The rise of YouTube influencers

YouTube has become the main video based social media platform. From unboxing videos to makeup tutorials to gaming content to reaction videos, YouTube has captured the attention of almost 1 billion people worldwide. YouTube is only growing in popularity for audiences and brands. No matter what type of social media influencer you are, YouTube is relevant for you as content creators. In this article, we cover what makes a good YouTube creator, the top YouTube creators of 2024, and how YouTube influencers can grow their businesses.

What makes a YouTube top influencer?

There are a few key criteria for evaluating YouTube influencers and determining who is a top influencer.

Subscribers

Of course YouTube subscriber count is key. Subscribers are a good partial measure of creator reach - how many people are able to see the posts, shorts, and videos that the creator puts out there. YouTube subscribers are also often more engaged than those on other platforms because YouTube subscribers “commit” to watching long form videos from YouTube creators in contrast to primarily photos or short form videos on other platforms.

Engagement

Subscriber count isn’t all that matters, however. You could have a large subscriber base, but they are effectively useless if they are not engaged. There are different ways to calculate engagement rate. One way is to look at how many people on average view your videos as a fraction of your total subscriber count. A good engagement rate is one where a large portion of your subscriber base views your videos. Another way to calculate engagement rates is to see what portion of those who view your videos actually engage with it (like, comment, download, or share).

Especially as YouTube influencer marketing, engagement rate will become increasingly more important. High subscriber counts are no longer enough - brands are especially focused on engagement rate when picking the right influencers to work with because that is often the best predictor of influencer marketing campaign outcomes.

Content quality

While subscribers and engagement rate measure how a channel is currently performing, content quality of their YouTube videos is a strong predictor of how the YouTube channel will perform moving forward. You want to ensure your content hooks the audience - every detail of the videos count. Popular YouTube influencers pay special attention to the video thumbnail, caption, description, and of course content itself.

How do YouTube influencers grow revenue?

YouTube influencers are brands themselves. As a brand with brand awareness, there are tons of ways in which popular YouTube influencers monetize.

Brand deals

A YouTube influencer can monetize their impressive following and engaged audience through doing brand deals. Brands or an influencer marketing agency often reach out to YouTubers with the right target audience to sponsor them for influencer campaigns.

Ad sense

YouTube directly pays YouTube channels for placing ads throughout their videos. Depending on your channel’s niche and location, you are paid anywhere from $0.5 to $2.5 per 1K views on your videos.

Merch

YouTubers often create merch to sell to their audiences. As mentioned, YouTubers tend to have a more engaged audience than creators on other social media platforms, which can translate to additional revenue sources like merch. YouTubers design custom merch with their brand (perhaps their name or a slogan) to sell to fans.

Digital products

Beyond physical products, YouTubers can market digital products to their global audience. Digital products can include guides, templates, tools, or images.

Services

Depending on your audience size, you can consider offering services as a YouTube influencer. For creators with smaller audiences with more engaged followers, services can be a great way to monetize. Services can be higher touch but lucrative per the client or per the hour.

15 top YouTube influencers of 2024

Before putting together this list, we noticed that most of the existing lists of top YouTube influencers focused solely on influencer subscriber count. So we wanted to put together a list of relevant influencers not solely based on followers but taking into consideration a wide range of factors. We wanted to highlight the most followed influencers but also unique and high potential channels across industries of 2024. We felt this would be an effective way to better showcase the most exciting work on YouTube in the United States and beyond.

MrBeast

Of course, we have MrBeast - the world’s biggest and perhaps best known influencer. MrBeast (real name Jimmy Donaldson) makes videos around crazy challenges and huge give aways. He has 240 million subscribers on YouTube.

CocoMelon

Cocomelon is a channel for children. Their content features animations for children’s songs. Cocomelon has 172 million subscribers on YouTube.

PewDiePie

PewDiePie is a Swedish Youtuber who primarily creates gaming content. He has branched out to other types of content, such as reaction videos. PewDiePie has 112 million subscribers on YouTube.

T-Series

T-Series is an India based music label. Their channel primarily features soundtracks and pop music from their label. T-Series has 260 million subscribers on YouTube.

Chloe Ting

Chloe Ting is one of the most popular fitness YouTubers. She makes workout videos and food recipe content. Chloe Ting has 25 million subscribers on YouTube.

Yes Theory

Yes Theory is a YouTube channel built around the idea of saying “yes” to more things and going outside of your comfort zone. Yes Theory has 8.7 milliion subscribers on YouTube.

Hyram

Hyram is one of the top skincare YouTubers. He makes content teaching people about skincare best practices and honestly reviewing products. Hyram has 4.6 million subscribers on YouTube.

Natacha Oceane

Natacha Oceane is a top fitness YouTuber. She makes videos trying different fitness or food challenges, workout videos, and science explainers of exercise science and health. Natacha has 1 million followers on YouTube.

Cassey Ho

Cassey Ho, also known as Blogilates, is one of the original fitness influencers on YouTube. She primarily makes videos around pilates and yoga. Blogilates has 9.5 million subscribers on YouTube.

Yoga with Adriene

Yoga with Adriene is one of the most followed yoga channels on YouTube. Adriene makes yoga videos for people of all levels. Yoga with Adriene has 12.6 million followers on YouTube.

Kitchen Nightmares

Kitchen Nightmares is a show where Chef Gordon Ramsay visits failing restaurants to help their businesses. Kitchen Nightmares has 6.7 million subscribers on YouTube.

Screen Junkies

Screen Junkies is a YouTube channel that primarily makes entertaining content reviewing well known TV shows and movies. Screen Junkies has 6.8 million subscribers on YouTube.

Matt and Abby

Matt and Abby is a YouTube channel featuring the life of couple Matt and Abby who met in middle school and have now started a family with 2 children. They interview other couples, especially those who met and married young. Matt and Abby have 6.5 million subscribers on YouTube.

Haley Kalil

Haley Kalil is a former model turned YouTuber who creates mostly comedic content. Haley has 5.4 million subscribers on YouTube.

Veritasium

Veritasium is a channel centered around science education. Their videos aim to explain every day and more unusual phenomena. Veritasium has 14.8 million followers on YouTube.

What are the trends in YouTube influencer marketing?

Looking ahead, here are some trends in YouTube influencer marketing.

Micro-influencers

As we discussed above, it’s not all about the follower count but also about the engagement rate. Brands are no longer looking for those with the highest following but rather those with the most engaged audience. Even if you don’t have a large following, you can still deliver great ROI to brands. Moreover with the rise of UGC, brands have been able to pay creators for content that they then put ad spend behind - in this way, the reach of the video is no longer restricted by the following reach of the creator.

Authenticity

As the influencer marketing space and number of YouTube creators grows, it’s more important than ever to carve out a niche that is authentic to you. Your followers can tell if you’re shilling every type of product just for monetary gain. However, if you are consistent and only market products in line with your brand and ones you truly believe in, your followers will be more likely to stay engaged and refer their friends to further grow your channel.

Growth through shorts

YouTube shorts has increasingly become the engine through which YouTube influencers grow. Non-subscribers are unlikely to commit to watching a full long form video from a channel they have barely heard of, but they are likely to watch a short, get hooked, and then check out your channel.

Being multi-platform

Being multi-platform is becoming increasingly more important and common. Many creators start on other platforms such as TikTok and then grow their audiences on YouTube to develop a stronger and more engaged fan base. Leveraging tools like a link in bio and an email marketing tool (both of which Beacons provides!) are great for creators looking to grow on or from YouTube.

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