as "content ID," which means your original creator can't use copyrighted material in your new creation without giving credit or permission first.
Unfortunately, this rule also applies to all other contributors using someone else's work as part of another creative project. For example, let's say you wrote an article about something called the "Cupcake Wars." You could take someone else's recipe for cupcakes (which clearly includes Cupcake Wars references) and create your own cooking show based on the ingredients and instructions. But since you took someone else's words, images, music, and everything else, including the title, you need to give them credit or get permission before you publish anything.
This might sound harsh, especially considering many YouTube creators have been making money off their own content for years now. However, if you're just starting out, learning how to make money from YouTube is easier than ever thanks to digital platforms like Patreon. And even though it may seem impossible at times, there are ways around copyright restrictions too. Let's go over some of these methods so you can start earning revenue from YouTube today!
Monetization allows you to add certain types of advertisements to your videos. The most common way to incorporate this into your workflow is through Google Adsense, where advertisers pay you every time users click on one of the ads placed within your video. Each ad has its own unique identifier code, meaning you only receive payment once per viewer rather than each time they watch your video. This makes sense because not everyone will be viewing the same advertisement at any given moment, and neither party wants to wait until the end credits roll to see whether anyone clicked.
Another popular option for monetizing your content is through Amazon Associates, where you'll link your YouTube account directly with Amazon Web Services' advertising program. In exchange for placing ads on your videos, Amazon provides access to special codes for linking viewers to relevant products while they view your content. These links appear during specific moments throughout the length of your video, allowing viewers to purchase whatever product is advertised whenever they feel inclined. If a person clicks on a link, you'll receive a small percentage of the sale price.
Many people choose to leverage both systems simultaneously, creating what's known as hybrid channels. Users watching your video won't know which system your video falls under unless they hover over the player button. When you open up your settings page, however, you should find options to toggle between different monetization services.
Although we've already gone over how you can set yourself apart from other content producers by adding additional income streams such as sponsorships and advertisements, there are still plenty of ways to maximize your earnings potential. One avenue often overlooked by newer creators is subscriptions, an increasingly popular method used by celebrities and influencers alike.
If you'd prefer to offer fans a monetary incentive instead of entertainment value, consider joining the growing number of individuals seeking paid subscription models via Patreon. With Patreon, you can charge supporters monthly fees to gain exclusive perks and benefits, ranging anywhere from early access to future projects to physical rewards like merchandise. While some artists opt to keep their Patreon accounts private, others publicly announce donations made above a specified threshold. Either way, being able to connect with patrons interested in paying you to produce quality content gives you the opportunity to build long-lasting relationships with your audience.
For more information on how to sign up for Patreon, check out our beginner's guide to Patreon here.
Now that we understand the basic concepts behind setting up a monetized YouTube channel, let's dive deeper into the process itself.
While there's no explicit prohibition against copying other people's works and republishing on your own website, doing so without proper attribution risks violating YouTube's policies regarding intellectual property rights. As such, you must properly attribute any borrowed footage or audio clips used in order to avoid legal repercussions down the line. Failure to do so may result in termination of your channel.
There are several ways to cite materials you borrow or otherwise obtain without permission, depending on the circumstances surrounding your situation. For instance, simply referencing the source of the video clip or quote isn't enough. Instead, try crediting the original creator by name, either by stating their username or mentioning their channel. It's important to note that this doesn't apply to parody or transformative artworks, so don't think twice about stealing ideas wholesale without attributing the creator.
In short, you must always remember that you aren't entitled to someone else's intellectual property without clear written consent from its owner. Even if you believe your use of the material fits into fair use guidelines, you shouldn't assume you automatically have permission to redistribute it elsewhere. Before posting anything online, consult your local laws and regulations to ensure you haven't infringed on anyone else's copyrights.
To learn more about citing sources, read our primer on plagiarism and citations.
Yes! People love sharing good ol' fashioned internet memes, funny jokes, and interesting facts with friends and family across social media apps. But even if you don't intend to profit off of them, chances are high your favorite viral sensations were originally produced as personal projects. So why not capitalize on the popularity of your creations and help support your favorite stars along the way?
As mentioned earlier, copyright law dictates that you cannot reproduce someone else's work without their express authorization. However, there are exceptions to this claim. For example, you don't necessarily need written permission to reuse someone else's photos or illustrations in your blog posts, provided you're quoting them verbatim—even if you change the text slightly, it remains considered derivative work. On the other hand, you probably wouldn't want to post someone else's handwritten notes or sketches onto your Tumblr feed, nor would you expect to reprint quotes attributed to public figures without their knowledge.
But again, this largely depends on context and intent. If you plan on publishing content exclusively on your personal site, then you don't really need permission to begin with. However, if you're planning on distributing your work widely online, you should always ask for approval first. After all, if your followers found success building communities around your content, they deserve to reap the same reward.
And speaking of following the rules, please never steal someone else's idea or likeness outright without asking first. Just because you happen to enjoy their work doesn't mean you have the right to appropriate it for your own ends. Remember that copyright infringement is illegal regardless of your intentions, and you could potentially face consequences far worse than losing subscribers.
Once you've uploaded your masterpiece to YouTube, it goes live for millions of people to consume as they wish. Since it's typically hosted on the world's largest streaming service, your video quickly enters a realm beyond your control. That said, you have the ability to moderate comments, block malicious commenters, report trolls, and remove offensive language from your uploads as needed. Additionally, you can adjust various settings related to privacy controls, subscriber notifications, and monetization preferences.
However, unlike Twitch streamers or Instagram influencers, you lack direct contact with your audience members. Unless they specifically request your attention via email, comment, DM, or similar, you won't hear back from them. To combat loneliness, you can join groups dedicated to discussing particular topics you care about, participate in Q & A sessions, host giveaways, and much more.
Of course, none of these solutions are perfect. Many creators struggle to maintain interest in their channels after becoming overwhelmed by harassment, hate speech, spammy bots, and other issues plaguing the platform. Fortunately, there are numerous tools available to aid you in maintaining a safe space conducive to fostering healthy conversations amongst your community.
One of the biggest challenges facing modern creators looking to establish themselves on the platform is coming up with fresh, innovative ideas. Thankfully, you don't have to come up with your own concept to become successful on YouTube. There are countless opportunities to make extra cash and grow your fanbase by leveraging existing trends and hashtags. Whether you decide to pursue a career in comedy, gaming, lifestyle vlogging, movie reviews, sports, beauty tutorials, fitness, crafts, tech news, food porn, etc., you should never underestimate the power of combining two seemingly unrelated subjects together.
So if you're ready to step up your game, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We're excited to explore new possibilities together.
There’s no doubt about it. Content creators love the platform that has allowed them to build their audiences — YouTube is now home to over a billion users per month. But there are still questions around monetizing content uploaded to the video behemoth.
One of those concerns whether or not creators can actually make money with existing uploads. While this may seem like an impossible task for some creators — especially when they've already invested hours into creating original content — others have found success in making money off of reused content.
In this article we'll examine what exactly does it take to make money from YouTube using your own uploaded material. We're also going to look at ways in which other successful YouTubers use used footage without having to worry about copyright infringement.
So if you want to know how to get started earning money from YouTube, keep reading! Here's everything you need to know...
Unfortunately, the answer is yes. However, before proceeding any further, let us first clarify one thing. When we say "make" money, we mean generate revenue through advertising rather than selling copies of your work. This means you will only see adverts after viewers watch your uploaded clips.
The good news is that most popular channels (such as Jenna Marbles) receive millions of views each day. As such, advertisers pay big bucks to promote products via these platforms. The bad news is that many creators haven't yet mastered the art of maximizing revenues earned from their videos.
If you're trying to figure out how to make money from YouTube then our advice would be to avoid doing so until you learn all you can about optimizing your videos. Until you understand why certain edits increase profits, it's best to stick to editing new content exclusively.
That being said, here are three different methods you could try to generate income from prerecorded media.
1. Affiliate marketing
Affiliates are independent salespeople who market other people's products online. If you sell clothes, accessories, makeup, perfume etc., you might consider promoting brands directly within your videos. Alternatively, you could sign up to Amazon Associates, Rakuten Marketing, ShareASale, Commission Junction, LinkShare, ShopStyle Collective, eBay Partner Network, Google Product Launch Program, Facebook Commerce, Wishpond Click & Grow, and Teespring. Then choose relevant items based on your audience demographics and interests.
2. E-Commerce
E-commerce sites offer consumers access to goods sold via digital storefronts. A quick search of Etsy reveals thousands upon thousands of handmade pieces listed across categories including jewelry, clothing, flowers, artwork, and crafts.
3. Sell prints or posters
A great way to create physical versions of your edited videos is to print images created during post production onto poster paper. Posters typically come in sizes between 40x30 inches and 24x36 inches while larger ones go upwards of 60x40 inches. Depending on how much time you spend producing your videos, you should be able to produce several prints worth of stock photos in just a few days.
You don't necessarily need to design every image yourself either. There are countless websites offering high quality royalty free imagery. For example, StockUnlimited offers both traditional photographs as well as illustrations and clipart.
Once you have finished printing your images, simply list them on Gumroad and wait for customers to buy them. Gumroad takes care of shipping purchases made on its site.
4. Start an e-book
Creating an e-book isn't always easy but once written, they tend to perform better than printed books.
To begin with, you can write and publish an e-book straight away without needing to edit anything. Simply type up all the text inside Microsoft Word and save it as a DOC file. Next, head over to Kindle Direct Publishing and select Create Your Book. Make adjustments to your book cover, add descriptions, adjust pricing, and enter keywords related to your topic. Finally, click Publish.
Alternatively, you can hire someone else to write your ebook for you. For example, Fiverr allows you to find freelance writers willing to write custom texts and essays for $5 each.
After paying your writer, you can send him/her links to download the completed product. Once downloaded, readers will be able to read the document offline.
And remember, writing doesn't have to stop with fiction. To help inspire you, check out author James Patterson's website where he sells his self-published novels.
Reproducing someone else's content without permission is called intellectual property theft. However, if done correctly, it is possible to use clips of prerecorded videos without worrying about copyright issues.
For instance, if you were given a photo taken by another photographer, you wouldn't be breaking the law if you published it under your name. Similarly, photographers often give their clients rights to reproduce their work anywhere and everywhere.
This is because photography licensing agreements usually stipulate that the client cannot withhold consent for publication. If you wish to reprint the same photograph however, you must acquire permission from the photographer.
As previously mentioned, there are numerous examples of famous YouTuber's repurposing old content. In particular, PewDiePie uses a large amount of prerecorded footage in his daily vlogs. He has even gone so far as to release a compilation album titled Legend Of Zelda featuring music sampled from various games.
PewDiePie's popularity stems mainly from his ability to entertain his fans through comedy sketches. It's fair to assume that he receives footage from other sources too. So long as the source materials aren't publicly available, the chances of legal trouble are low.
However, if the originator of the footage wishes to pursue a claim against you, then you risk receiving negative publicity and public backlash.
Most importantly, if you decide to repost prerecorded footage in order to gain additional subscribers, bear in mind that the person whose content you are reproducing probably worked hard to put together their latest creation. Therefore, you'd be wise to credit them accordingly.
Reusing copyrighted content without permission is illegal. If you plan to republish other peoples' content, ensure you follow the guidelines above to prevent attracting unwanted attention from authorities.
While posting unedited footage online is unlikely to cause problems, you run the risk of infringing copyrights if you fail to attribute the creator properly.
When deciding how to reuse other people's content, think carefully about how you intend to profit. If you wish to turn your videos into merchandise, for example, you'll need to approach manufacturers directly. They provide licenses for specific types of productions.
Another option is to license your footage to third parties. Instead of giving exclusive ownership of your piece, you retain full control over the final product. Licensing your videos means that you can charge fees for commercial usage or require payment upfront for non-commercial projects.
Licensing companies allow producers to maximize profitability by increasing the number of licensed works produced. Many companies specialize in providing visual artists, performers, musicians, celebrities, politicians, brands, sports teams and universities with customized licensing options.
It's important to note that in exchange for increased visibility, YouTubers are required to adhere to strict guidelines set forth by licensing agencies. Failure to comply with the terms laid down by these firms could result in suspension of user accounts.
Similarly, any company wishing to utilize footage from YouTubers for promotional purposes needs to obtain a license beforehand. Otherwise, they face potential penalties.
Here's an interesting factoid. Most major film studios hold licenses allowing them to freely distribute footage recorded by Hollywood stars. Some of the biggest names in entertainment have been known to record entire movies and broadcast them without compensating actors or crew members.
Why do they do this? Because studios feel confident that audiences won't notice unauthorized distribution. After all, since moviegoers rarely seek out pirated films, TV shows, songs, albums, podcasts, and documentaries, broadcasters rely heavily on official releases to attract viewers.
Yes, you can. All you need to do is request permission from original creators and ask nicely.
Let's illustrate with an example. Let's imagine that you have recently released a brand new tutorial series. Within the course of filming, you stumbled upon some unused footage that you believe belongs to none other than Mr Bean himself. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the scene, you couldn't share it with fans.
Instead of deleting the clip, you decided to contact Mr Bean's estate agent to negotiate a deal to feature it alongside future tutorials. Although you didn't initially expect to hear back from anyone, Mr Bean's representative was happy to grant you permission to use the footage. Now that Mr Bean knows about the episode, he's likely to appreciate your efforts.
Of course, this scenario is entirely hypothetical. Yet it highlights how you can leverage your relationship with influencers to achieve favorable outcomes.
You want your channel to be the best possible version of itself -- that's why you're working so hard! But what if there were another way for you to get paid while keeping up with your content creation goals?
YouTube has become one of the biggest platforms in the world for creators who are looking to share their work online. Unfortunately, not everyone is able to monetize their channels due to numerous policies which prevent this. There are many reasons as to why these rules exist but they mainly come down to copyright infringement.
But don't worry, just because YouTube doesn't allow all users to generate revenue through their platform, it doesn't mean that you can't use the service at all. In fact, some users choose to take advantage of an overlooked feature called "reuploads" and turn them into successful business models. Here we'll explain everything you need to know about making money using YouTube's reupload function...
If you have been following any of my social media accounts over the past few years, then you probably already know me well enough to call yourself a fan. My name is Samin Nosrat. You may also recognize my face or voice from Netflix series such as Queer Eye or Chef's Table. Or maybe you've seen me speak live on stage at events like VidCon or The Wall Street Journal Live.
I am passionate about creating engaging lifestyle programming that highlights food, culture, travel, art, design, fashion, style, health & wellness, and entertainment. And although most people consider myself a chef, writer, television personality, speaker, etc., none of those roles would even begin without the support of other individuals and organizations. Without them, I wouldn't have had access to the resources necessary to create and produce shows like Little Little Lies (which was nominated for 6 Emmys), BECOME: Food Revolution (nominated for 3 Emmy Awards) or Salt Fat Acid Heat.
In short, I'm incredibly grateful for anyone who supports my passion project of sharing stories via digital media. Nowadays, when someone comes across one of my old web episodes or talks to me during an interview, chances are pretty high that they will ask what I'm currently doing now. As a result, it makes sense that I'd love for others to see what I'm up to today. That said, sometimes new opportunities arise and it could happen again tomorrow. So here's where reuploads come in handy.
Reuploads help ensure that fans always stay updated on what you're doing, no matter what direction your career takes next. It's an opportunity to connect with your audience members and keep them engaged. This allows you to continue building relationships long after your original content has run its course. Just think back to the last time you watched something on YouTube and later realized it wasn't exactly what you wanted anymore. Reuploads give you the ability to reach out to viewers and offer alternatives. For example, if you uploaded a cooking show episode that featured a recipe you weren't happy with, you might decide to replace it with something else entirely. On top of that, you can gain exposure for different types of content. While you won't necessarily attract brand partnerships overnight, having a diverse portfolio can only benefit you in the long term.
Here's how to start recreating your own content so you can build upon your success story.
Absolutely, yes. You can upload videos on YouTube absolutely free. However, since YouTube isn't operated by Google, it does follow a set of guidelines regarding advertising placement on each user's profile page. These guidelines stipulate whether a user should receive credit for ad views, appear alongside sponsored posts, or both. To learn more about this process, check out our guide detailing how to avoid getting flagged for violating YouTube’s policy against harmful or deceptive content.
And it gets worse. Allowing advertisers to place promotions directly within your videos means you aren't earning anything extra off of those promotional efforts.
That being said, there are still ways you can generate income from reuploads. We'll discuss several of them below.
Yes, you can reupload YouTube videos provided you understand the company's terms and conditions. First, however, you must request permission first. Simply go to your account settings and click on Videos/Advanced Settings. Then scroll down until you find Content ID Matching. Click Request to enable automatic matching of copyrighted material. Once completed, you will likely receive a message stating that your match rate rose significantly.
Now that you've requested permission, open the video in question and head to Tools > Copy Video URL. Paste the link into the box provided and hit Enter. Your video should automatically populate a form titled Copyrighted Material Found With Link. Hit Submit. Afterward, you will receive a message letting you know that the video has been submitted for review. Depending on your status, your submission either matches or mismatches.
However, if you wish to proceed further, you can submit your video manually by visiting YouTube Studio. From there, select Uploads and press +Add. Choose Create New File and fill out the information asked for. When done, hit Save. Wait 24 hours before proceeding to step two.
Note: If you experience issues submitting your video, try logging out of YouTube completely and logging back in. Also, remember to delete your previous submission once you complete the steps above.
Once you've checked your content, select Edit Submission. Scroll down until you locate the option labeled Rejected - No Matches found. Select this and click View Report. A report containing details about your attempt will pop up onscreen. Review it carefully to determine whether your video contains footage protected under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
At the bottom, you should see a section entitled Action Taken. Click View Report to view a breakdown of your video's results. Next, select Manage Files and select Delete File. Confirm your choice by clicking Yes and wait for YouTube to remove it. Repeat this action for all instances of the same file.
Finally, repeat the manual process outlined earlier if the automated method fails repeatedly. Upon completion, you'll notice that your video looks slightly different than before. In addition to displaying a Creative Commons license symbol, your thumbnail image also features a watermark. Additionally, your video description displays the word CANCELLED. This serves as confirmation that you successfully removed the copyright from your video.
Technically speaking, it depends on how you approached the situation. Let's say you didn't seek approval prior to posting your reuploaded clip. According to YouTube's Community Guidelines, you will receive a strike if caught doing so. Subsequently, your channel will be disabled for roughly 90 days pending appeal. During this period, you will lose access to subscriber management tools and cannot send messages to subscribers. Lastly, you risk losing the chance to ever regain monetization privileges.
On the flip side, if you did obtain proper consent beforehand, you shouldn't encounter any major repercussions. Provided your reupload follows YouTube's community standards, you should be fine. Remember to adhere to the website's Terms of Service, including privacy practices. Keep in mind that reuploading clips that contain sensitive imagery or adult material carries serious consequences. Therefore, if you plan to pursue this route, please exercise caution.
Regardless, if you choose to move forward, here's how to save a copy of your edited video locally. Go to YouTube Studio and navigate to Library " Original Media " [Video Name]. Right beneath Download Options appears a button labeled Disable Watermarks. Click on it. A prompt asking if you'd like to disable the watermark will appear. Select Do Not Show Watermark. By disabling this setting, you retain full ownership of the resulting product. Finally, hit Save Changes.
As for editing options, you can tweak the length, add text overlays, adjust volume levels, and optimize audio quality. Don't forget to customize your thumbnails and descriptions too. Of note, you can edit subtitles individually instead of relying on auto-generated files. Although it requires additional effort, this approach gives you much greater control over language translation accuracy.
Just follow our battle-tested guidelines and rake in the profits.