Tell us about yourself and your channel.
My name is Eric Worral and I’ve been doing YouTube videos since 2012 and have created several channels through the years. My newest channel is The Passive Cabbage Challenge where I teach people how to generate affiliate income from YouTube.
How did you get started on YouTube?
In 2012 I had a rental property, and I wanted to paint the bathtub. All of the videos were just commercials and not very helpful. I decided to make my video shot on one of those old 720p flip cams. That video took off with views and got me hooked.
What is one piece of advice you’d give to a newbie creator? And what is one piece of advice they should ignore?
Start with your thumbnail first and spend way more time on it than you think it needs. If no one wants to click your thumbnails, growth on YouTube will be a very difficult task. Don’t worry about feeling like it’s clickbait. If it entices the click and people enjoy the content, it’s a good thumbnail.
What is your favorite video you have ever made?
I recently created a video on how to measure affiliate income on YouTube. I won’t say it’s a masterpiece from a visual standpoint, but its content has helped me transform my YouTube business and hit on way more videos.
https://youtu.be/YBw8lvknG6Y
What are some tools that allow you to be more effective at your craft?
That affiliate calculator sheet has been beneficial. GeniusLink makes it easier to manage my affiliates. I also use VidIQ for seeing view trends.
How do you continue to educate yourself in your craft? What are some of your favorite resources for learning?
I take one extensive course a year, and then I subscribe to different educational channels. YouTube changes but not as fast as Blogging/SEO, so I learn a lot from just looking at my analytics and trying things out and seeing how things work out. Don’t be afraid to try things out and tweak things.
What has been your biggest tool for subscriber growth?
Not a tool but “niching down,” I’ve always done a wide range of channels that don’t get into one subject matter. My newest channel is niched, and I’m getting a subscriber for every 50 views, where on my other channels, it’s every 1000 views because it’s not niched down and relevant enough for someone to subscribe.
Do you put much time into making your videos SEO-friendly?
Yes. I find SEO videos are a dependable traffic source, even if they’re only 20% of the traffic on the platform. I like them because they’re more predictable to me. However, it’s foolish to focus only on that as suggested is so huge.
Is there a trend that you are seeing emerge in 2021? What excites you about it?
Not necessarily a trend from 2021, but I’ve been playing with sending traffic to my channel from external sources. For example, going on a Podcast in my niche and telling people to search it out helps jumpstart the algorithm to know who my audience is faster. I’ve seen a bump due to this strategy.
When did your channel start to ‘pay off?’ In other words, when did your channel start to make you money?
I started one in 2012, not knowing I could monetize it, and started monetizing in 2014. Now it takes about 6-9 months to get a good return on a new channel.
Have you created sponsored content? If you have, how did you get in contact with your sponsors?
I have, but I don’t love it. I like affiliate marketing on YouTube where I can give honest views of the service/product… this may be a missed opportunity/belief on my end, though.
How do you monetize your channel? What is your most effective revenue stream?
Affiliate marketing is 90% of my income, and Adsense is the other 10%. I’m working to create a course to add a different revenue stream.
Anything else you’d like to share?
Do your research! If you want to make content, see what’s working for others. If you’re going to be successful, find those who are and emulate it with your style!