Sure, all of us have spent many an hour perusing YouTube for that hilarious video of kittens on a roomba, or a dad getting hit in the nether regions, or that SNL sketch we all loved… And I’m sure some of you know about the advent of “career YouTubers” – people who are literally making a killing just by putting up YouTube videos.

Many people love incorporating video into their campaign, or message, or event, or whathaveyou. But you can’t just create a YouTube video or a YouTube channel and expect it to go viral in 24-hours. You can’t expect to become a YouTube celebrity overnight. Sure, creating video content is great, but if no one is watching it, then why do it? I’m by no means claiming that I am an expert. I love video blogging and putting up videos on YouTube, but my videos get a couple hundred views, maybe 1,000 views at best. I continue to do it because I love the work I do and frankly, it’s practice. I want to get better and the only way to get better is to screw up. [At the Social Media Business Forum I attended in October, I attended a panel on creating video content. Zach Ward wrote a great blog post about it to sum up.]

Well, “YouTube Celebrities” have become an entire niche and an entire industry. So, I just wanted to share a couple of the Rockstar YouTubers I, personally, follow and why I think they are so successful.

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PS22 Chorus – AGreggOfSociety

Subscribers: 16,983 - Videos: 294 – Channel Views: 499,053

Who: Okay, so the PS22 chorus isn’t making money through YouTube, because they are a bunch of 5th graders. They are phenomenal singers and are so incredibly inspiring. I just wanted to give them a shout out here because I think they rock. PLUS I wanted to share one of my favorite videos they have done.

Community Channel

Subscribers: 494,071 – Videos: Too many to count – Channel Views: 24,268,468

Who: Natalie is an Australian video blogger and YouTube personality. She talks about anything and everything. She does all her own filming, editing, writing, etc. She is the #1 most subscribed YouTuber in every category in Australia and she is in the Top 10 Most Subscribed on ALL of YouTube in the entire world.

What makes her so successful: Aside from her sick Australian accent, her appeal is definitely in her charisma and her charm. However, she is savvy and knows what works. Her videos are solid and consistent, she puts a lot of work into the quality of her videos, and she engages with her community… She ends EVERY video with a shoutout to her fans, she’ll feature fan questions and give answers, etc. She is involved. She also generates a ton of content – thus, getting people hooked and bringing them back again and again.

Why I like her: Of course I think she is really funny, but what I like best about her is that I try to learn from her. Obviously I don’t have the camera or editing skills that she does, but she is incredibly creative in that arena which is an arena I am not as comfortable in. I gain something new every time I watch one of her videos.

JuicyStar07

Subscribers: 165,589 – Videos: 122 – Channel Views: 8,441,025

Who: Blair “JuicyStar07″ is a 16-year-old (yes, 16) beauty guru. I had no idea until recently there is an entire niche on YouTube of “beauty gurus” who do make up tutorials, share products, do reviews, etc. It totally makes sense. But anyway, Blair is 16-years-old, and is a beauty guru. She posts a video anywhere from every day to twice a week. I just happened upon one of her videos one day, watched it, and actually learned something. (I am totally not ashamed to say that I learned something from a 16-year-old. By all means, she knows more about this stuff than I do. Teach me!)

What makes her so successful: She has only been on YouTube for a little over a year. She posted her FIRST beauty tutorial in July of 2008. Wow. She really became almost an overnight sensation. She has been featured in Seventeen magazine and in the New York Times. She is adorable, quirky, and honest – which I think are 3 attributes that make her appealing to a crowd of teenage girls (and quasi-makeup-inept 20-somethings) who want to know what the must-have eyeshadow for Fall is. She creates a ton of content and keeps her content fresh. She is now getting sent free makeup and hair products and Coach bags from different companies to review and talk about in her videos. She is a 16-year-old entrepreneur and incredibly smart. Way to go, Blair.

Why I like her: What I think is interesting about her is that she is not afraid to admit when she doesn’t know something about a product. She doesn’t claim to be an expert which I think is really admirable considering the world we live in where people are afraid to admit defeat. I think the other reason I like her videos is because she talks about something that I really know nothing about. And every girl secretly wants to be super girly. Yeah, I love to write. Yeah, I love comedy, Yeah, I love social media. BUT, I’m also a girl and I love to do my hair, and I love makeup. But I want someone to teach me how to do it. (Totally not ashamed in the least).

Sxephil

Subscribers: 775,325 – Videos: He posts one every day Mon-Fri for like 3 years. So, a lot. – Channel Views: 27,375,711

Who: Philly D is a video blogger who creates short (2-5 minutes), fast-paced, news-like videos. He talks about the headlines, celebrity gossip, his own life, anything. He is frank, abrupt, honest, and doesn’t take sh*t from anyone.

Why he is so successful: Aside from the fact that he posts SO much (like I said, he posts a video every day Monday-Friday), he is hilarious. His content is original, fun, and incredibly insightful. But he get straight to the point and doesn’t sugar coat anything. He isn’t afraid of offending anyone… he just tells it like it is. And I think that whether people love him or hate him, people respect him.

Why I like him: I’m not going to lie, I get a lot of my news from Philly D. What I also love is that he keeps his videos short and sweet. Sometimes I am way too lazy to sit and watch a video that is 16 minutes long. I like that I can count on Phil’s video to be less than 5 minutes, funny, and get me up to date on the latest headlines/news/gossip/stories/fun. And I like the standard-issue  monkey poster in the background.

iJustine

Subscribers: 290,525 – Videos: Again, a lot. – Channel Views: 6,772,209

Who: iJustine is a video blogger, YouTube personality, internet geek, APPLE LOVER (she seriously LOVES Steve Jobs), techie, and all around rockstar.

Why she is so successful: She has an awesome balance of quality content, hilarious videos, and originality. She lets her personality shine through in every video or blog post she does. (She also loves to dance). She found her niche: she loves Apple products, Steve Jobs, dancing, technology, photography, social media, and videos. So she takes all of those things and makes them her own. Again, consistency is key.

Why I like her: In a totally non-creepy way, I want to meet her and be friends with her. I think we’d get along. I’m fun. She’s fun. I’m cool. She’s cool. I’m saying, together, we could do some serious damage (in that we would crush the business world with our genius powers… or something like that). But in all seriousness, her content rocks. When I mentioned earlier that I wish I were better at creating videos and editing (etc.), I have learned a lot of easy to implement techniques from her.

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And no YouTuber blog post would be complete without mentioning… Fred. I am not officially including him in my list. I am simply going to link to his channel and let you decide for yourself. Fred is the #1 most subscribed YouTuber of all time on all of YouTube. This is a link to Fred’s channel. I want to know: why do YOU think he is so successful?

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TAKEAWAYS: So all of these YouTubers are not alike, yet they are all video rockstars, and all for completely different reasons. BUT there are a few common threads:

• Quality content = people will want to watch your stuff
• Consistency = the more you post on a consistent basis, the more people will return
• Subscribers = the more people subscribe, the more they will keep coming back
• Quantity = the more you post, the more there is for people to find

‘nuf said.

So, what do YOU guys think? Why do you think some of these people are totally rocking YouTube? What makes them so successful? Are there any YouTubers you, personally, follow? Why do you like them?

Tell me about some of the rockstars you love.

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There’s no secret about it. I love burritos. A lot. I would eat them every day if I could. But alas, I don’t. Thanks to @TedHobgood for passing along this amazing comic to me.

comic courtesy of buttersafe.

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Some of you know that I write for a local news parody, Weekend Update style, show called DSI Witness News. In addition to writing for our own live shows at the DSI Comedy Theater, we write for a daily segment on a local station, WCHL 1360AM (every morning at 8:20AM and again at 5:55PM).

Well, some of you have probably seen these crazy Facebook phishing scams and viruses going around. “Test your IQ,” ‘I found pics of you,” and the newest, “Your friend’s booty looks GRRRREAT in the video.” Well, the booty virus hit local politicians and we were lucky enough to have THE Mayor of Carrboro himself, Mark Chilton, join us for a HILARIOUS episode on Tuesday.

(Click here if you can’t see the video. And click here if you want just the audio.)

Hilarious, right? Ahhh gotta love elected officials on Facebook. Thanks, Mayor Chilton for being awesome.

Question: Do YOU have a booty virus?

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Most of you know by now that in addition to being extremely passionate about writing and social media, I am a comedian. I have always loved comedy. I can remember as a kid staying awake way past my bedtime, just so I could watch Saturday Night Live. I would watch old clips of Gilda Radner and Jane Curtin and think to myself, “Wow, I want to do that.”

I'll admit it. I'm a ham.

Comedy has influenced my entire life.

One of my earliest memories that I have is: I was two years old, sitting at my kitchen table eating dry cheerios and I stopped to look around. My mom said to me, “Honey what’s wrong?” I said, “Mom, where are the cameras?” This was a completely honest and heartfelt question. I honestly believed that my life was like an episode of The Truman Show (Even though that movie hadn’t even been made yet, that’s what I thought my life was. I thought I was on T.V. and on stage all the time).

I began acting in elementary school, and always played the comic relief. I started writing sketches and bits and putting on little plays for my parents or my friends. When I was in drama in middle and high school, I would always write a sort of “sketch revue” and try to have one of my sketches featured at an assembly or something like that. I performed all the time.

Then it came time to choose a college. I had been offered golf scholarships to a couple of large division-1 schools. [CONFESSION: Yes, I have played golf my entire life. Yes, I was the only girl on the golf team for a long time. No, I am not a loser. No, I am not better than Michelle Wie.] Well, I knew that golf wasn’t my true passion… comedy was (is). I went to visit Christopher Newport University and I heard they had a sketch comedy troupe. I went to see a show and fell in love. I was not going to go to another school. I WAS going to go to CNU and join CNU TONiGHT and be a writer and performer and be awesome. And I did.

Then in college, I took my first class in improvisation at the Upright Citizen’s Brigade Theater in New York City, NY. I got bit by the improv bug. The feeling of ultimate positivity, being totally in the moment, and completely without a script was the most freeing thing I have ever done – and I have never looked back. I even moved to North Carolina to take classes at the DSI Comedy Theater. Improv is addictive.

I share this with you because of all these experiences (and the ones I have yet to experience) have helped to shape who I am and shape my perspective. Maybe it will help you understand me more. Maybe it’s just a good story. Maybe this is a waste of your time. Who knows?

But as I have come to love comedy and love writing and LOVE improvisation, I have come to totally and utterly admire these two women: Tina Fey and Rachel Dratch. They are incredible writers, incredible performers, and incredible women. They have truly influenced the entire industry to prove that YES, women ARE funny.

[I also totally love and admire Amy Poehler, but she isn't in this video. But it's okay. SIDE NOTE: I met Amy Poehler the summer after I graduated from college when I was taking comedy classes in NYC (PICTURE PROOF HERE). I think I was able to say a total of ten words to her. I totally froze. I suck.]

I haven’t seen this video in a long time! This is an awesome clip from an ABC news interview with Tina and Rachel from A LONG time ago. In the interview, they talk about their hilarious two-woman sketch show “Dratch & Fey.” Thanks @callmeKP for the link. They also talk about the stigma that comes with being a woman in comedy and how they have worked to combat that stigma. If you can’t see the video, click here. We can learn a lot from these women, no matter what field of “expertise” we are in.

QUESTION: Do you think that the battle that many women have had to face in comedy is similar to a battle women have had to face in business? Do you think the “male-dominated comedy business” and “male-dominated business-business” are changing? What progress have we made? Women in the United States STILL only make 78 cents to every man’s dollar for the same position and same work. I want to hear your thoughts.

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UPDATE: Thank you to @RobLaughter for explaining the technical stuff to me. Apparently the #FailWhale shows up for HTTP 503 errors (over capacity). All other errors get the “something is technically wrong” robot. Well, I feel silly. But it’s okay, because I still haven’t seen the WHALE in a while and I kind of miss him. Is it weird that I want Twitter to be unreliable for ONCE so that I can see the whale again? Anywho. You can still enjoy my Twitter bits…

Where did my Twitter #Fail Whale go? I love the Twitter Fail Whale. It rhymes, it rolls off the tongue, and I got one painted on my face. Did Twitter get rid of the Fail Whale?

It seems they have replaced the Fail Whale with the “something is technically wrong robot.” That just doesn’t sound right to me – too many words and no rhyme-age. BUT, I do have to say that the little bugger is cute. I mean, look at him, with his awkwardly lanky arms, missing hand, and LeVar-Burton-from-Star-Trek glasses. Someone get this guy a hook!

You know what Twitter should do? Get rid of the “something is technically wrong robot” and instate the “Hey, LeVar Burton from Star Trek thinks something went wrong. Don’t worry. He’s channelling some space technicians from the Enterprise and everything will be back to normal momentarily… robot.” Sure, that’s a lot more words than “something is technically wrong robot,” but it’s a lot clearer and who wouldn’t want to see a debonaire LeVar Burton when Twitter fails?

Do you know what happened to the Fail Whale? Am I the only one not seeing it anymore? Or is this old news and my computer is just awesome and never fails so I just hadn’t seen it yet? Fill me in.

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GET WORDY, y’all. This is a new segment of my blog (hooray for new segments!). Since I was an English major in college and I taught high school English for two years, I love vocabulary. In school, I looked forward to making a gazillion vocab flashcards. Honestly, I LOVE words. So, I’ve decided to call this segment GET WORDY where I feature a word of the day/week/month/year that I am currently using, want to start using, or have made up. Yes, I like to make up words, too. I’m an improviser, making stuff up is what I do.

A good friend of mine and owner of the rockstar art gallery Wootini (where I work part-time), Mike, told me about today’s word for GET WORDY.

Quick backstory: So I walked in to work one day and we had just received a new shipment of KIDROBOT figures and there were a lot of open and empty boxes, in addition to some stuff left over from a previous gallery opening. Mike said to me, “Ahhh there’s so much CRUFT back here. But don’t worry about it, I’ll take care of it tomorrow.” I said, “Cruft? What’s cruft?” Mike said, “Cruft, you know, it’s like a bunch of stuff, that’s just in the way, or lying around, or piled up. You know, cruft.”

You see, "Hoarders," they have a lot of CRUFT.

I had never heard the word before. So I looked it up. This word rules.

Today’s Word: CRUFT

Cruft in THIS sense of the word is NOT computing jargon for “code, data, or software of poor quality”. The term may also refer to debris that accumulates on computer equipment. It has been generalized to mean any accumulation of obsolete, redundant, irrelevant, or unnecessary information, especially code. (From Wikipedia)

The CRUFT I am referring to is THIS: (this definition provided by UrbanDictionary.com and my brain)

Main Entry: cr-uf-t
Pronunciation: \kerr-rough-t\
Function: adjective
Date: Probably three weeks ago.
A : (crap+stuff+sh*t)/3 = cruft

That’s right. The word is simply a combination of the words Crap + Stuff + Sh*t = cruft. How awesome is that?

Let’s use it in a sentence: “That C++ geometry test goes in the “cruft” folder,” or how about, “Hey ma! Get your cruft out of my room. I’m trying to watch reruns of Good Times.”

Have you ever seen that show “Hoarders” on A&E? All that stuff they have? Now THAT is a lot of “cruft.”

What do you think of the word? Do you have a better word for all that crap n’ stuff that just piles up? Give me your best sentence using the word CRUFT.

I love fun words like this. Bring ‘em on.

PS: Happy Black Friday. I’m working in the mall today. Wish me luck.

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…literally.

Some of you may remember the awesome “Awkward-Social-Networking-Pickup-Line-Pun-Contest” I held last week in a Thuper Therious Thursday post. If you don’t remember, then you can check it out here: THIS IS A LINK TO READ THE POST.

I have to say, I got some HILARIOUS entries. Hilarious. A couple pickup lines almost made me cry… from laughing so hard.

Congratulations to Jim Williams (@digitaldrivel) for his HILARIOUSLY awkward-social-networking-pickup-line-pun-contest-entry.

Jim has won a grab bag of comedy and social awesomeness from the Dirty South. Thanks for your hilarious line, Jim. Couldn’t have done it without you.

BUT, due to the fact that some of the pickup lines were borderline inappropriate, I didn’t want to necessarily post them HERE on my “professional” blog… so I actually posted some of them and wrote about the contest in a guest post for the MISTER DIPLOMAT blog (a comedy blog from the Dirty South). You can read the hilarity and see the winning line here.

Now, aren’t you sad you missed out? Don’t fret. More fun contests to come. I promise.

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What is an auto-tune?

From Wikipedia: Auto-Tune is a proprietary audio processor created by Antares Audio Technologies. Auto-Tune uses a phase vocoder to correct pitch in vocal and instrumental performances. It is used to disguise off-key inaccuracies and mistakes, and has allowed singers to perform perfectly tuned vocal tracks without the need of singing in tune.

Basically, if you have ever heard a T-Pain or Kanye West song, you know what an auto-tune is. Well… they have made the auto-tune even better. For reals.

You HAVE to know the Charlie Bit Me video by now. This is 100 times better. Seriously. I honestly think I’ve watched this video about 12 times in a row now. It’s only :28 long. And each second is totally worth it. Enjoy.

As a bonus, enjoy an auto-tuned tribute to the late Billy Mays.

Ahhh it doesn’t get any better than that.

All for now.

When I become a homeowner, this is exactly what I plan on doing.

Best. House. Ever.

(Thx @greglee for telling me about this house).

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This week seems to be sending me inspiration left and right. First my small talk post, now this week’s tip of the week! I was reading Chris Brogan’s blog (say THAT 3x fast) the other day, and he had a great post about the questions that we should ask ourselves and our business – especially with regards to social media.

As usual, his post brought up some great points and I got to thinking about each question and the impact it had on my business. (I’m not going to regurgitate all 7 questions here, you can check out his post by clicking this link).

Then I realized a question was missing. It got me thinking and here is the question I have posed:

When it comes to our practices, whether those be business, branding, or marketing, how are we differentiating ourselves from the pack? In essence, what makes US unique?

I know not all of you own your own business, plan to own your own business, or are even passionate about being an entrepreneur, but my point is that this theory can be applied to any of us, no matter our role. We are all, in and of ourselves, our own “business.” Our personal brand is our business. How we market ourselves, how we represent our brand, and how the world sees us, are all part of our overall “business plan.”

But in this day and age, it is easy to get lost in mix and mass of content out there. For example, when looking for a job, how do YOU make yourself stand out above the other hundred-or-so applicants? Or if you’re a business, how do you make your business stand out against your competitors?

The short answer is to find that unique angle or perspective that differentiates you from the pack.

The long answer is, unfortunately, that can sometimes be difficult.

For me, it has been a challenge. I am passionate about social media and marketing, but so are a gazillion other people out there. So how do I make my brand different than the rest? I don’t want to be better than anyone, but I do want to stand out and I want people to know my name.

My other passion, comedy, was something I thought for a long time that I had to keep separate from my social media brand. Then it dawned on me: Why do I need to separate the two? They are both part of me. Why not combine them? Which is where I came up with the idea of THE Molly Buckley – where I put the MEDIA in comedian.

I am who I am and I’m going to own it. THAT makes me different. THAT makes me unique.

So, my tip this week – is to find out what makes YOUR brand unique. From what angle do you approach your business so that you can stand out from the crowd? What makes your business special?

Find that niche and OWN it. Be the rockstar you know you are. What do YOU think?

If you can’t see the video, click here.

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