Thread by @LeboLion_SA

The SABC doesn’t have money but you still want to be a TV presenter.
Wake up talented individual, YouTube has Money & they’re only getting bigger by the day.

A thread about how to open up the industry & get paid.

The SABC's 5 TV channels reach an average of 28 million viewers per month.
In late 2018 City Press reported that the public broadcaster’s liabilities exceed its assets by R1.8billion, and “as a result, the SABC is not able to settle its short-term obligations”.

Short-term debt, also known as short-term or current liabilities, refers to any financial obligation that is either due within a 12-month period or due within the current fiscal year.

A few examples of short term debt are:
Wages: Payments that are due to employees
Accounts payable:This refers to money owed to suppliers or providers of services

On wages: if you’re a presenter, radio vj, staff employed by the SABC etc you will definitely be affected by their inability to pay short term debt. In October 2018,the SABC announced that it planned to lay off almost 1 000 of its permanent workers,& at least 1 200 freelancers.

On Accounts payable: If for example you pitch a project to the SABC or they commission you to create a show etc their inability to pay their accounts payable will affect you. You can find yourself waiting for months to get paid for a project you did.

YouTube is the worlds second largest search engine and third most visited site after Google and Facebook. By March 2013 it had 1 billion active global monthly users. As of October 2014, YouTube has paid out $2 billion to rights holders since 2007.

The number of channels earning six figures each year on YouTube has increased by 50% year on year.

Why do these figures matter? Because they mean that as a South African creative, entrepreneur, professional, talent etc you don’t have to wait for the SABC to get their act together for you to show case your talent, build networks, gain an audience, or make money.

There are couple of ways to get paid from creating a YouTube channel:
1. Get paid by Adsense
2. Use your video statistic to collaborate with brands on campaigns and get paid.

3. Get paid to use and review products on your videos
4. If you are a video creator, you can sell your content or concepts to media giants like Netflix.

If you garner enough traction from YouTube’s algorithm to start getting paid, it will come through AdSense. Like YouTube, AdSense is a separate entity, in this case owned by Google. Most vloggers are paid via direct deposit monthly, typically on the 21st of every month.

However, the eligibility of your channel to receive payment at all is at the mercy of AdSense & not all content meets its criteria. Check its rules carefully upon signing up.Vloggers with YouTube channels outside the US may be paid by mailed checks or wire transfers.

Collaborating with brands has endless opportunities. You can find yourself becoming the face of the brand, MCing that brands events, getting employed permanently by the brand, accessing profitable partnerships with international brands.

Another pro of building content for YouTube is that you have the opportunity to reach a global audience which means that you get to penetrate markets where your content is the most relevant and successful. Giving you opportunities to travel & work with international brands.

Having a successful YouTube channel also allows you to garner celebrity status and use that as leverage in deals and projects that you want to work on.

With the existence of platforms like YouTube, you don’t have to be at the mercy of national broadcasters. You have the power to create, reach millions of people, and find creative ways to get paid.

Yes Multichoice does pay, and so does Etv but what are the politics of penetrating those circles??? Not everyone will have the fortune of making content for those entities. This thread is showing alternatives to the challenges of traditional structures.

Please don’t get me wrong, you will not automatically get rich or get money from starting a YouTube page but you’re definitely opening yourself up to opportunities by creating & trying to sell your content in creative ways. Even broadcasters look for talent online.