Thursday, October 28, 2010

How To Get A Response From A Famous Youtuber

Let's say you have just watched a video from your favorite youtuber and you just HAVE to tell them how much you liked it. You've LOLed and ROFLed yourself silly or you have found what they have said so thought-provoking that you're now feverishly typing a comment. You have written and re-written your comment until it is the best response you can muster and you click "post" fully expecting an immediate reply saying that your comments are the most brilliant, insightful response that they have ever read.

But you get nothing. Nada. More and more comments are piled on the video from other viewers and your brilliant and insightful snippet of text disappears in the sea of comments. This happens time and time again and you begin to think "Oh Justin Bieber, how can you be so unjust?!" Um, I don't think I've ever commented on a Bieber video and I'm just using his name as an example. Really.

Famous Youtubers Are BUSY

Take a look at any video of the most subscribed people on YouTube and you will usually see thousands and thousands of comments. Do you read every one of their comments? Maybe - if you are a little too obsessed, but in all likelihood you don't. Can you imagine what it must be like to post a video on Youtube, get an incredible response and then try to reply to each and every comment?.

Let's say someone like Ray William Johnson started doing that. If he replied to a dozen comments on a video out of the thousands and thousands that are posted, each comment would get several replies from many different viewers all thinking that they have his ear and that they have the chance to ask all those burning questions that they have been dying to ask Ray for months. Multiply that by all the videos Ray has uploaded and you can see the dilemma.

I've heard that Ray does read a lot of his comments and uses several good ones for his Comment Question of the Day but man, there's only so many hours in the day! Ray gets so many comments that if he replied just to those comments that he thought were funny, he wouldn't have time to make and upload videos. Actually Ray is so successful on YouTube he probably has hired a team to review his comments for him (I don't know if this is true or not, but he should consider it lol).

Youtubers IRL

The thing is, people who are famous on YouTube also have real life issues that demand attention. They may have school or work, family, etc and they also have to try to make their way through their own day. They watch their favorite TV shows, movies, play video games, and go potty just like you do. That is something many viewers forget: that the well-known youtuber is a real person with all the demands on their time that we all have to deal with. It's something to keep in mind when leaving a comment.

Are You A Troll?

Not only do youtubers have to deal with the volume of comments they receive, but many also won't (usually) respond to the trolls. There are so many comments that are truly hateful and unmindful of the fact that they are directed to a real person. This is because of the safe anonymity of the Internet and having a user name which allows people to pepper others with abuse from a distance. It is so easy to heap all your frustrations onto someone else on YouTube and that is what many seem to do just for fun.

Also, if you are a female youtuber there's the added component of the crude and immature male of the species. There are many truly beautiful women on YouTube (surprise!) and they always get some absolutely repugnant comments about their appearance or what the commenter would like to do with them. Guys? Having a hard weiner is not the height of romance. Maybe the dudes commenting about their tallywhackers don't get bloodflow to their brains.

There is nothing wrong with talking about sex and sexual topics with female youtubers and women in general, and here's a clue for you horny guys - they like to talk about that stuff too. Only not in an uber-creepy way. Everyone likes a good sex joke, but making random comments about the (alleged) size of your wee-wee and how you will wield such a weapon on the Internet to some girl is just pathetic and sad. And getting back to the topic, the only response you should expect is to get banned.

So, How Do I Get A Response?

Well, try to respond and comment quickly when someone you like posts a video. Not with "First!" Because that is just a brain dead game for people with too much time on their hands. No, say something positive about the video, say something clever or funny. Many youtubers do take a look at the first comments posted because those are usually from their most loyal subs and gives them a look at how the video is being received.

Also, by commenting early and bringing something intelligent to the discussion other viewers might give your witty response to the video a thumbs up and that is something else that the person who posted the video might spot and reply to. Ask them questions and reply to comments left by others. It is all about being active in the mighty community that is YouTube. By being active and always trying to put interesting and provocative comments on videos you can get a reply because you've added to the discussion that the youtuber was hoping to generate when they posted their video in the first place.

Video Responses!

Probably the surest way to grab someone's attention is to attach a video response to one of their videos. Of course this is more work than many are willing to do, but if you want to get noticed, then this is one sure method. Doing a video response to a well-known youtuber can also get you noticed by other youtubers and has the added benefit of maybe generating some new subscribers for yourself if they like your video. It's not all about trying to capture the attention of that one person on YouTube you admire for whatever reason. But - seeing a comment on your video response from, for example, sexphil, ijustine, nigahiga etc is sorta thrilling in it's own right, even if it is a "good job" or "nice video." Something like that can motivate you to make more videos and kickstart your own YouTube ambitions.

Your Personal Experiences With Youtubers

I comment on a lot of videos. Personally, I am subbed to many people - the highest ranking ones and some who have few subs. Actually I recently subbed to someone who has just 7 subscribers and they receive so few comments that they are thrilled when they get a comment - even my mindless drivel. I subbed because the person is talented and I enjoy their videos and that is also why I am subbed to the muckety mucks, the high-flyers, on YouTube.

Basically like many, I am just a fanboy at heart and enjoy watching videos and commenting on them. If I get a reply from someone (high ranking or with just 7 subscribers) it brings a smile to my mug and shouldn't that be why you are commenting in the first place?

I have received replys from popular youtubers to some of my comments which is cool. Others, nothing. "Like who?" you're asking. Well iJustine replied once, Olga Kay, Charles Trippy and several others. Some have actually replied to some of the posts that I have on this blog which is also fun and always surprises me (because I'm thinking "why would you read my lame-ass blog?" lol). Like I said, I am a bit of a fanboy. I do this blog because I enjoy Youtube and the people involved in making videos. I try to let that show in my comments.

My basic advice to get a reply from someone is: be constructive. Bring something to the party. Don't fawn on them or be overly flattering. Try to make them laugh at what you are saying. Be friendly and approachable in your comments. Don't be rude or crude because no one wants to talk to Bob Noxious.

What are your experiences with Youtubers? Have you gotten a reply from someone you like on YouTube?

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