The Business of YouTube

Since its creation in 2005, YouTube has seen exponential growth, and the site shows no signs that its popularity is waning. With more than 1 billion unique visitors a month, YouTube has become a moneymaker for those who know how to cash in.

Online Video¹

190 million Americans watched 75.6 million videos online. That’s approximately 61% of the population.

YouTube site traffic

Every Month²

  • 1 billion unique visitors
  • 6 billion hours of video watched
  • That’s nearly 1 hour for every person on Earth

Every Day²

  • 3x Increase in users subscribing
  • 4x increase in channel follows
  • 4 billion videos are viewed worldwide

Every Minute²

  • 100 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube

Who’s Watching²

  • About 60% of a user’s views come from outside their home country.
  • Youtube localized in 75 countries
  • Available in 61 languages
  • Viewers ages 18-24
    • 27.9M male viewers
      • 62% of all men
    • 34.7M female viewers
      • 55% of all women

YouTube reaches more U.S. adults, 18-34, than any cable network.

There are 21.6 million teen viewers which is 54% of all teens.

YouTube personalities are more recognizable to U.S. teens than mainstream celebrities.

Teens find YouTube personalities to be more intimate, relatable and authentic.

YouTube Partner Program²

The YouTube Partner Program allows users to monetize content on YouTube through paid advertising, subscriptions and merchandise. Users also can take advantage of resources, features and programs that YouTube provides.

The Partner program was created in 2007 and now, more than 1 million creators from more than 30 countries around the world earn money from their YouTube videos.

Monetization²

YouTube has more than a million advertisers using Google ad platforms, the majority of which are small businesses.

Thousands of advertisers are using TrueView In-stream and 75% of in-stream ads are now skippable.

Top Channels Based on Subscribers⁵

  • PewDiePie – 34.8 million
  • YouTube – 22.7 million
  • Holasoygerman – 21.3 million
  • Smosh – 19.8 million
  • RihannaVEVO – 15.5 million
  • OneDirectionVEVO – 15.3 million
  • KatyPerryVEVO – 15.1 million
  • JennaMarbles – 14.7 million
  • EminemVEVO – 14.7 million
  • Nigahiga – 13.8 million

*subscription numbers as of February 25, 2015

In September 2014, YouTube announced it would provide funding to some of the most popular stars to help them create and experiment with formats.⁶

Highest-Earning YouTube Celebrities

  • Pewdiepie – $7 million
  • BlueXephos – $6.7 million
  • Smosh – $5.7 million
  • DisneyCollectorBR – $5 million
  • BluCollection – $4.8 million
  • JennaMarbles – $4.3 million
  • TobyGames – $4.2 million
  • RayWilliamJohnson – $4 million
  • UberHaxorNova – $3.5 million
  • RealAnnoyingOrange – $3.4 million

“The stars of Youtube are already reaching huge global audiences, but in many cases there is a lack of mainstream awareness.” – George Strompolos, CEO Fullscreen

YouTube Stars and Mainstream Brands

Here is a look at a few well-known, high profile YouTube stars.

SMOSH

Comedy duo Ian Hecox and Anthony Padilla joined YouTube in 2005. Today, Smosh is the fifth most subscribed to channel.

Ages: 27

Annual earnings: $5.7 million

Affiliated brands:

  • Kraft
  • Kia
  • GE
  • Carl’s Jr
  • Nintendo
  • Nexus One
  • Puma

MICHELLE PHAN

Phan has gone from do-it-yourself make-up videos to product modeling to the upcoming publication of her book, “Make Up: Your Life Guide to Beauty, Style, and Success.”

Age: 27

Annual earnings: >$1 million

Affiliated brands:

  • Verizon
  • Diet Dr. Pepper
  • Lancome
  • Colgate

TYLER OAKLEY

Oakley has produced more than 300 videos with more than 200 million views since he joined YouTube in 2007.

Age: 25

Affiliated brands:

  • Audible.com
  • Naturebox
  • TacoBell

What It Takes To Succeed On YouTube12

Making it big on YouTube Isn’t easy.

Here are some tips for would-be future stars of the vlogosphere.

Plan Your Content:

  • Choose your medium and stick with it. Some of YouTube’s biggest stars create these types of videos:
    • Commentary
    • Sketch Comedy
    • Tutorial
    • Lifestyle
    • Music
    • Cooking
  • Be Consistent
    • Tell your viewers when and how often to expect videos and then follow through.
  • Never Stop Promoting
    • Extend your reach by sharing your videos on other social channels:
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Google Plus
      • Pinterest

Sources

  1. http://thenextweb.com/creativity/2014/04/07/growing-power-online-video-captured-online-video/
  2. https://www.youtube.com/yt/press/statistical.html
  3. https://www.thinkitwithgoogle.com/products/youtube-demographics.html
  4. https:variety.com/2014/digital/news/survey-youtube-stars-more-popular-than-mainstream-celebs-among-u-s-teens-1201275245/
  5. http://socialblade.com/youtube/top/100/mostsubscribed
  6. http://www.entrpreneur.com/artical/237654
  7. http://www.wired.com/2014/04/youtube-campaigns-for-stars/
  8. http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/meet-youtube-stars-brands-love-103733
  9. http://adage.com/article/digital/meet-youtube-s-demand-brand-stars/145844/
  10. http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-youtube-stars-20140808-story.html
  11. http://mashable.com/2012/08/24/how-to-make-money-from-youtube/
  12. https://blog.bufferapp.com/10-surprising-social-media-statistics-that-will-make-you-rethink-your-strategy
  13. http://www.jeffbullas.com/2012/05/23/35-mind-numbing-youtube-facts-figures-and-statistics-infographic/