YouTube: An Insider's Guide to Climbing the Charts

Chapter 13. Becoming a Success Story

Alan Lastufka

Building Your Brand

YouTube is a great jumping-off point. But if your goal is fame, you will eventually have to step beyond the 'Tube. Unless your videos routinely receive millions of views, you won't be earning enough to put your kids through rehab, and you most likely won't be recognized on the street (unless you happen to be at a YouTube gathering). YouTube is a great way to get your foot in the door, it's a great way to network, and if you want, it can be a great way to make a bit of passive income.

PASSIVE INCOME

Passive income (or, as Michael calls it, mailbox money) is money that is earned even while you're not actively working. While you're at your day job, you're paid only for the actual hours you're working. When you're not there, you're not earning anything. Making a video may take anywhere from one to five hours, but once monetized, that video earns you money for weeks, maybe even months, as long as it's still receiving views. Repeat this process, video after video, and you begin earning money while you're sleeping, while you're out walking the dog, while you're at your day job, and so on. Passive income is a good thing.

Many of the people who are successful with YouTube have realized it's a vehicle for building their brand. So, what's their brand? It's their name.

Websites come and go. YouTube may not even exist a year from now or three years from now. So, building your home on YouTube assumes a certain amount of risk that ...