Video Creators are Monetising their Content Beyond Ads
Creators are increasingly monetising their video content beyond ads to achieve more stable, diversified, and substantial income streams. This shift is driven by the unpredictability of ad revenue and the need for greater financial stability. It also creates opportunities to build lasting brands and deeper audience relationships. YouTubers and Video Creators are diversifying their income streams and are moving beyond traditional advertising models. They are running behind in business strategies and creating a means for a broader creator economy.
The Shift Away from Ad Revenue
The landscape of video creation has undergone a dramatic transformation in recent years. YouTube and other social media networks' monetisation was once synonymous with ad revenue. However, with algorithm changes and policy shifts, many creators discovered the risk of relying solely on ads for income. As a result, video creators now pursue diverse income streams—from merchandise and sponsorships to exclusive content memberships—ensuring financial stability, creative freedom, and a stronger connection with their audience.
This shift has not only elevated creators’ earning potential but also fostered entrepreneurial ventures, with some influencers turning their channels into global brands and full-scale businesses. Identifying these challenges, YouTubers have started developing business models. They are not only making video content, but they are also running parallel businesses that branch into product lines, retail ventures, and brands that will endure without disruption.
Rethinking the Creator Economy
Video creators are now gaining their revenues with a business mindset, prioritising diversified income streams.
Ad Revenue Volatility
Ad-based earnings depend on unpredictable factors, such as CPM (Cost Per Thousand) rates, which is a common way to price ads online that counts the number of times people see an ad, even if they don’t click on it. Other factors include viewer geography, seasonality, and frequent platform policy updates. Sudden drops in ad income may pose a significant risk to the financial status of the Creators. Platforms such as YouTube, Instagram have forced creators to seek alternative revenue sources for greater financial stability.
Desire for Creative Freedom
When creators depend extensively on ads, they sometimes must tailor their content for maximum advertiser-friendliness, restricting creative exploration. It makes their audience lose interest in their work, making it boring for them when the content is focused only on ads.
Ownership and Control
By building independent brands and ventures, video creators are less susceptible to algorithm changes or platform bans. Platforms and policies may change overnight, making side businesses indirect to customer brands, which may give ownership and control and also gain the trust of the customers against the risk.
Community Engagement
Selling products that build deeper relationships with fans and supporters, and making them into loyal customer bases and recurring revenue through genuine connections. Building long-term relationships with the fan base or genuine establishment with the customers by selling physical products, software platforms, holding more value than social media trends, or viral reels.
Diversifying Income Sources of Famous YouTubers: Examples
MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson)
MrBeast has grown from a YouTube creator into a billionaire businessman. With an estimated net worth of about $500 million, he has built a global empire that goes far beyond YouTube. His massive online subscribers of over 445 million people help him earn not just views, but a powerful business influence across many industries, including food, media, merch, and even finance.
His biggest income sources come from brand sponsorships and business ventures. MrBeast collaborates with top brands like Microsoft, Nike, and Electronic Arts, charging hundreds of thousands of dollars for sponsored videos on his YouTube channels. On top of that, his companies – Feastables (a chocolate brand), MrBeast Burger (a virtual fast-food chain), and Beast Games (a Prime Video show) – bring in millions through sales and partnerships, showing how powerfully his brand converts influence into revenue.
MrBeast also earns from selling his own merchandise like T-shirts, mugs, and limited-edition items online. His fans across the world buy his products not only because of their designs but because they feel connected to him and his mission. Many of his earnings also support charitable causes, as he often donates money to help people in need. Altogether, MrBeast’s success proves how digital creators can turn their online fame into billion-dollar businesses while inspiring millions at the same time.
Technical Guruji (Gaurav Chaudhary)
Technical Guruji is one of India's most influential tech YouTubers known for simplifying technology in Hindi. As of 2025, his net worth is estimated between ₹300 - ₹356 crore (approximately $36–$45 million), placing him among the richest tech creators globally and in India. His wealth stems primarily from his YouTube empire, which has 23.7 million subscribers and billions of views, generating monthly ad revenue estimated between $18,000 and $54,000.
Beyond ad income, Technical Guruji earns substantial revenue from brand sponsorships by major tech companies, affiliate marketing, and business ventures, including tech-related firms in Dubai. These diversified income streams contribute significantly to his estimated annual earnings, reinforcing his status as India’s richest tech YouTuber. His financial success is also supported by merchandise, speaking engagements, and paid appearances, making his overall portfolio robust.
Gaurav's rise shows how consistent quality content, audience trust, and strategic business moves can create immense financial success in the creator economy. His brand continues to grow with regular uploads and a loyal fan base, ensuring sustained income and influence in technology and digital entrepreneurship. This growth highlights the powerful impact of digital platforms in India’s tech space and beyond
Some Popular Revenue Streams
Brand Sponsorships and Partnerships
Sponsorships and long-term deals remain the highest-earning options for creators, making up a significant portion of their income. Companies pay creators big money to put their products in their content. They do this because the creator's audience is a perfect match for the product.
Merchandise and Product Lines
Many creators now release their own branded merchandise or physical products, adding additional profit streams and deepening audience loyalty. Selling branded merchandise, e-books, courses, or launching consumer products (like snacks, apparel, cookware) enables creators to build independent businesses and control their brand story.
Memberships
Subscriptions via YouTube memberships or exclusive platforms give fans premium perks in exchange for direct support, enhancing revenue consistency. Many creators offer tiered membership, granting access to exclusive content, live events or private forums.
Affiliate Marketing
Promoting relevant products/services earns creators ongoing commissions, especially through tutorials, reviews, and recommendations. Also, promoting products through unique links is accessible to creators at any skill level, often serving as an entry point for income diversification.
Other Businesses
Many creators launch apps, online platforms, and media companies that transcend their original video channels. Many are launching media companies, Branch and production houses. In India, for instance, creators like Tanmay Bhat (All Things Small) and Bhuban Bam (BB Ki Vines Productions) have expanded into professional content studios collaborating with OTT platforms like Netflix and Audible.
Creators like MrBeast have shown that branded products and full-scale businesses can outpace even the most successful YouTube channels in revenue and profit, highlighting the immense power of diversifying.
How do Skara help Video Creators?
Skara helps video creators monetise their content beyond traditional ads by enabling them to launch their own fully branded streaming apps and websites with a no-code, plug-and-play solution. It offers a flat subscriber fee model, allowing creators to retain 100% of their revenue without commissions, which is a significant advantage over platforms that take a percentage of earnings. Skara supports creators in building direct-to-consumer relationships and complementing their presence on social media platforms, letting them monetise through subscriptions instead of relying only on ads.
In short, Skara empowers creators by removing technical and financial barriers, giving them a platform to monetise through subscriptions, audience ownership, content control, and data insights beyond ad revenue models
Conclusion
Monetising video content beyond advertising is now essential for content creators seeking stable, resilient, and scalable incomes. By diversifying into sponsorships, branded products, membership platforms, affiliate marketing, and independent websites/apps, creators safeguard their futures and forge stronger connections with audiences.
Leading YouTubers—MrBeast, Technical Guruji, Bhuban Bam, Tanmay Bhat—not only exemplify this trend but also illuminate the possibilities for anyone ready to evolve beyond the limitations of ad-centric monetisation. New technologies now make website and app creation more accessible and affordable, further empowering creators worldwide. The future belongs to those who think long-term—invest in multiple revenue streams, build their brand, and keep innovating across platforms.
FAQs
Q1: Why is relying solely on ad revenue risky for creators?
Ad revenue is volatile due to changing CPM rates, audience shifts, platform policies, and global economic trends, making it an unstable sole source.
Q2: What alternative monetisation methods are most popular in 2025?
Brand sponsorships, memberships, affiliate marketing, merchandise sales, and exclusive content platforms like Patreon or custom websites/apps.
Q3: Which famous creators successfully built brands beyond YouTube?
MrBeast (Feastables, merch), Huda Kattan (Huda Beauty), and Tanmay Bhat (brand deals, streams, startups).
Q4: What challenges do creators face in maximising their income?
The market is flooded with creators, making it hard for individuals to stand out and maintain audience attention. Monetisation restrictions and platform policies also make it harder for creators to have income stability and reduce platform dependency.
