Video monetization is a promising new method of increasing profits for content creators and broadcasters. There are many ways of generating revenue from your video content — from using popular monetization methods to creating your own platform. But one of the easiest and most effective ways to monetize your videos is cooperation with trusted sites that offer a wide range of tools and options for video creators. So, if you make something valuable and want to promote your recordings effectively, leveraging video monetization sites is a must for you.
Today we will review the best of them to help you choose the right one to succeed in video monetization.
What is video monetization and how does it work?
First, let’s talk about video monetization and its features. In essence, it’s simple — you create videos, publish them, and make money when someone watches or downloads them. The more views and downloads you get, the higher your income will be. But before you start monetizing, you should come up with an idea of what type of content you are planning to offer and what video monetization options you are going to use.
Popular trends in video monetization
You can monetize almost any video because there’s always an audience interested in a particular kind of content. However, if you want to make the most profit, you should research and define what is trending at the time and which format is best to use. Today, among the most popular types of content are the following: vlogs, podcasts, tutorials, education, entertaining short clips, lifehacks, and reviews. You can choose any format and style that suits you and craft something unique to engage your audience. But you can also use videos created by someone else in compliance with all the rules and laws concerning copyright and plagiarism. Platforms for video monetization pay particular attention to this matter. Still, offering new, original, and creative content is always a great idea because you will be able to give something valuable and unique to your viewers and they will be ready to pay for it.
How to monetize your videos?
There are several video monetization models creators use to boost profits. The most common include advertising, subscriptions, and pay-per-view. However, you can combine these models or use additional options to increase revenue. Let’s review these methods in more detail.
AVOD (advertising-based video on demand)
According to this model, you get paid for ad placements, and their cost depends on the size of your audience. You insert ads into your videos, the viewers see them and brands pay you for that. The larger your channel audience is, the more revenue you will create. This is the most popular monetization model because it is easy to set up. Moreover, viewers like free content and they are ready to watch ads to keep the free access. So, if you have enough subscribers and your content is popular, using the AVOD model is an easy way for you to make money on your videos.
SVOD (subscription-based video on demand)
If you have ever used Netflix, you’ll understand what SVOD is. You just let your viewers subscribe to access your videos for a certain fee. Your subscribers may watch any content they like, any time they want including videos on demand and live content. SVOD is an effective way to have recurring income from your videos when viewers like what you offer and extend their subscriptions.
TVOD (transactional video on demand)
This method allows your viewers to pay only for those videos they watch or download. This model works well both when you offer premium content on a specific topic or cover different categories, so your users can choose the one that suits them and pay only for videos that are in that category.
There are also other options you can choose. For instance, you can find sponsors and promote their products within your content. Brands will pay you, even if your audience is not very large, e.g. you work in a specific niche. The main point here is to deliver valuable content your audience will appreciate. It makes users trust you and boosts engagement.
Another great option to include in any video content monetization strategy is paywall implementation. Paywalls are used to create a certain barrier and control access to videos that are available with SVOD or TVOD models. In other words, a paywall doesn’t let users access premium videos without paying for them. If you have a large user base and offer top-quality content, you are likely to get a high ROI.
You can also build your own VOD streaming platform and have full control over options such as pricing, marketing strategy, content distribution, and so on. However, it requires a lot of time and effort to launch such a platform on your own, which is why it is better to choose the right solution from a wide range of popular platforms that exist nowadays. To help you choose, we will review the top video monetization sites.
Best video monetization platforms of 2023
There are a wide range of platforms for easy and effective video monetization. Each of them has its own particular characteristics that you should consider. Today we have selected the top 10 sites to help you pick the best one for your needs.
Dacast
This platform supports PPV, advertising, and subscription models. It is a top-tier CDN service which delivers different streams, and also has paywalls that are integrated into the player. There are multiple options for renewal (from weekly to annually), with support for 135 currencies and 10 languages. Additionally, if you need any support concerning video monetization, you are able to get it around the clock. There are many different plans to choose from but VOD and live streaming are included in each of them. With Dacast you get a number of tools for monetization, solid video DRM security, paywalls, access to real-time analytics, support for mobile streaming, and many other benefits.
Muvi
This platform helps you monetize OTT videos easily including videos on demand and real-time content. It also provides a video player and lets you choose the tools for monetization. You can use Muvi’s paywall that works with PPV, subscriptions, and advertising. There are also donation and crowdfunding options and they also provide coupon codes, gift cards, vouchers, and credits. In addition, Muvi offers a free trial before you decide to purchase their services.
VlogBox
This is a one-stop solution for every video creator who is searching for the best monetization platform and CTV advertising agency in one place. VlogBox has developed over 1,000 CTV apps for different platforms including Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV. These connect content creators to a wide network of demand partners and offer personalized solutions from custom app development to advanced monetization tools. Among the key VlogBox benefits are easy integration, full control over monetization, cross-device marketing options, full channel management, detailed reporting and analytics, app customization, and flexible pricing.
Lightcast
With Lightcast, you can use a wide range of video and OTT hosting as well as create apps for mobile and SmartTVs. As for monetization, it supports all popular models like TVOD, SVOD, and AVOD and also lets broadcasters run fundraising. The options you get depend on the plan you choose, and you can request professional consultation from their streaming media specialists to discuss the strategy that will work for your particular business.
Livestream and Vimeo OTT
Livestream is owned by Vimeo, so the priority for monetization is given to Vimeo OTT which supports all popular monetization models. Vimeo OTT is the platform for video content monetization that supports common monetization models, allows you to get revenue from live streaming, generates income across various platforms (iOS, Android), delivers specific content for certain regions, as well as leverages in-app purchases integrations and so on.
Uscreen
This is a hosting software that has an integrated monetization platform. It supports pay-per-view and subscription models. If you own OTT services similar to Hulu or Netflix, this service will become a worthy solution for high revenue generation. You can choose between various pricing plans that cost from $70 to $399 per month, set your own prices, implement one-time purchases, and generate income easily.
Brightcove
If you are willing to monetize your streams to a new level, Brightcove offers advanced solutions. It makes it easy to deliver ads to viewers even when they use ad blockers and uses metadata for targeted ad serving. There is IAB ad standard support for ad integrations (VPAID, VAST, and VMAP).
Vimeo
This platform allows broadcasters to monetize videos via pay-per-view and subscriptions as well as generate revenue from live streams. As for the pricing plans, you start with a $1 basic plan and then pay additional fees for extra features you might need, such as OTT apps broadcasting and live streaming. Vimeo offers a video player that can be customized, allows embedding with URLs anywhere you need as well as providing analytics for you to track how your videos perform.
VPlayed
This platform for video monetization will suit businesses that want to make an extra profit by delivering videos on demand and live content. It is a great opportunity for educators, media broadcasters, fitness professionals, movie makers, and other creators who want to generate revenue by broadcasting their videos across various devices and platforms. VPlayed offers more than 6 monetization models and over 150 features you can use to provide premium content to your viewers. There is an option to integrate third-party add-ons, use coupons and promotions, instream ads, and generate revenue from PPV and subscriptions.
YouTube
This is one of the first monetization services video creators usually start with. It allows them to earn money from ad placement, premium content rev-share, donations, sponsorship, and other sources. YouTubers can enter their Partner Program if they have at least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours on the channel. You should be consistent with video publishing to achieve more views and bring in more revenue. You can also track the analytics within the YouTube Creator Studio.
Conclusion
Video monetization keeps on evolving, more platforms offer their services for easy and effective revenue generation. To pick up the site that would cover your particular needs you should consider which monetization model fits your content and what options you need to make a profit. Take into account that some platforms can offer much more than just monetization. An example of this is VlogBox, where you can request custom app creation, further promotion, and monetization. This means you will not only get an exclusive CTV channel to distribute your videos across popular platforms but can be sure that its monetization won’t take too much time and effort, and your creations will bring you more revenue. Make your choice and monetize videos wisely to reach all of your goals!