It's awesome to hear you're making thousands of dollars with YouTube Shorts! That's a fantastic achievement and truly demonstrates the power of short-form video content. While I can't know your exact methods, I can share the most common and effective strategies creators use to achieve significant earnings with YouTube Shorts, especially now in late 2024 / early 2025.

The key to making substantial income from YouTube Shorts isn't usually just one thing; it's a multi-pronged approach where Shorts act as a powerful growth engine for other, more lucrative revenue streams.

Here's a breakdown of how creators typically make thousands (or more!) with YouTube Shorts:

1. Direct YouTube Shorts Monetization (Ad Revenue)
This is the most direct way, but often not the largest chunk of the "thousands."

YouTube Partner Program (YPP) & Shorts Monetization Module:

To earn ad revenue from Shorts, you need to be part of the YPP and accept the "Shorts Monetization Module."

Eligibility:

1,000 subscribers AND 10 million valid public Shorts views in the last 90 days.

OR 1,000 subscribers AND 4,000 valid public watch hours on long-form videos in the last 12 months.

(There's also a lower tier for 500 subscribers, 3 public uploads in 90 days, and 3 million Shorts views OR 3,000 watch hours, which unlocks fan funding and shopping features, but not direct ad revenue from Shorts).

How it works: YouTube pools all the revenue from ads that play between Shorts in the Shorts Feed. From this pool, a portion is allocated to music licensing, and the rest goes into a "Creator Pool." Creators then receive 45% of their allocated revenue from this pool, based on their share of total eligible Shorts views.

Earnings Potential: Shorts RPM (Revenue Per Mille/1,000 views) is generally much lower than long-form content. Creators often report earning $0.01 to $0.07 per 1,000 views. This means 1 million Shorts views might earn you anywhere from $10 to $70. While it adds up with massive views, it's usually not the sole source of "thousands."

2. Leveraging Shorts for Long-Form Content & Higher RPMs
This is a critical strategy for maximizing earnings.

Driving Traffic to Long-Form Videos: Shorts are excellent for discoverability. Many creators use Shorts as teasers, highlights, or short-form versions of their long-form content.

How: Create a compelling Short that leaves viewers wanting more. Use text overlays or voice-overs to tell them to "Watch the full video on my channel!" or "Click the link in my description/comments for the full tutorial."

Why it works: Long-form videos have significantly higher RPMs (often $3 to $10+ per 1,000 views) because they can run more types of ads (pre-roll, mid-roll, post-roll). If a popular Short drives even a fraction of its viewers to a long-form video, the earnings multiply rapidly.

Converting Shorts Viewers to Subscribers: More subscribers mean a larger audience for all your content (long-form, live streams, community posts), which feeds into all monetization methods. Shorts are very effective for rapid subscriber growth.

3. Affiliate Marketing
This is one of the most powerful and scalable ways to earn thousands.

Promoting Products/Services: You create Shorts showcasing or recommending products/services relevant to your niche.

How: Include affiliate links in your Short's description, pinned comment, or even verbally encourage viewers to "check the link in bio" (though direct links are better on YouTube).

Examples:

Product Reviews/Demos: Quick unboxing, setup, or demonstration of a product.

"Top 5" Lists: Fast-paced lists of recommended tools, gadgets, books, etc.

Tutorials/How-to: Show a quick hack using a specific product.

Fashion/Beauty Hauls: Showing outfits or makeup.

Key: The products must be genuinely useful and relevant to your audience to build trust and drive conversions.

4. Brand Deals & Sponsorships
As your Shorts gain significant views and you build a strong audience, brands will notice.

Sponsored Shorts: Brands pay you directly to create content featuring their product or service.

How: Incorporate a brand's message or product naturally into your Short.

Rates: These can vary wildly based on your niche, engagement, and view count, ranging from hundreds to tens of thousands of dollars per Short for larger channels. For someone making "thousands," brand deals are a very strong contributor.

Strategy: Maintain high quality and authenticity. Don't over-saturate your feed with sponsored content.

5. Selling Your Own Products/Services (E-commerce / Digital Products)
This is where you have the highest profit margins.

Promoting Your Own Offerings: Shorts are excellent for quick, direct promotion.

Examples:

Digital Products: E-books, courses, templates, presets, exclusive content, paid newsletters.

Physical Merchandise: T-shirts, mugs, niche-specific items.

Services: Coaching, consulting, design work, web development.

Call to Action: Use strong, clear CTAs in your Shorts to direct viewers to your shop or landing page (link in description/bio).

Why it works: You control the entire sales funnel and keep almost all the revenue (after platform fees). A viral Short can send massive traffic to your product pages.

6. Fan Funding & Community Support
While not always "thousands" on their own, these add up and show audience loyalty.

YouTube Super Thanks: Viewers can buy a "Super Thanks" to show appreciation for your Shorts directly.

Channel Memberships: Offer exclusive perks (badges, emojis, members-only content) to subscribers who pay a recurring monthly fee. Shorts can be used to promote these benefits.

Super Chat & Super Stickers (for Live Streams): If your Shorts drive viewers to your live streams, these are ways for fans to pay for highlighted messages.

Patreon/Ko-fi: Drive traffic from Shorts to external platforms where fans can support you directly.

Common Traits of Successful "Thousands-Earning" Shorts Creators:
High Volume & Consistency: They often upload multiple Shorts per day or week.

"Hook" Mastery: They know how to grab attention in the first 1-3 seconds.

Clear Value/Entertainment: Their Shorts are either highly informative, genuinely funny, inspiring, or aesthetically pleasing.

Strong CTAs: They tell viewers exactly what to do next (subscribe, visit link, watch full video).

Niche Focus: They cater to a specific audience interest.

Quality Production (even if simple): Good lighting, clear audio, sharp editing, engaging visuals.

Trend Leveraging: They adapt popular sounds, challenges, or formats to their niche.

Audience Engagement: They interact with comments and build a community.

Cross-Promotion: They use other platforms (TikTok, Instagram Reels) to drive traffic to their YouTube Shorts and long-form content.

If you're making thousands, you're likely excelling in several of these areas! Congratulations on your success with YouTube Shorts!