Business Lessons from the World’s Top Vloggers

This article was contributed by Jennifer Ollander.

General entertainment and gaming vlogger, PewDiePie, brings millions of dollars every month on his YouTube channel, while prankster David Dobrik makes almost the same amount.

They may not have an MBA or experience at a top financial consultancy firm, but top YouTube creators are making big bucks and it’s all got to do with their power to bring in views. What makes these and other top vloggers stand out from channels that can barely scrape in 100 views per post?

What lessons can they teach businesses about marketing their product to new audiences so that their follower stats continue to stay in the green?

Collabs Count in the Blog-o-sphere

Creators like PewDiePie – who has almost 100M followers and whose ‘target audience’ is incredibly wide – stay at the top of their game by retaining loyal fans while continually marketing themselves to new groups. Recently, for instance, PewDiePie collaborated with beauty guru James Charles, playing a fun, laughter-filled online game of Minecraft.

The beauty market is huge, with Charles himself boasting around 16M followers. By commenting on scandals in the industry and working alongside top beauty gurus, PewDiePie has managed to crack a segment that may have been previously unaware of his commentaries on top YouTube channels. Synergetic collaborations can also work for your business, either by enabling you to target new markets, or by appealing to those you already have via social media and advertising.

Accessibility and User-Friendliness Matters

Appealing to online users with disabilities is another factor to take into account if you are to stand out as a forward thinking business. The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, with 5.3M subscribers, presents all content with subtitles – a magnificent way to make its content more comprehensible and further-reaching. Creating an accessible YouTube channel and website begins with good UX (‘User Experience’) design.

It includes everything from writing alternative text for images so that those with hearing difficulties can access information, to using larger fonts for those who have visibility issues. Additionally, talking about disabilities on your site and inviting disable collaborators to share interesting content with your audience, is a good way to increase your reach and show you are a company that cares.

Interaction with Clients and Accessibility to Target New Markets

The value of social media is clearly recognized by small businesses, with research showing that 73% are investing in this vital branch of digital marketing. Interacting with clients on social media, taking their feedback into account, and responding to complaints promptly, are key strategies to take. Creators like PewDiePie, Rich Lux, and Jeffree Star alike keep audiences happy by replying to comments and creating requested content.

Increasing Your Presence with Quality and Quantity

Casey Neistat is one of YouTube’s coolest creators, with a 6M following and cracking content that blends adventure sport, social commentary, love of nature, and product reviews. In the early years of his channel, Neistat used to upload a maximum of two videos a month.  In 2015, however, he upped his marketing game in a big way, uploading daily vlogs that would see his subscriber count grow from less than 150K to almost a million in a few months.

While presenting your business in a good light on Instagram, Facebook, and other channels is vital, don’t become so obsessed with quality that your posting loses traction. Set a schedule and pre-program content, using a program like Hootsuite to target key moments of the day. Use metrics like conversion rates, visits, and customer feedback to gauge the type of content your audience craves.

YouTube is garnering major success for content creators who know how to engage, connect with, and interact with their followers. By building synergetic relationships, creating content consistently, and interacting with audiences, you can keep your audience happy while simultaneously targeting new followers and clients.