YouTube has significantly influenced the younger generations, especially teens in North America. I refer to YouTube as a wormhole—one click to the videos and the next thing you know is that hours have passed by. Aside from being a time sucker though, YouTube has coined an entirely new job title: YouTuber. Among them is Lauren Riihimaki, a 21-year-old undergraduate student whose channel LaurDIY now has over a million subscribers and is making six-figure revenue per year. Although she claims that she does not “have a business plan, finance strategy, or anything intense,” she does, unknowingly, have a solid marketing strategy.
Image taken from here.
After Class 18, I had the opportunity to ask Paul Davidescu, the Co-founder and CEO of Tangoo, how he markets the app. His response was revolved around digital marketing: the effective use of social media, website and blog is the key in marketing tech start-ups. YouTube channel is not exactly a tech start-up, but is similar in that most traffics are online. Ms. Riihimaki promotes her videos through all three of the aforementioned tools; as a result, she has witnessed organic growth of her subscriber base.
List of Social Media Lauren maintains by herself
Image taken from here.
Though not necessarily has a background in business, Ms. Riihimaki displays many characteristics and qualities that take to be a successful entrepreneur. She loves what she is doing, she knows how to manage her time, and she is actively engaged with her viewers on a numbers of platforms. I agree with Ms. Riihimaki that LaurDIY will continue to grow, and my only recommendation to her would be to have a well-outlined financial plan so that she can readily respond to any change in the industry.
Works Cited
Israelson, David. “Student Fashions Herself into a YouTube Star.” The Globe and Mail. Web. 31 Oct. 2014. <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-tools/student-fashions-herself-into-a-youtube-star/article21370807/>.
Riihimaki, Lauren. “LaurDIY.” YouTube. YouTube. Web. 31 Oct. 2014. <https://www.youtube.com/user/LaurDIY>.
Riihimaki, Lauren. “LaurDIY.” LaurDIY RSS. Web. 31 Oct. 2014. <http://www.desireandinspire.com/>.