Wednesday, August 01, 2007

YouTube Star Esmee Masters Direct Marketing

First there were LonelyGirl15 and Amanda Congdon rising from obscurity to web fame. Now there's singer Esmee Denters, who has gone from singing into a webcam to opening for Justin Timberlake. Denters has proven that with enough talent and determination, even someone from a small town in the Netherlands can become a star in less than a year on YouTube.



Denters quickly gained an audience and grew it larger by taking e-mail requests for cover versions of tunes by today's most popular artists. This is responding to customers at its finest. Although she only spoke to her audience directly a few times in the past year, her videos rose to the top of YouTube and generated more than 21 million streams. Earlier this year she was signed to a record contract by Justin Timberlake and opened for him at several concerts in Europe. Not bad for an 18-year-old, eh?

Aside from American Idol, YouTube and MySpace are the vehicles from which tomorrow's singing and comedic stars will likely rise because they provide a platform for directly connecting with an audience.

Corporate blogs and discussion boards are less exciting versions of this, and perhaps video will be the next format. For example, if a company is getting a lot of returns of an item as being faulty because it's being used incorrectly, a video that shows how to properly use the product could greatly increase customer satisfaction. Or, a CEO responding with a vlog to a growing issue is much more personal than preparing a statement.

By John Gartner at 12:45 AM | Comments (0)

Post a Comment

Name:
Email:
WebSite:
Comment:
Remember Me
Subscribe