Why Youtubers are the Most Influential People in Modern Day

If you're an adult chances are you don't understand the hype around youtube or influencers, I mean they're just regular people with cameras. It's hard for older generations to grasp the idea of being able to make money and grow a fanbase off "ridiculous" videos. I'm sure many people scoffed just reading this headline, but it's true, at this day and age there aren't more influential people.

The people who watch youtube are the next generation, the young impressionable minds. The main demographic of mainstream youtubers can be anywhere between 8 years old and 25. Even if some channels are directed to a larger demographic, it usually ends up having quite a percentage of a young audience. Everyone says that millennials and Gen Z have no patience as it is, which may be true. This claim increases the appeal of youtube, it's entertaining content on demand from millions of creators. You can be viewing it on your phone, or laptop, or tv in seconds. It's easy to find anything you're looking for, there's truly something for everyone.

It may be easy to just brush off the idea of youtubers and give them less respect than an A-List Hollywood Star, but their fan bases deliver time and time again. Youtube is one of the only platforms that provides a pretty concrete estimate of the fans someone has actually acquired. You can be following someone on instagram or twitter and not be a hardcore fan of them, but with youtube, I've found that you're not necessarily going to subscribe to someone's channel unless you want to see their content regularly. It's hard to believe some of the numbers that these youtubers produce. When you look at some of the most well-known people on the platform, their numbers are astonishing. Some examples of this are James Charles, David Dobrik, and Shane Dawson.

James Charles makes videos related to beauty and has nearly 15 million subscribers. James has been able to break barriers down in the beauty industry and has amassed these 15 million subscribers in only 2 years. He was the first male covergirl and is working to normalize boys in beauty. James has been able to foray his youtube career into a successful merchandise empire and has also been able to produce his own eyeshadow palette and brush set which has, at this time, sold out worldwide 4 times within a few hours of restock. I guarantee if you don't know who he is personally, (which I can't believe), you know the iconic sayings he's coined. I seriously cannot go a day without hearing someone use at least one of these terms. His most well known is "sisters" followed by "love that", "good and fresh", "pinky drinking", "not with that attitude", etc. James' channel growth in just 2 years is absolutely insane and whether you like it or not there are 15 million eyes on him.

Next up is David Dobrik. He is known for his quick exciting vlogs that have amassed him over 11 million subscribers. In each of his vlogs you find him living the dangerous, adrenaline filled life that you wish you lived. Each one runs exactly 4 minutes and 20 seconds in length and is jam packed with entertaining comedic bits. David has roped in many of his friends to form a group known by many as the "Vlog Squad". This includes other vloggers, Liza Koshy, Trisha Paytas, Jason Nash, Zane Hijazi, Scotty Sire, Corinna Kopf, and so many more. A very recognizable member of the "vlog squad" is Josh Peck most well known for his Nickelodeon show, Drake & Josh and his comedy show with John Stamos, Grandfathered. David has been able to get A-List celebrities into his vlog such as Kendall Jenner, Howie Mandel, Paris Hilton, Jennifer Lopez, John Stamos, and various members of the Drake & Josh cast. Through youtube David has also been able to get brand deals and partnerships with many huge companies. One of the most notable partnerships being Seat Geek. He's had a long standing partnership with Seat Geek that has helped him gift at least 7 brand new cars to his friends and family. He's also been able to gift tickets to various sporting events such as the Super Bowl and the World Series.

Finally, we have Shane Dawson, arguably one of the most well-known on the platform. He has been on youtube since it started about ten years ago. In that time Shane has acquired over 21 million subscribers. He makes content unlike anything else I've ever seen. Shane does deep dives into the lives of other youtubers and delivers them as "series". They come in several parts that make you feel like you're watching a show on Netflix. They are incredibly well-executed and edited like a professional show by just two people. His most popular series is 8 parts and each video is 30+ minutes. He builds up so much anticipation and reaches so many young people, he gets the world talking about his videos. Shane trends on twitter and youtube regularly. After one of his videos drops I can't find a single person who isn't talking about it.

What some of the older generation fails to see is just how much people become attached to these youtubers. This is what the young people are paying attention to and the most effective way to deliver information to them is through these youtubers. This is why brands are constantly reaching out to them because they recognize their reach. Whether it's evident to you or not youtubers hold a great deal of influence and should definitely not be brushed off as D-List celebrities or silly kids with cameras. They're here to stay and are coming for coveted positions in Hollywood, they're the next generation of LA culture. Everyone should keep their eye on youtubers.

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