By: Alisa Ermarkaryan
YouTube is known as the first video uploading platform and has been taking the world by storm since 2005. Living in this digital world, it is still hard to believe that over 5 billion videos are watched on YouTube every single day. One billion hours of content are watched everyday which is more than Netflix and Facebook combined. The platform is very powerful with the reach it provides, however, a major factor of YouTube’s success that is often overlooked are YouTube Influencers.
The nature of influencer marketing is that social media stars develop and express expert interests in a specific niche. According to Influencer Marketing Hub, creators become influencers as they build an authentic and subjective reputation therefore viewers listen to their views on the topic. Their influence is built on their ability to make the viewer feel like they know them. It is distinctly authentic and genuine which produces a high audience engagement that impacts increasing intent to purchase. YouTube influencers are the online version of celebrity endorsements.
Influencer marketing is common across social media however, YouTube has its own benefits relating to the network and its creators. Although you can upload videos to the majority of the other social media platforms, the time limit is restrictive. YouTube videos are unique as they can be extensive therefore more in-depth. It is exceptionally beneficial for brands as it is the best way to demonstrate a product and see it in everyday use. In addition, YouTube influencer marketing is beneficial for brands as the platform has a formal advertising setup already therefore brands can create campaigns in multiple ways.
The types of YouTube influencer marketing campaigns for brands are endless such as introductory campaigns, hashtag campaigns, contest campaigns, branding campaigns and many more. One thing that is for sure is that YouTube influencers hold great power for brands as it gives them one of the largest online audiences, hosted by people that the viewers trust.