At university, Chris Muniu’s hobby was to post How-to tutorial videos on YouTube, garnering him a cumulative 14.3 million views and earning him cash and a dedicated 23,870 subscribers.
“I created how-to video tutorials on navigating the Internet every evening and posted them on YouTube. I realised my following was rising and I established a blog that I use to engage anyone with a query on my products,” he said.
After his graduation with a Bachelor of Science degree in IT, he built up his How-to tutorials, addressing issues raised by his followers and his IT background came in handy as he was able to respond promptly.
As he enjoyed chatting with his followers, Muniu got a surprise payment from Google amounting to Sh10,000 via Western Union for all his tutorials uploaded in the past year.
“I intensified my uploads and in the next month I earned another Sh10,000 as well as learnt what people wanted to know. My income increased and I moved out of my parent’s home to start life as a fulltime ‘Youtuber’”he says.
Muniu, aka’ Webpro Education Channel also established a blog where he expounded on his tutorials, thereby enabling followers to understand their chosen subject.
He would rummage through a website and after understanding how it worked, prepare a tutorial which he posted online for anyone unable to use certain online tools.
Muniu kept abreast of all developments on social media and kept his fans informed on how to use Facebook, erase history or recall a post as well as engaged fans on how post videos and pictures on their pages. As his income grew, Muniu bought a new desktop computer and a microphone to help him prepare tutorials. He also shifted his base to a secluded leafy suburb in Nairobi, improving the quality of audio records of his products.
“The biggest secret to making money online is you should never lie and must always post original material. Handle subjects you understand well and use even a phone camera to prepare your material,” he says.
On a good year, his pastime earns him between Sh700,000 to Sh1 million, with returns growing as more people click on his channel which is laced with advertisements by Google.
“I keep fans engaged by replying to comments as regularly as possible and engaging the audience who wish to know more,” he explains.
Some of his most viewed videos include How to Reveal Forgotten Gmail Password with 682,000 views; How to Stop Internet Explorer Script Error Messages with 582,000 views; How to Deactivate Facebook Account On Android—216,000views; How to Deactivate Instagram Account. [Android] with 171,000views.
On YouTube monitor Socialblade, his page, despite not having any videos posted for the past year, received 573,891 views in the past month. This is estimated to have earned him between Sh15,000 and Sh236,900 depending on the views and amount of advertising embedded.
He took a break from posting regularly to invest his earnings in farming but plans an online venture that will see him specialise on reviewing operation manual for Internet of Things (IOT) electronic gadgets and software applications.
Local YouTube accounts such as news sites have the top number of viewers alongside local celebrities, including comedians who have the highest number of followers.
This space has, however, seen the market build its own YouTube celebrities including makeup artist Kangai Mwiti (102,334), journalist cum social commentator Caroline Mutoko (41,440), comedian Alex Mathenge(19,415) and hairstylist Sheila Ndinda(25,052).
