Children’s Online Video Consumption
In November Dubit’s head of research, Peter Robinson, presented at Ofcom’s UK children and parents – media use and attitudes seminar.
Dubit’s research focused on children’s online video consumption answering questions such as where do they do it, for how long, and what’s popular?
You can View the whole presentation below. Visit our contact page to get in touch if you have any questions about the study.
Youth Trends – Batmanning
Are you still planking? Get with the times! Nobody planks now, it’s all about Batmanning!
Definition – Batmanning: Hanging upside down from something by the strength of your feet and ankles.
Who’s doing it? Teens who grew board of planking, and wanted something edgier and more vertical.
What is it? Put simply, it’s vertical planking. Instead of lying flat like a plank, participants hang from bars and other random footholds – err just like a bat would. (Not to be confused with the “suddenly disappearing without a trace and then becoming unreachable” which, by the way, is another use for the verb Batmanning).
So who started it? The Lins Brothers from Milwaukee created the first Batmanning video which currently stands at 740,350 views on YouTube.
It’s a bit dangerous, isn’t it? Yep, falling right on the top of your head can do some damage. A quick search on YouTube will bring up plenty examples of failed Batmanning.
How hard can it be? Check out this video from three teenage girls and you will see how hard.
So they’re extreme sports guys? Not really; the rest of their videos pretty much just involve them miming to pop music while dancing around topless. They just seem to have got lucky with Batmanning.
Who should I watch? The Lins Brothers have really set the standard but the most popular Batmanning videos on YouTube are of Batmanning fails.
Will it last? It has a lot of competition. Following the rise of planking, we now have Owling (sitting on things like an owl), Leisure Diving (jumping in water while relaxing) and Horsemanning (pretending to be a separated body and head).
Carry on the debate on Twitter with the #dubittrends hashtag.
Youth Trends – Hauling
Teenage girls talking about their High Street bargains? No it isn’t the latest show to come to MTV, it’s a new youth trend taking over YouTube!
Definition - haul: In short: a shopping spree a vlog titled “Makeup Haul” or “(Store Name) Haul” is a video showing a shopping spree in that given area, showing products or clothing that will usually be featured in future How To, or tutorial videos. (Source Urban Dictionary)
Who’s doing it? –Teenage girls. It’s big in America and is a gaining momentum in the UK.
What is it? – The trend for teenage girls to show off their latest purchases through the medium of YouTube. Sometimes it’s bragging about bargains, reviewing clothes, or just showing the store bags they have and what’s inside.
So it’s an American thing? The biggest Haulers are American but it’s by no means unique to the US with UK teens getting involved too.
Are we talking about designer products? As most of the products are bought by the Haulers, it’s usually restricted to the High Street. Brands such as H&M and Forever 21 seem to attract most of the attention.
They’re being paid for this? No, not often: most just like to talk about their shopping. The fact that the girls are spending their own money adds to the charm.
Are brands involved at all? Some brands (mostly US ones) have started to see the benefit of targeting Haulers: these include Urban Outfitters , Forever 21 and cosmetics brand ELF. Some simply send the Haulers free products, others host Hauling competitions.
Does this sound familiar? It does. They are the female equivalent of the men unboxing videos they record themselves opening their latest gear or gadget.
Who should I watch? The Queen of the Haulers is Blair Fowler, otherwise known as JuicyStar07. Her videos attract over half a million views and she has been nominated for a Teen Choice Award, which she explains at a frantic pace in this video. Most Haulers don’t get close to this level of fame but you might want to check out UK based Dollybowbow and HollyYMBB who have 35,986 and 8,822 subscribers respectively.
Will it last? As long as there are teenage girls who enjoy shopping and making videos then this trend has legs.
Carry on the debate on Twitter with the #dubittrends hashtag.
