With Nielsen data finding YouTube now reaches more US adults aged 18 to 34 than any cable network, there’s little surprise that successful online video creators are now becoming one-man or one-woman corporations.
Selling their own merchandise, signing deals with major brands and starting companies, these creators are now gaining stardom outside of the YouTube realm. An example of this is LA actress Brittani Louise Taylor, who’s YouTube channel has had so much success that she has gone on to appear in a TV commercial for Ford and online videos for Pepsi and Kodak. Any company that has money is approaching YouTubers," says Taylor.
With the top YouTube creators racking up subscribers in the millions, these massive online followings not only bring influence but serious prospects of wealth. In fact, many are turning to multichannel networks to help broker contracts and handle merchandise deals in order to manage the hundreds of endorsement deals and offers that come through.
But while creators are going on to find success away from YouTube, executives at the Google-owned company warn them to remember their roots. "The potential for a YouTube creator to become a global star has increased, and that opens up all sorts of new doors [but] the core of their popularity and the core of their fan base is really driven by their activities on YouTube," YouTube director of content commercialisation Jamie Byrne told Los Angeles Times.
Image: YouTube content creator Brittani Louise Taylor.
