The First Youtube Personal Brander
Jenna (Mourey) Marbles blew up the YouTube world in 2010 with her video “How to Trick People into Thinking You’re Good Looking.” If you have not watched it for some random reason go take a look here:
This video followed by several others which got views of over 5 million in their first week. Jenna Marbles became one of YouTube’s first viral hits. From her personal experiences to things that piss her off, Jenna shared her stories with the YouTube world and people could not get enough of it. From barely having enough rent, to moving into an LA home, she has found a way to market her personal brand in such a way that she can live a very nice life. However, she has not always stayed true to herself. As the months went on her creativity began to slip along with her views. She was trying too hard to be funny or angry to get views and it did not fall in her favor after a while. Two years after her initial hit, she released a video thanking everyone for supporting her and getting her on her feet. She also elaborated why her videos are not what they used to be, and that’s because she’s changed and she does not find it necessary to rant about every situation. This was a turning page for her, as she came out to her viewers that she going to stop pretending she was something she’s not and going to start focusing on her true self. This was a milestone for her, her followers and her brand. She continues to attend YouTube conferences, Social Media conferences and even appear in TV shows and movies. Instead of faking to be someone she’s not to get views, Jenna has created a new way for herself to continue get monetization. With launching stuffed toys, apparel, accessories and limited edition material, she’s able to continue her personal business while being who she is.
Jenna’s creativity and marketing methods went from strictly relying on social media and word of mouth to being active on social media, live conferences, collaborations and even merchandise. She could have attacked all these areas in her beginning stages, however, she was just beginning in the YouTube world and marketing through YouTube was unheard of in 2010. Jenna was strategic in launching her new areas around the same time the style of her channel changed. It almost marked a new beginning for her as she showed the world, “This is me, this is who I have become.”
I started following Jenna Marble’s channel in 2010, and I still watch her videos every now and again. I get excited to see what things she’s done and where she is now, because no one ever thought that making a brand out of making short videos would be a powerful thing. YouTubers are popping up left, right and center, and they come and they go. But, it’s amazing to see one of the first people who started this movement still be humble and true to themselves, because at any moment they had the chance to go crazy and push their brand to extremes.
Jenna Marbles, like all YouTuber’s, has grown and changed through the years. But, Jenna told people the truth about how YouTube impacts her and her career and she stays true to who she is, which is inspiring to millennials these days as it signifies the importance of not focusing on a number of likes or views but, staying true to who you are. Jenna Marbles effectively uses her personal experiences to gain attention to her main ideas, and this personal connection people feel with her is what has allowed her to continue and expand her brand. She did not decide to capitalize on a stage of her growth, but decided to develop loyal viewers to help her develop her long term personal brand.
