What's happening with the CPM?

1. 84

   hclpdposted 5 years ago

   I noticed the declining trend mid-December and now it's the lowest ever. What is happening here? Is anyone else noticing the same trend?

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      OldRosesposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      CPMs are higher in November and December because of the Christian and Jewish holidays.  People do a lot of shopping for gifts.  CPMs fall in January because people have stopped shopping and are now concentrating on paying off the bills from the holidays.

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      TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

      My CPMs have been incredibly high the past few months and even though they are lower now, they're pretty much what they were before they blasted off.  I was very surprised to see this jump.

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      promisemposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      You will gain more insight by comparing the CPMs of recent weeks with the same period from a year ago.
      
      Mine are down 10%, which is consistent with many other websites. Google, Facebook and Amazon are gobbling up most of the online advertising for themselves.
      
      A growing number of websites that I have tracked for decades (and I do mean decades) are collapsing and vanishing because of it. If you want more proof, go look at AdSense forums on webmaster sites.

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         paradigmsearchposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         You are right about Google, Facebook, Amazon. But I've concluded over time that Maven and HP are no slouch at it either.

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         TankMemicposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         Your ads on Hubpages are through Google Adsense, aka Google.. So you're a part of that gobbling up of most of the online ads..

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            Solarasposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            Not necessarily, there are other advertisers who may pay more.  Certainly the "dirty" websites have their own avenues.  Banner bidding suggests there are others willing to bid besides Adsense.  I think they (Google Facebook etc...) are begging for antitrust suits.

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            promisemposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            I get your point, but I wouldn't say that I'm part of gobbling up AdSense when CPMs are declining. The vast majority of sites are using AdSense because we can't use anything else.
            
            Google is shifting more and more high quality ads from partner websites onto Google.com and YouTube. It has been going on for years. So there is less to gobble.

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2. 99

   DrMark1961posted 5 years ago

   Yesterday was down a few dollars, but when I compared it to this date last year it was almost the same.
   The new year always starts out terrible.

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   paradigmsearchposted 5 years ago

   That CPM is indeed an erratic critter, but I haven't seen anything heart-attack inducing yet.

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      paradigmsearchposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      Update. I am now starting to become un-amused. Meanwhile, AdSense is doing darned good in comparison to their past performance. As for the HP CPM, the situation is simple. Our traffic is rising, but our pool of advertisers is not; thus all the higher bidders are used up and only the lower bidders remain. This is what is dragging down the CPM.

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4. 64

   eugbugposted 5 years ago

   Last year, CPM didn't recover until mid March after the low at the start of Q1. Let's hope it's better this year.

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      PaulGoodman67posted 5 years agoin reply to this

      +1

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5. 68

   PaulGoodman67posted 5 years ago

   CPM's bloody awful, but nothing unusual for this time of year. Start of December is the best time of year. Start of January is the worst. All in all, it wasn't a great Xmas for me in terms of earnings, not disastrous, more like mediocre and therefore disappointing.

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   Titiaposted 5 years ago

   I don't know what is considered a low CPM or a high CPM.

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      Rochelle Frankposted 5 years agoin reply to this

      High or low? I think it is all relative, comparing your own numbers. It usually goes up during the holiday shopping season. and drops a the beginning of the year.

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      PaulGoodman67posted 5 years agoin reply to this

      CPMs vary a lot according to the topics you write on. Best to compare with same period in a previous year to get an idea of relative levels of CPM.

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         Titiaposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         Ok, I compared Dec. 1 2018 - Jan. 4 2019 with the same period this year and my CPM's are way higher this year than last year.

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            Solarasposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            Compare it to 2017

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               Titiaposted 5 years agoin reply to this

               Stil way higher now than it was in 2017

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   Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

   It's a bit low, right now, but that is normal.

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   CYong74posted 5 years ago

   It's PLUNGING everywhere for me, including on YouTube. Expected it but still ... ......

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      TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

      I think YouTube's policies regarding what people need to do in order to be able to earn are driving people away.  I just started a channel there and feel they could care less if people produce there or not.

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         CYong74posted 5 years agoin reply to this

         I think to make it on YouTube nowadays, you need to have YouTube's recommendation engine on your side.
         
         Problem is, at least for me, the engine keeps recommending the same popular videos. It keeps throwing the same videos that I have already watched, liked, and commented on at me. At its worst, it can even recommend the same video three times within 15 minutes.
         
         I can only imagine how often my videos are recommended to others. It's also, bewilderingly, becoming harder and harder to search for new uploads.

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            OldRosesposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            Independent channels on YouTube have been complaining for months that YouTube only promotes well-known, corporate sponsored channels rather than independent channels created by individuals.  Individuals' income has dwindled to almost nothing.

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      TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

      Talk to me about YouTube.  I just started a channel there and cannot seem to get a foothold.  I've got 37 videos up and running and not one comment from anybody and only 19 subscribers.  They keep terminating my uploads, too.  I've read the TOS and found nothing.  I know this is off topic, but I need some help!

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         promisemposted 5 years agoin reply to this

         You won't get any money from YouTube until you get 1,000 subscribers. CPMs are quite low. Good videos take more work than good articles.
         
         I wouldn't bother unless you are passionate about making videos.

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            EricFarmer8xposted 5 years agoin reply to this

            To apply for the YouTube Partner program you need to...
            
            Have at least 1,000 subscribers.
            Have at least 4,000 hours of watch time within the past 12 months.
            
            So yeah you need to make a lot content and get a lot of watch time. Some people were quite angry when YouTube made the requirements harder somewhat recently.

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               eugbugposted 5 years agoin reply to this

               And will probably now hold onto all the money made by YouTubers  who are unlikely to reach the payout threshold in the short term because of the new subscriber/watch time criteria.

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9. 67

   daydreamsposted 5 years ago

   Less people buy things at Christmas and New Year so less advertiser's spending less money = lower Com.

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    Patkayposted 5 years ago

    Earning, Views and what have you are at their lowest. Let us pray that they will pick up as we start the new year and people steer away from festivities. If it is something else, there is a reason to be afraid.

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    Shesabutterflyposted 5 years ago

    My earnings for the entire 2019 year were less than I made in 2018 with the exception of Jan & Feb. As far as I can tell CPM's were pretty similar (except Nov & Dec where CPM's were significantly less than 2018), so I guess I had less traffic this year, which is not surprising. I know for sure I had a lot less traffic from October to December than I usually see.
    
    The few days of January that we have had so far my CPM is slightly lower, but not by much (less than a dollar), but my earnings are several dollars lower in comparison. My CPM's have continued to drop since 2018, although they are still higher than what I saw on average in 2017.
    
    For me I think traffic is playing a bigger part in my earnings since I seem to have similar CPM's or much higher for 2019 than 2018 despite making less money currently. I'm sure CPM's will stay the same or increase slightly as the year goes on, but I'm more worried about traffic as mine seems to be all over the place again.

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12. 84

    hclpdposted 5 years ago

    For me personally, the CPM today is the lowest it has ever been. Kind of disheartening.

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       OldRosesposted 5 years agoin reply to this

       Don't be discouraged.  This happens every year.  CPM will improve over the next few months.

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          hclpdposted 5 years agoin reply to this

          Thank you. Disappointed? Yes. Discouraged? No.

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       DrMark1961posted 5 years agoin reply to this

       Mine was even lower yesterday, but still better than those 2016/2017 numbers.

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    paradigmsearchposted 5 years ago

    Dear Maven,
    
    Ok, sports fans. Get us some more high-flying advertisers for our non-sports pages.

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    poppyrposted 5 years ago

    Every year, someone complains about this. January's earnings are always trash because no one's advertising. December is generally good, so the difference looks staggering. It's nothing to worry about.

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       OldRosesposted 5 years agoin reply to this

       And we need to start thinking of December CPMs as aberrations or outliers.  They are the best of the year, not the norm.  We can't expect CPMs like that all year.

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       1. 84

          hclpdposted 5 years agoin reply to this

          December wasn't too good either, CPM wise.

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    stuff4kidsposted 5 years ago

    Mine are steady, up and down, but averaging at around 10.00. If that's high or low, I have no idea. No idea at all. How do you guys know these things?

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       OldRosesposted 5 years agoin reply to this

       Many years of experience!  You start to notice trends in the CPMs.  The trends are consistent every year.

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       TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

       According to our TOS you're not allowed to reveal your CPM amounts.  You can be banned for doing this.  I would take down your last comment asap.

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          hclpdposted 5 years agoin reply to this

          Is it so? I deleted mine as soon as I saw your post. Thank you.

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16. 68

    PaulGoodman67posted 5 years ago

    CPMs, views, and earnings all down on last year. I don't feel I can do much except hope for improvement.

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17. 64

    eugbugposted 5 years ago

    My CPMs are always higher on Saturday and Sunday for some reason, maybe the audience. Lately I notice they're not much different from thevalues on weekdays.

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       PaulGoodman67posted 5 years agoin reply to this

       I didn't really get my head around CPM's for years. Although I understood the concept, I didn't quite grasp how the behavior of individual articles can affect the CPM. For example, if I get a view surge in an article that has high value advertising potential, it pushes up the overall CPM. Likewise, a surge in a low value articles can bring the overall CPM down. It was when I got more than one account, I realized how different the CPM's can be and how the content/subject of a hub influences it all. That's all pretty obvious, I know, but worth keeping in mind if you care about earnings. I have a habit of writing low value articles which do well in views, but don't earn much.

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          OldRosesposted 5 years agoin reply to this

          For some of us, seasonality is important.  I write gardening articles, so CPM is terrible during the non-gardening season.  During the summer, my CPMs are higher than they are in December.  I'm sure that it's the same for other Hubbers who write seasonal articles.

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    Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

    Recent regulations put uploading new videos on YT time consuming, too.

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       TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

       My biggest problem with YT is that they don't allow you to go back in and correct mistakes you've made as they do here.  It's very frustrating.  There seems to be no guidance or explanation over there, either.  They need to be more like HP I think, but who cares what I think!!

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          eugbugposted 5 years agoin reply to this

          There is YouTube Studio where you can do basic editing of uploaded videos, trim the content, add keywords, links, captions etc?

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          CYong74posted 5 years agoin reply to this

          TT2, I've been youtubbing for 10 yrs. Not an expert and my traffic can be embarrassing. But perhaps i can help in some way? What would you like to know?

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             paradigmsearchposted 5 years agoin reply to this

             Serious question. If you had to do it all over again, would you?

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                CYong74posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                Yes. Because YT or not, I'd still be doing what I'm doing in my vids. So why not make some $$ out of it?

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                   paradigmsearchposted 5 years agoin reply to this

                   I've been thinking about doing YT; can't make up my mind. Meanwhile, I just stumbled across this: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/341649 Looks like it has useful info.

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                      DrMark1961posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                      I was thinking about YT also. Then I read this thread. Mind made up: I am no longer thinking of YT.

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                         paradigmsearchposted 5 years agoin reply to this

                         If I luck into a really good video opportunity, I'd probably work up the energy to learn the necessary editing skills to make it look professional and then post it. Then I'd let its success or failure decide for me.
                         
                         Update. Bookmarked the entrepreneur link.

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                      TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                      I've been on YT a month.  It's not what I thought it was going to be. You can't earn a dime until you've gotten 1000 subscribers and 4000 hours of viewing within the previous year.  That's a mighty tall hill to climb when you're starting from scratch!  My first month I got 800 views...but only 17.3 hours of watch time!  They count it right down to the second!  I've had 5 videos thrown out but have no clue as to why, and also there's lots of conflicting advice on that site so it's hard to know what to do.  Since I paid for an editing program because it was the easiest of all I had seen and was relatively cheap, I'm sticking with it, but I have no idea how I'm going to get 1000 subscribers or even the views.  I've got 39 videos online right now, so this is very disappointing.  You might want to think twice about this one.  Had I known what they're doing over there, I wouldn't have started this project.  As far as I can see, there's no real help available over there...but maybe I'm missing something.  Anyhow, thought you should know.  Thanks for the link.

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    stuff4kidsposted 5 years ago

    I guess it all depends on your niche. When school's out, I hear crickets. When school's in, especially up to exam time, I'm surfing. Over the years, with all the changes and ups-and-downs, nothing has really changed. These conversations will come and go as do the seasons. It's always groundhog day on HP.

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    PaulGoodman67posted 5 years ago

    I have articles on gardening, those aimed at school kids, college students, articles on travel and vacations, and a variety of others. Over 95% of my articles have some sense of seasonality relating to the topic/subject matter. However, the business cycle relating to advertising revenue is generally the biggest influence of CPM for the average hubber, in my experience. This link posted last year by another hubber explains it well and the pic graph of the quarterly cycles is especially pertinent.  AD REVENUE BY THE SEASONS

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    Solarasposted 5 years ago

    I looked into YT as well. When I saw that you need 4000 hours of views before you can monetize, I understood why people drag out their "how to" videos with useless info: introducing themselves, showing you the item from all angles, walking across the room or around a building.

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    Solarasposted 5 years ago

    *gasp*... *vomit* My earnings are 1/3 of the same time last year.

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    paradigmsearchposted 5 years ago

    Thanks, TT2. I do believe I'm going to join DrMark. I wonder what it is that is making Google so obstructive? On the 1-in-a-1,000 chance I do suddenly possess an awesome video, I've decided after your post I'll just put the critter on my website instead. I'm already maxed out on life's obstructions and aggravations; the last thing I need is to deal with YT piling on a bunch more. Oh, well.

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    Kenna McHughposted 5 years ago

    TT2, I was able to get over 2,000 subscribers and surpassed the viewing time way before I made the subscribers quota. You need to promote for subscribers on each video and link the videos to each other. There is a place to embed the request and links. It's simple with a slight learning curve. Why they blocked your videos, I can only guess: music copyright? Other copyright? Also, YT does not support its users, so you have to google the situation, and plenty of stuff pops up that is helpful. It takes a bit of effort, but once you understand it, the process is easy. Though, I am concerned about the new format because of government regulations, crazy. It's extra work on my end. Uploading videos is not as streamlined as it was before 2020.

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       eugbugposted 5 years agoin reply to this

       I thought you had to have the 4000 subscribers before you could add links? Maybe though that's just for on-video links?

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          TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

          No, you need 1000 subscribers within the previous year AND 4000 hours of watch time, not 4000 viewers. This is what I mean about things being poorly explained and causing confusion. I tried to cross link in my descriptions but they wouldn't allow it!  These goals seem like they would be impossible to meet!

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             Solarasposted 5 years agoin reply to this

             I see a lot of people posting under the video, "If you found this video helpful, please subscribe to me."  That may be considered giving it a "like" and could get you to the subscribers pretty fast if you already had 800 views.  The hours are the biggie.

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                TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                I already either say that or put it in text within the video.  Nuthin'!

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       TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

       Please tell me where that place to imbed links is!  I'm not seeing it.  I have a subscribe button on every video, but only have 19 subscribers after one month of producing videos.  It's very discouraging.  I need help!  I'm also promoting on FB, Twitter and Pinterest...but response has been horrible.  Maybe I'm posting the wrong stuff?

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    paradigmsearchposted 5 years ago

    I'd never get 1,000 subscribers, reason being my topics would be randomly scattered all over the map; thus no consistent subject to give anyone a reason to subscribe.

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    CYong74posted 5 years ago

    TT2, if you want to promote in FB, you have to use interest-based groups. Generic "let's share our YT video" groups are useless as they are full of people who are just there to promote, and never check out the videos of others. Your videos will be buried in the flood of daily posts.
    
    Twitter is useless too unless your videos are of a news, scandalous nature.
    
    Another way to get subs is to actively comment/subscribe to the videos of similar channels. Don't overdo this and make sure to comment on other comments too. Do this consistently and you will have a small stream of subscribers weekly over time.
    
    I use giveaways and that's very helpful in drawing subscribers, even when I have not a word about it on my videos. The bonus is that my giveaways are on my blog, or here, and so I get some ad money too.
    
    Finally, not sure whether it's a typo but it's 1000 subs and 4000 hours within the immediately past 365 days (1 year). Personally, I find the watch hours much more challenging. Work on that, work on getting YT to recommend your videos, and the subs will come. Don't fret too much over it.
    
    PS: Don't cross link videos in your descriptions. Create playlists and use cards to promote those playlists instead. Cards are more prominent anyway. Or use cards to promote a specific video.

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       TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

       Last week I joined one of those "let's promote our video" groups but when I saw what was going on I never even posted there.
       
       I have done some subscribing and commenting on other RV videos, but just a bit, and I do use playlists regularly.  Don't know yet how to use the cards.  Instead I've created my own intro and ending pix introducing the video and asking for subscribers.  I thought I said 1000 subs and 4000 watch hours.  If not, that's what I meant.  It really irritates me that they keep taking the page views away!  I'm down to 735 from 817 and still at 17.7 hours.  At that rate I'll be 100 before I get the hours!  Thanks for the tips.

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    CYong74posted 5 years ago

    TT2, what you need is seriously ONE viral video. Go a little out of your usual niche, and create something people are hunting for. (Use Ubersuggest, Tubebuddy, etc, to research)
    
    Benefits from one viral video will trickle down to the rest. Once it gets on YT's recommendation engine, it will stay there for months, if not years.
    
    PS: I understand what you mean by the dropping views, no thanks to that shifting 365 frame. So I read, it drove people to tears in 2018.

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       TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

       I know that it just takes one viral video to change everything, but I need to make some changes first.  I'm awaiting the arrival of a camcorder which will free me up on filming time limitations, suddenly realized that I need to film with the camera lense horizontal instead of vertical and need to brighten up my scenes with more lighting and color.  My content is really good, but my filming and editing skills are not so great.  It's been kind of overwhelming for me.  So, I'm going to stop until the camera arrives.  The site is Livin' the RV Dream with Timetraveler2.  If you have time and want to, I'd appreciate it if you'd take a peek and maybe give me some clues as to what else I can do.  I've made some mistakes, for sure but am not yet ready to give up.  The good news is that I haven't spent much so far and the education I'm getting is priceless!

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          PaulGoodman67posted 5 years agoin reply to this

          I think, as with anything online, you have to have some focus on keywords, titles, promotion etc. You likely know that, but it never hurts to be reminded.
          
          Assuming your content is as good, or better than that of your rivals (I'll be honest and admit I've been to your page but not had time to watch any vids as yet), then your challenge is really about getting noticed.
          
          If keywords, titles, etc. and the content is good, the only other thing to push, as far as I can see, is other social media: Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram...

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             TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

             Good advice, and I've been doing a lot of those things.  I guess HP spoiled me!!

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                PaulGoodman67posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                You have a strength in that you have a defined niche. My online work is an eclectic mix, which can be more challenging. You should be able to build a "brand" across different media, even if you are focusing mainly on the Youtube. It does seem pretty lucrative nowadays, with people offering paid subscribers extra material, exclusives etc. I've thought about it myself, but I'm not sure if I have the personality for videos, or indeed, a strong niche that I would want to stick with. I watch quite a few Youtube vids though on passive income, and am aware that there is plenty of potential. Good luck!

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                   TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                   Thanks.  Yes, I thought my niche would help, but I've got 40 videos up and running right now and views have been poor compared to what I've had here.  Learning how to edit and do lighting has been a bruiser and I'm still trying...and there's a ton of competition.  It would be better if YT allowed posters to update their videos, but they don't.  You get one shot at it, and that's it.  If you make a mistake, you either have to live with it or remove it...and I've made plenty of mistakes.  Wish they would change that policy.  Also, some of the posters have put a ton of money into equipment, etc...I'm not willing to do that unless and until I see some results at least in viewing.

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                      PaulGoodman67posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                      I watched a couple of your videos. I will give you some feedback. I hope it helps.
                      
                      I did used to tutor people learning video making as part of my job, though it was ten years ago. A lot of it is about the editing. The human mind gets bored quickly when it comes to visual imagery, so you have to change the shot regularly, even if it's just putting up a relevant photo, or even text such as bullet points, highlighting your key points. Better still, you can also take relevant video footage (taken separately) and edit it into the pieces where you are speaking. You keep the audio, but give the viewer a visual change. For instance, if you are talking about buying an RV, you start off with you speaking, but then put in visuals of a park where RV's are for sale. It is difficult to keep the viewers attention if it's just one person sat in a chair speaking.
                      
                      You can also split up what you want to say into smaller sections and do each section a little differently. For instance, you might do a short segment with you speaking inside. Then the next short segment, you are stood outside your RV. The next segment, you are on the road, or whatever. Variation is the key when it comes to viewer engagement.
                      
                      The editing is more important than having super expensive camera equipment, but it takes a lot of time to get something really engaging. Even two or three minutes of video can take a few days. It helps to look at popular videos in a similar vein and copy their style.
                      
                      It can also help to plot out the video in advance. Decide what you want to say in each segment, and what will be the accompanying visuals. The order that you take the footage doesn't matter, as you can edit it into a chronology that makes sense, once you've gathered together your material.

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                         TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                         Thank you so much for this!  My problem is that I'm not where my RV is and shooting with a smart phone only allows me up to 10 minutes at a time before I have to stop, remove the media, wait and then continue if I want to film more.  Sometimes 10 minutes is not enough.  I've ordered an inexpensive camcorder which will fix that problem and allow me more filming flexibility.  In my most recent posts I've been trying to post more variation and experimenting a bit, but with the smart phone I'm kind of limited to one spot due to sound and light issues.  This is much harder than I thought it would be and I know some of the videos are not good...the content is good, but the visuals aren't much.  Lots to learn.  Thank you for subscribing and giving me these tips...I'm open to all you can dish out, believe me.  You probably know I've been quite ill recently.  This has sucked a lot of energy out of me, and I fear it shows in the videos.  What think you?  When I watch the younger people's posts, I feel like I'm 100 and worry that this is costing me viewers, too.  That's why I need outside opinions and appreciate having them so much.  Thank you.

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                         TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                         Check out my latest video about sleeping better when RVing.  I think you'll see a big improvement, at least I hope so.  I'm not able to use all of your ideas, but I used a lot of them and can see how much better the video is.  Would like your input if you have the will and the time to do it.  Still filming with a smart phone and am hoping a real camcorder will make things better.

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                            PaulGoodman67posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                            You have the wealth of experience. It's just a question of presenting it as best you can within your constraints.
                            
                            I've not seen your latest as yet, but I would add to my last comment that planning can be very useful.
                            
                            There are two main approaches to making a video.
                            
                            1. Plan out the video shot by shot. It's the same as when a full movie is made, even if you are only going to end up with a few mins. You put a chronology together of what is the visual and what is the accompanying audio at each stage of your (mini) movie.
                            2. Gather together as much relevant material as you can and then edit it into some sort of coherent finished product.
                            
                            Always capture lots of material. If you are making a two minute video, don't be afraid to capture ten minutes or more of raw video (and/or photos). The more raw material you have, the more choices you will have at the editing stage.
                            
                            I generally find planning very useful, but I do allow some flexibility to change ideas as I progress. (I"m saying this in the present tense, even if it's some years since I did it! )
                            
                            You can do quite a bit with free editing software. When I edited in a work situation I used powerful and expensive software, but at home, for personal use, I used basic free programs like Microsoft Moviemaker. Even basic free software lets you split the audio from the visuals, chop and change your clips, and insert photos.
                            
                            I am re-learning photo-editing and design at the moment and watching lots of free tutorials on Youtube. If I were in your shoes, I would try watching some free video-making tutorials. Video editing is not easy, especially at first, but it's actually a lot of fun once you get going.
                            
                            I will take a look at your new clip...

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                               eugbugposted 5 years agoin reply to this

                               In the couple of videos I made, remembering the "script" was my greatest difficulty. Had to do about 10 scenes and 10 "takes" for each scene because I "flunked" my lines. Then I stitched the whole lot together.

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                               TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                               I'm in the number 2 category I'm afraid.  I did look at a lot of free editing programs and tutorials...could not work with them but finally found WeVideo.com.  I had to pay a bit for it, not much, but it's worth every penny.  I wish it had a means of lightening the images, but other than that, it's been great.  I can't do all the fancy stuff some of the creators do, but I can do some and hope that will be enough.  As for footage, I've got 50 years worth of the stuff!  Haven't used much yet, but am working on it.  Views and subs haven't changed much, unfortunately, but I enjoy doing this and am learning a lot.  If I could put my experience and your editing talent together...WOWSA!

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                                  lobobrandonposted 5 years agoin reply to this

                                  I only looked at your channel at the time you sent out the email. I did not watch any videos because it's not an area of interest to me. But I did notice that your titles at the time (not sure how they are now) did not seem very search worthy. They were perfect if you already had a following, but if you were looking to get people to your videos through Youtube search the intiial videos would not do too well imo. Use the normal keyword and title techniques that you use for your articles on your videos in addition to making a great video or uploading an older one.

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                               TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

                               I'm learning more each day and your advice has been incredibly helpful.  I even added music to today's post!

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    eugbugposted 5 years ago

    Usually I try to take photos outdoors on a bright but semi-cloudy day so lighting is diffuse, however if I'm taking shots indoors or making a video, I use a couple of inexpensive halogen worklights on tripods.  Sound can be a problem when recording with a smartphone because you're remote from the mic, so if you want to be in the shot, you can use a wireless lapel mic.

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       TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

       My den gets plenty of light during the daytime, and it has fluorescent lights in the ceiling, but I wear glasses, so I have to be careful about the light reflecting in them.   As noted earlier, I have ordered a camcorder, which should handle the sound problems, although my smart phone has a good mike as long as I stay close to it.  This certainly has turned into a challenge!

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    Solarasposted 5 years ago

    Finally Pethelpful pageviews came back, and with a small roar. Hope springs eternal.

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       TIMETRAVELER2posted 5 years agoin reply to this

       I noticed that my views started to climb again today.  Hope it continues...thought they would...we'll see!

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    Solarasposted 5 years ago

    Back to the original purpose of this post. January earnings are shaping up to be 50% of last year's earnings, with more articles, which are receiving visits, added in the course of the year. Sad

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