'You have to be dedicated': Victoria YouTubers give advice on how to start career

We’ve all heard stories about YouTubers who make millions of dollars per year, creating content and becoming instant celebrities from the their own homes. But if you ask a couple of Victoria-based content creators who have managed to turn their passions into full time jobs, they’ll tell you that success does not come overnight.

"People need to know that if you’re going to do this, you have to be dedicated to it," said Billy Reid, co-creator of the Pancake Manor YouTube channel.

Pancake Manor was created 11 years ago. Since then, the creators have made nearly 150 children-focused music videos, garnering 2.6 million subscribers and around 1.9 billion views.

Because the channel's programming is directed towards children, generating revenue through YouTube can be tricky.

"It’s very different than the average YouTuber who could have a sponsor every single video and promote a product," said Reid. "We can’t do that."

That means the channel has to rely on views. Co-creator Reb Stevenson says Google, which owns YouTube, will often change the rate of pay for those ads.

"So an ad that you’ll get on your video in August might pay you 10 times as much as an ad that you get in January," said Stevenson, even if it’s the same ad with the same number of views.

According to YouTube Canada, if a channel has "made for kids" content, it will use YouTube’s quality principles for kids and family content to determine the monetization status of that video.

In order to diversify Pancake Manor’s revenue streams, the couple has begun selling merchandise. They have also just signed on with a UK-based music label, after releasing their 10th album.

"We have about 260,000 listeners on Spotify, so that’s another thing," said Stevenson.

YouTube Canada says our country has one of the most diverse and successful creator ecosystems in the world.

"In 2020, we calculate that YouTube’s creative ecosystem contributed $923 million to Canada’s GDP, and the equivalent of 34,100 jobs," said Andrew Peterson, head of YouTube Canada.

Peterson went on to say that over the last three years, YouTube has paid more than $30 billion to creators, artists and media companies globally.

CASEY 250

Cash McFarlane is the creator of the YouTube channel Casey 250, which showcases off-roading and camping.

The channel was launched four years ago and is now approaching 50,000 subscribers. To date, it has gathered more than 5 million views.

Casey McFarlane from the YouTube channel Casey 250 is shown. (CTV News)

For McFarlane, building those numbers while maintaining a full-time job and juggling a family has been tough.

"I work 40 hours a week and then 40-plus hours of whatever, to make videos each week," he said.

MacFarlane says that time doesn't include the time spent traveling to remote locations for filming.

"I’ve basically looked at every possible way that I can monetize the channel," said the creator.

Turning his channel into a money-maker has been a learning curve, he says. There's ad revenue, he's started a Patreon and he's has launched his own clothing line.

Recently, he also brought on a sponsor.

"Now there’s the time that goes into bringing in merchandise, filling orders, now understanding and learning marketing," said McFarlane.

They're all things that he has had to learn on the fly.

"Outside of my regular work, almost everything gets pushed to the side if it’s not family or YouTube," said McFarlane.

While the workload seems steep, it's worth subscribing to, according to these island-based YouTubers.