There is an ongoing debate as to the level of power that youtubers have. Just take a look back to earlier this year when James Charles appearance at a Morphee store in Birmingham shut down the entire town.
Youtubers are an underrated commodity in the digital marketing realm
Just take a look at these statistics
- 6-in-10 subscribers report they would follow their favourite YouTubers advice on what to buy over their favorite TV or movie personality.
- 92% of consumers trust influencers more than ads or traditional celebrity endorsements.
- 58% of 13-24-year olds report watching influencer made content, but 58% say they’d skip pre-roll ads and 74% say they’d skip TV ads.
- 70% of teenage YouTube subscribers say they relate to YouTube creators more than traditional celebrities.
- 4-in-10 millennial subscribers feel their favourite YouTuber understands them better than their friends.
- YouTubers are 17x more engaging and 11x more extraordinary than celebrities according to a survey comparing the 10 most subscribed YouTubers and 10 most popular celebrities.
The popularity of Youtubers is undeniable as the statistics have shown. The public have demonstrated a preference for YouTube influencers over celebrities.
For example according to an Apple representative, the video ads featuring popular youtuber Liza Koshy received 4x as many clicks compared to Beats By Dre ad spots featuring figures like Tom Brady.
The effectiveness of influencers over celebrities isn’t a phenomenon limited to YouTube. In the past year, brands have chosen to partner with influencers as opposed to celebrities across social media. A report found that in 2017, 80% of the top 15 beauty brand collaborations were with influencers and only 20% were with celebrities.
However, influencer marketing is still a developing industry and as such strategies and tactics to maximize the impact of influencer partnerships haven’t been fully optimized.
So who would you choose to endorse your product or campaign, Celebrities Or YouTubers?
The public’s preference for YouTubers and the demonstrated effectiveness of influencer campaigns over celebrity endorsements speak to the changing marketing landscape. The audience size and reach of celebrities still offer value to advertising campaigns. However, the authenticity and reliability of influencers are extremely attractive to consumers, particularly Millennials and Gen Z.
What do you think have you been shocked by the results or did you already know the strength and impact of youtubers? If you had to promote a product would you go for a celebrity endorsement or a social media influencer? Let me know in the comments below!
This has been my 10th blog and with it marks the completion of my assignment. If you have truly enjoyed my blog and would like me to continue with weekly blog posts let me know in the comments below!
A blog on digital marketing 
I certainly agree that there is a lot of flexibility in YouTubers revenue streams outside of the platform. Within YouTube however, it is has probably been maximised in so far as sponsorships and monetisation of content.
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Yes I agree I think within YouTube it has has most likely been maximized but I think an important take away is that even taking these people outside of YouTube has granted very strong results! Take the Liza Koshy example it wasn’t her channel or brand but the fact that a YouTuber was feature on the ad made it 4x more receptive than the normal celebrity feature. Thanks Gabe!
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Great post Matt! Personally I trust influencers more than celebrities when it comes to paid promotions. Luckily for me as well, in the past, products I’ve bought from influencer recommendations have worked really well for me and I haven’t had any issues with them! Thanks for a great past 10-weeks of blog posts.
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