In early 2011, the main YouTube channel of comedy duo Smosh had fewer than 3 million subscribers. In July, 2011 teen content provider and digital network Alloy Digital acquired the Smosh brand sealing one of the largest YouTube deals in recent memory.
Back when Alloy Digital acquired Smosh, the veteran video creators operated two channels – “Smosh” and “IanH,” which were widely regarded as two of the most successful channels on YouTube. Since that acquisition in 2011, Smosh has grown over 40 percent in views and gained more than 3 million subscribers on YouTube.
In 2013, Smosh is currently the most subscribed YouTube channel beating longtime titleholder Ray William Johnson with 6,827,072 subscribers.
How did Smosh double its fan base and become one of YouTube’s fastest rising comedy powerhouses in less than two years? The answer is a powerful concoction of regularly uploaded content, a channel expansion initiative, and a partnership with the web’s biggest teen content provider.
“El Smosh,” “Shut Up! Cartoons,” and “Smosh Games”
In 2012, Smosh launched three new YouTube channels each targeted towards a key online demographic. “Smosh Games” tapped into YouTube’s rich culture of video game enthusiasts while launching an initiative aimed at male viewers. Launching “Smosh Games,” Alloy Digital and Smosh were able to bring in male viewers through one of YouTube’s largest male-oriented genres – video games.
“Shut Up! Cartoons” was also created to appeal to YouTube’s male audience while expanding on the Smosh brand with easily produced and demographic encompassing cartoons.
“El Smosh” brought the dynamic duo a complete new audience as the Spanish dubbed channel introduced a new wave of Spanish language-speaking viewers to Smosh.
With the introduction of these channels, Smosh cornered three of YouTube’s most popular genres while increasing their fanbase tenfold.
New content everyday
With the expansion of the brand, Smosh was able to upload content everyday, all under the “Smosh” umbrella. Currently, Smosh releases 16 videos a week across 5 different channels. This is an unprecedented amount of uploads that all direct back towards the “Smosh” channel.
In the world of digital video, consistent content is a crucial factor in channel popularity. Alloy digital and Smosh have increased their chances of someone stumbling across their videos exponentially by uploading so often. With those chances comes the potential for more subscribers.
The expertise of Alloy Digital
Smosh began climbing towards the most subscribed YouTube channel spot almost immediately after being acquired by Alloy Digital. As a content producer and provider for the 12-34 demographic, Alloy Digital has provided Smosh with an unmatched expertise when it comes to marketing and content.
The most important thing to remember here is that once Smosh was acquired, an entire team behind a multi-million dollar content provider went to work on the “Smosh” brand. Alloy Digital has acquired or partnered with sites and channels like Crushable, Teen.com, The Escapist and Clevvertv.
With that pedigree of new media acquisitions, Alloy Digital has gained an expert understanding of digital content for young men and women. This is something they applied to Smosh making it the biggest name in YouTube with no signs of slowing down.
[…] Alloy, in a round of Series A financing, received an investment of $30 million from ABS Capital Partners sheerly for being a “leading next generation media company for the 12-34 demographic and a top-10 video network.” And did I mention that they partner with SMOSH, the most subscribed channel on YouTube? Clearly Alloy is doing some serious forward thinking.Via a press release on Alloy Digital’s site, CEO Matt Diamond stated, “This funding will allow us to rapidly accelerate future growth by adding complementary, relevant properties and talent appealing to the tastes and shifting consumption behaviors of P12-34 digital consumers. In just one year, we have built a solid foundation through the acquisition of best-in-class properties that have solidified Alloy Digital as the top digital media and advertising network for this demographic and propelled our owned properties to be among the most watched on YouTube.” […]
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