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They Want To Be YouTube Stars

10th October 2014

The buzz around YouTube and the personalities that are emerging from the platform seems to be a hot topic at the moment… if not a bubbling conversation over the last few years.

YouTube Stars

We’ve seen the explosion of a new kind of celebrity, not one that has originated from sport or the silver screen, but solely the online world – almost always self made, self-taught and self-delivered. As commented on in the Daily Mail, last week the kids of today no longer dream of being a footballer or a leading actress, but instead an online superstar.

This again re-enforces what we’ve all been debating over the last few years, how the consumption of media has changed and non-more so than the younger demographic. The teen media landscape is getting narrower and narrower with the demise of both Bliss and Mizz this year alone, and without doubt this can be attributed to where the younger generation are getting their news, fashion and entertainment fix. One of our clients, StyleHaul, is maximising this shift, by helping brands to connect with audiences via this ‘new’ media channel. As a network they have access to some of the largest online superstars there is, and are on a mission to connect brands to these influencers to create highly targeted and relevant campaigns.

However, it is still surprising to see that many brands are unaware of how huge this shift is and still focus on purely the traditional channels when creating a marketing or PR campaign. Even when it comes to social, brands are still very focused on Facebook and Twitter and potentially missing a massive opportunity. We have to remember that these YouTube stars are both the new media outlets and the journalists in one. With subscriber bases that make even the most well known magazines look small, their reach and influence cannot be ignored for much longer.

Not only that, but when it comes to social, consumers spend more time on YouTube than any other social network, even more than Facebook and Twitter! This presents an opportunity for brands to engage consumers in a more in-depth way through genuine recommendation, giving more detail than 140 characters or a Facebook post. A recent campaign of ours for Disney’s Blockbuster, Maleficent, saw a large proportion of the marketing campaign centered around YouTube and a bespoke TUMBLR hub to host content. Brands such as Volvic, Monster and Alienware have explored this medium well, and even the BBC has realised the potential, with a whole series of radio shows on Radio 1, presented by not the new Fearne Cotton or Nick Grimshaw, but a host of YouTube sensations, each with their own allotted slot each week. Ben Cooper, Controller of BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra, commented, “Traditional youth broadcasters must adapt or die. It would be short-sighted to dismiss the importance of vloggers and ignore the new breed of presenting talent that are so influential to young audiences.”. We wholly agree!

In the coming months and years expect to see even more from these YouTube stars, as brands start to integrate them into their campaigns as their reach and influence become even more apparent, especially when engaging with the younger demographic.

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