YouTube Men on Mann: Exploding Dolls and Talking Spirits
If you ask a lot children nowadays what they want to be when they grow up.. the chances are that at the top of that list would be “a YouTuber”. Because that’s a job now! It wasn’t even on anyone’s radar a decade ago. Mainly because YouTube was only one year in to monetising, and therefore one year in to being considered a potential career.
The first video on YouTube was uploaded on 23 April 2005, Meet Me At The Zoo, since then the site has sky rocketed to enormity. Now, there is over 1billion hours of YouTube watched every day. Following Ofcom’s latest report, the press has been all over the findings that streaming subscribers overtook pay-TV for the first time in UK. The report looks at all forms of media including YouTube, not only Netflix and Amazon.
“16–34 year olds view 1 hour a day of YouTube per day on a devise other than a TV set” Ofcom Media Nations Report 2018.
Google have a page dedicated to its future predictions on viewing habits. However interesting these ideas are, let’s remain open-minded when reading this, Google do own YouTube, of-course:
People are creating their own content more and more voraciously. With the likes of Snapchat or Instagram stories, we are all turning in to content creators.
It’s quite clear this not a “fad” and ain’t going away any time soon. In fact, we could even be at the start of it the curve. The greater the access to decent upload/download speeds (welcoming 5G and beyond) and the increasingly good cameras in our smartphones… the easier it is to create and share good quality content.
The team at Isle of Media team are always looking at how they can support and help to grow this diverse industry. With the fast growth of new media sub sectors, I headed out to do some research for the team in an effort to find out what the YouTube content creator landscape looks like on the Isle of Man.
I didn’t have to go too far to find some very interesting stats: if you check out Social Blade and filter to the Isle of Man, floating around in the Top 5 Isle of Man YouTubers (based on video views or subscribers), sat next to PokersStars TV and Official Isle of Man TT is bigclivedotcom and ralfydotcom. Between them they have over 130,000,000 views on YouTube.
This pair of Scottish brothers made the Isle of Man their home some years ago and started providing YouTube informational videos when they moved over the to the Island. The guys had relatively “normal” previous jobs, Clive was an electrician and Ralfy was an undertaker (OK, maybe not so ordinary), I was keen to know how they got in to full time social content creators. It’s not hard to understand when you get to know them; they both have a wicked sense of humour and the ability to engage an audience. They create original content and upload online, on hand to help you delve in to the world of whiskey …
…or pretty much anything you can buy for a pound from China…
The Isle of Media recently held a lunch event, held for media industry on the Isle of Man, and we welcomed these guys along. I spoke to both of them to find out what it’s like becoming and being a successful “YouTuber”. Below are my top takeaways.
Authenticity Trumps Trolls
Be yourself. That’s was my stand out takeaway from the lads work. They have a heart-warming, unique style on and off camera. This natural authentic manner is who they are 100% of the time, not something they put on for the screen for subs (subscribers) or views.
They display a genuine passion for what they do, and they want to communicate this to their audience. Ralfy very casually explained to me that “all he was doing was sharing a human experience”, he drinks whiskey and other people drink whiskey.
“I’m not a whiskey expert, I’m a whiskey nerd.” Ralfydotcom
BigClive says there are many reasons why people watch his channel, “some viewers tell me they listen to it to put them to sleep”, he half jokes. Talking to the brothers they felt audience that TV wasn’t transparent enough nowadays, with people seeing platforms such as YouTube as more ‘real’. The Youtubere usually has all the editorial control and therefore put out what they like. BigClive doesn’t edit his material at all in fact.
“If it goes bang or blows up, it didn’t work. I still upload it.” Bigclivedotcom.
It’s obvious, and natural, that the Ralfy and Clive’s style/manner/content won’t appeal to every viewer. But, to the ones it does appeal to, for whatever their reason is, they really do like it…the data doesn’t lie! I’m positive that what is holding some people back from starting their own channel, or from growing their own channel is the feeling of showing the world who you are, and that is quite vulnerable place to be. With this in mind, I was keen to know how they both dealt with the inevitable trolls.
“As you get more popular you have what seem like more trolls. Don’t let that put you off, it’s still likely to be the same minority percentage of your subscribers or viewers as you grow, even if it feels like more.” says Clive.
Authenticity must be one of the big attractions to Clive and Ralfy’s work; you can’t try please everyone without compromising who you are. This message is something that we can all take away with us as a message, even outside of the vlogging world. I hope this self acceptance can permeate through cultures and media mediums, it’s something I feel that’s been enabled through the rise of the internet. People being able to find communities online, when they may not ever have felt accepted irl (in real life).
Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V
If you’re doing something well, inevitably there will be people who will want to copy what you are doing. However, both of the guys seemed to be content in the knowledge that the fact that their fans/subscribers follow their content for them — a unique and personal experience. Others may steal an idea, but they can’t steal the sum of parts that makes you … you. I ask you, can anyone really replicate this:
The Dream is Real
Top tips from the guys who have had to ditch their careers to look after their burgeoning online presence:
- Diversify your income. “Don’t rely solely on YouTube” say both Ralphy and Clive. BigClive talked about the “Adpocalypse” of 2016. They were keen to ensure that they are not relying on YouTube solely to make money from their content. The business savvy chaps use a site called Patreon in addition to YouTube to make sure they have multiple income streams and they’re not relying solely on YouTube for revenue. Patreon is a site where people donate any amount they want to them to keep receiving their content.
- Community minded. In respect to content inspiration they don’t seem to get “creators block”, maybe because there is so much in their heads at any time? The hardest part I observed seemed to be finding time to get all the content out in to the social sphere and look after their large online communities. Be prepared to spend a lot of time looking after your online community as it grows, but don’t forget to keep creating.
- Get business savvy. BigClive did mention that when his side-hustle became less of a hobby and more of a career, it was really difficult to get some practicalities out of the way, for example setting up a bank account. The banks just don’t seem geared up for this new wave of “careers”.
- Simple Means. In terms of the tools needed to do the job, BigClive uses his smart phone and a homemade phone holder for hands-free filming, add some decent wifi to upload content … and that, ladies and gents, is it.
There is, no doubt, a Manx ton of talent on the Isle of Man (not only in the media industry of course). It’s was so nice to have an opportunity to learn, share and grow from the people who are doing it already. Thanks to Clive and Ralfy for their time sharing their experiences with me.
If you’re in the digital media industry on the Isle of Man, get on the Isle of Media mailer — info@isleofmedia.org — they host industry events on and off the Island over the year. A great opportunity to make some new connections, share ideas, get inspiration and ask questions.
Read more about the Isle of Media’s, Isle of Man Digital Media Networking Lunch event here:
