How to make money clipping videos

The whole loop, start to finish

1. 1

   Pick your platform and get the account ready

   Choose where you'll post — TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts carry the most campaign demand. A clean account with a clear niche performs better than a dormant personal one, and most platforms require you to verify the account before your clips can earn on it.

2. 2

   Find a funded campaign

   Browse campaigns and read what each brand wants. Check the rate, the allowed platforms, any per-video cap or minimum view threshold, and — most importantly — that the budget is actually funded before you commit time.

3. 3

   Read the brief properly

   The brief tells you what footage to use, what to say or avoid, whether a caption, hashtag or disclosure is required, and what gets rejected. Most rejections are brief violations, not quality problems.

4. 4

   Make the clip

   Cut from the source material the brand provides. Three seconds decide whether anyone sees the rest, so the hook is the job. Vertical, captioned, and sized for the platform you're posting to.

5. 5

   Post it on your own account

   Publish natively on the allowed platform. You keep the post, the audience and the account — the brand is buying distribution, not your profile.

6. 6

   Submit the link

   Paste the live post's URL into the campaign. That's the connection between your video and the payout; a clip that's never submitted never earns, however well it does.

7. 7

   Get approved, then get paid on views

   Once the brand approves it, view tracking starts and the clip earns. On Shoot, earnings move into your wallet every 72 hours from approval, sit in a 72-hour finalising hold, and are then withdrawable from $10.

What actually separates earners from non-earners

Almost everyone who quits clipping quits for one of four reasons, and all four are fixable.

Choosing campaigns you'll actually do well on

• Pick subjects you understand. You can tell which 20 seconds of a podcast are the good ones only if you'd have listened to it anyway.
• Check the cap before the rate. A high CPM with a low per-video ceiling pays less on a hit than a moderate CPM with room to run.
• Read the minimum view threshold. Some campaigns only pay above a floor. On a new account that floor decides whether you earn at all.
• Prefer rolling payouts. Getting paid while the campaign runs beats waiting for it to end, especially on longer campaigns.
• Check the counting window. Views after it closes still show on your post, but they don't add to your payout.

A realistic first two weeks

1. 1

   Days 1–2: set up

   Verify your account on one platform. Pick one campaign, not five — you're learning the loop, not maximising yet.

2. 2

   Days 3–7: volume on one format

   Make and post several clips from the same campaign, varying only the hook. This tells you which opening works on your account, which is the only thing you can't learn from reading.

3. 3

   Days 8–10: read the data

   Look at retention, not just views. A clip with high three-second retention and low views was distributed badly; one with the opposite was a weak hook on a good push.

4. 4

   Days 11–14: repeat what worked, add a second campaign

   Now the format is known, apply it to a second brief. This is the point where the time per clip drops sharply.

Getting the money out

Earning and withdrawing are separate steps. On Shoot, once a payout clears its 72-hour hold you can withdraw from $10 — to a bank account via Wise (1–3 business days after approval) or as USDT crypto (usually within one business day). A 7% platform fee plus the payout provider's transaction cost is itemised on the quote before you confirm, and auto-withdraw sends each payout as soon as it clears if you'd rather not do it by hand.