Some trends come and go on YouTube, while others continue to gather speed and generate insane views and engagement. Slime videos are just one of those trends that emerged a couple of years ago and continue to provide content for creators and entertainment for viewers.
In 2018, slime content generated 25.4B views on YouTube, an increase of 78% from 2016, which makes this a true power trend on the platform. According to Google, “slime” was the biggest DIY trend of 2017 – causing a national shortage of glue in the U.S. But 2018 saw just as much activity when it came to online video, with 1.7M uploads from 800K different YouTube channels. The average engagement rate for slime content was 1.5x, which was above the platform average. Of the 25.4B views, 24.9B were for influencers, 329M from media and entertainment channels, and 20.2M views were for official brand accounts.
Slime Content on YouTube: 2018 Insights
Using Tubular data, we can confirm how slime videos performed on YouTube, who were the top creators, and who was watching. But first, let’s kick off with a couple of surprising facts:
- Slime video content was a truly worldwide phenomenon in 2018. While English was the top language for 15.3B of YouTube views, views from uploads in Portuguese (2.1B), Spanish (2B), Turkish (1.3B), and Vietnamese (1B) highlight how creators across the globe tapped into the demand for this content in their native language.
- The slime video appeal isn’t just for children. The top two influencers of 2018 not only saw an equal split when it comes to male to female viewers, but the majority of their views came from those in the 25-34 age group!
- Using Tubular’s exclusive Performance Insights tool, we can confirm that for the average length of slime videos on YouTube, the vast majority of views are for content between 10-15 minutes. However, a staggering 1.5B views were generated by content that lasted over 20 minutes, and that content attracted twice the platform average engagement rate.
There were three main categories of creators for the top ‘slime’ content on YouTube last year: influencers, media and entertainment publishers, and brands. Let’s take a look at each!
Influencers on YouTube Leading the Slime Trend
Influencers generated the overwhelming majority of views for slime content in 2018, with the top two attracting 2.1B of those views alone. The most-watched influencer was Isabella Stress who generated 1.1B views on YouTube in 2018 with an average V30 (that’s views within 30 days of publishing) of 2.8M. Such is the appeal of her content, her videos attracted 251M million views in October 2018 and her channel flew up the Tubular YouTube chart by 412 places to give her a top #100 position. By November 2018, she was the #1 global influencer in Entertainment on YouTube. Her most-watched video last year generated an incredible 367M views:
Following close behind is Tom Slime (almost certainly not his real name) who generated 1B views on YouTube in 2018 with an average V30 of 1.1M. His top video for last year drew in 215M views!
Media Companies Jump on Slime Videos Train
While influencers generated an average of 117K per video in 2018, media companies attracted an average of 546K views per video. So while there are far fewer uploads from these types of creators, the content they publish is resonating with the viewer. The most-watched media company for slime content was Troom Troom who held five of the top ten most-watched slime creators last year.
In total, Troom Troom properties generated a combined view count of 196.9M YouTube views, with DisneyChannelUK and Nickelodeon also picking up significant views for their slime uploads. For media and entertainment companies, the majority of views were generated from content between 10-15 minutes.
Brands on YouTube Yet to Enjoy Benefits of Slime Content
Although only a small percentage of brands got into the slime content game in 2018, Barbie, Polly Pocket, GoldieBlox, and Num Noms all generated respectable views on YouTube for specific videos focused on slime. However, we can confirm that views around video duration varied compared to influencers and media publishers, with the average being much shorter:
Also, we noted that there was little activity around sponsored video although omnipresent Ryan ToysReview did partner with brands like Mattel to create 29 sponsored videos around slime in 2018. This particular sponsored video generated over 6.4M sponsored video views for the toy brand:
Only 140 sponsored videos around slime were created and published in 2018 — that’s a huge opportunity for brands to partner with publishers and influencers to reach a more targeted audience! It’s a global evergreen phenomenon and all types of creators still have the opportunity to generate significant views and engagements in 2019.