Weekly Buzz Viral campaigns & branded content

YouTube Sensations and Product Placement

If you – like your friends at The Weekly Buzz – spend a great deal of time on YouTube then perhaps you subscribe to a few or lots of video bloggers. There are basically two types of video bloggers: the ones that comment on everyday life, news and gossip, and then there are the niche bloggers who have selected a topic. The number of niche bloggers on YouTube has grown larger every year and it will be quite a quest to find a topic that isn’t covered.    

We decided to turn our attention towards a so-called niche blogger in this week’s first post: two sisters that have more than 800.000 subscribers! Elle (22) and Blair (16) Fowler video blogs about beauty- styling and shopping tips for young – primarily American – girls, the so-called “Tweens”. They have become so popular that Good Morning America did a segment on the two sisters, and YouTube have offered them a partnership.

Not all YouTubers are positive about Elle and Blairs videos. Several users have tried to catch the two sisters in lying about products and even claiming that Blair has had a nose job. Here is just one example.

According to some critics the two sisters receive free merchandise and thereby work for/with the different products. Both sisters have commented on this saying that they receive products from companies but they only show and talk about the products that they like. Finally the question can be asked: is product placement profitable for companies in YouTube blogging videos? Is the number of potential consumer big enough?

The success of the Fowler sisters has added a new member – the youngest sister Hannah (5 at the time). She has uploaded her first make-up tutorial and it has reached more than 1.8 million views.