In the last few years Youtube has been a primary force in both online entertainment and digital marketing, and Youtube influencers have played a big part in both. Every day, people watch 1 billion hours of videos on Youtube, and 90% of people say they’ve discovered new brands or products on the channel, according to a study by Oberlo.
But when brands want to use influencers to promote their products on Youtube, how do they know which influencer to choose? There are tons of Youtubers out there, but not everyone is appropriate for your brand. To choose the right one, it’s important to evaluate some key aspects of a Youtuber’s profile before you reach out to them for a collaboration.
How to find Youtube influencers
Before we get into what to analyze when choosing influencers, you need to know where you can find them!
When searching for Youtubers, you have three options:
- Search directly on social media
- Use an influencer marketing platform and its search filters
- Hire an influencer agency, who will find Youtubers for you
Searching on social media is free, but it will take the most time. You can search among your subscribers or the accounts that comment on your brand’s content, and maybe you’ll find the right influencer is already among your fans. But even if you get lucky with that, you won’t be able to vet the influencer’s profile and performance-driven metrics.
An influencer agency is the opposite end of the spectrum. It’s the most expensive option, but it’s also the most hands-off. If your brand can afford to pay an agency, they’ll find and analyze influencers for you and manage your campaign. But get ready to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars per month, depending on what agency you choose and the scope of your campaign.
The middle option is an influencer marketing platform. This is a subscription-based software that you have to pay for, but which is cheaper than hiring an agency. An influencer marketing platform lets you find influencers with various filters, meaning you can tell the program exactly what you’re looking for.
An influencer marketing platform running a search query for beauty influencers from the US with at least 150K subscribers and 1M total views.
Then, you get detailed analytics about each profile so you can analyze each influencer’s metrics, compare, and choose the best person for your campaign. You can also organize your search results in lists to more easily keep track of all the influencers you’re interested in.
How to choose Youtube influencers
Once you find Youtubers, you need to choose the ones that can best help you achieve your campaign objectives. Therefore, you should always make sure to have your campaign well-defined before you start finding and choosing influencers.
When analyzing Youtube influencers, there are two key areas we need to consider: performance-driven metrics, and profile style and quality.
Performance-driven metrics
When evaluating performance driven metrics, you can look on both Youtube and an influencer marketing platform. But an influencer marketing platform will provide some metrics that aren’t visible on Youtube itself.
The first thing we want to check is obviously the basic profile information, like number of subscribers, videos and views.
Basic metrics for beauty Youtuber Alexandra Anele.
Next, check into the Youtuber’s video metrics, which assess the frequency and performance of their video content. We can see in the example below that this influencer posts, on average, 3.3 videos per week, and her last video was 6 days ago.
This is important because you want to make sure the last video was relatively recent. You also want to see if they can keep up with the quantity and pace of content you need produced for your campaign.
Video metrics for Alexandra Anele.
We can also check her average views per video. This metric is very important because it shows you on average how many people are watching the influencer’s videos.
Keep in mind that subscriber count isn’t always accurate with respect to how many people actually tune in. Some users subscribe and then forget about a channel. Some subscribers may only watch certain videos, ignoring others.
Likewise, total views could also lead you to false assumptions about a Youtuber’s performance. For example, imagine that a Youtuber went viral and got a few million views on one video a year or so ago. But since then, people have lost interest, and so they’re average views on recent videos is only a few thousand.
Profile style and quality
While data can tell you a lot, there are certain things you have to judge for yourself. Performance-driven metrics indicate if a Youtube influencer’s content is successful with viewers. But those metrics can’t tell you if that content aligns well with your brand.
Basically, you want to collaborate with influencers who logically fit with your brand. This will make the collaboration seem more authentic and instill more trust in viewers.
When looking at an influencer’s profile and content, ask yourself these questions:
- Does the influencer work in the same niche as my brand?
- Does the influencer embody my brand’s values?
- Does their aesthetic style fit with the style of my brand?
- Does their unique voice mesh with how my brand communicates online?
For example, if you’re a fashion brand who’s known for its colourful, kitschy clothing, you probably don’t want to choose a Youtuber who rakes in the views for their minimalist, monochromatic looks. Or, if your brand makes a point to prioritize sustainability as one of it skey values, find an influencer who also promotes that.
Conclusion
There are a lot of Youtube influencers out there, and choosing the right one for your brand can be difficult. That’s why it’s important to carefully analyze their performance metrics, as well as the elements of their profile that can’t be captured in data, like their tone and style.
If you’d like to learn more about how to define your influencer marketing campaigns and how to find influencers, visit our influencer marketing guide.
