The Rise And Fall Of Vlogging

Rise of Vlogging:

Vlogging took over the internet for a combination of reasons, all of which came together to create a perfect storm of accessibility, personality-driven content, and the rise of YouTube that made it easy for anyone to share their lives. 

Popularity Boom

Vlogging saw a huge spike in the 2010s, which was mainly due to the success of YouTube as a platform. The invention of smartphones also gave viewers easier access to the app and simultaneously made filming content less challenging. Creators like Casey Neistat and David Dobrik gained massive followings by documenting their lives, traveling, and even featuring A-List celebrities in their videos. The main reason this type of content was so popular is because it showed the relatability of the people we followed and gave us a glimpse into their daily lives. It showed us the lives we all wanted to live.

Influence

As creators became more successful, vlogging became commercialized. Brands partnered with influencers for marketing campaigns, and YouTube introduced ad revenue, which led to full-time careers for many. Lifestyle vlogging became particularly popular due to the interest viewers had in the personal lives of creators, from their relationships to their daily routines. Our book, Essentials of Media Marketing, talks about how Casey Neistat partnered with Nike and promoted their brand in his vlogs, which ended up garnering more than 30 million views!

Decline of Vlogging:

As the popularity of vlogging grew, the quality of content decreased. More and more people started vlogging, and the uniqueness that videos once had started to diminish. It became harder for creators to stand out unless they had established their own style or were already well-known.

Burnout and Authenticity

Vloggers often faced burnout due to the pressure of constantly producing content. The appeal of authenticity began to feel more staged as creators worked to maintain their online personas. Audiences, too, started growing tired of the same type of content. The once relatable lifestyle vlogger became harder to believe as their lives became more scripted and commercial. Tactics to entice more people to watch videos, like clickbait, also made subscribers shrink away from vlogs because of the exaggeration put on videos that didn't meet those standards. Subscribers felt lied to and that the people they watched only cared about the money they'd get from their view. This kind of treatment all led to the decrease in viewership of certain Vloggers and Youtubers such as, the Paul Brothers and FouseyTube. 

Changing Audiences

The generation that experienced the peak of vlogging and YouTube was Gen Z and as we've grown, we have moved away from traditional vlogging and are drawn toward more meme-driven humor. Platforms like TikTok allowed people to create viral, engaging content in less time and with less opportunity to bait viewers into watching their videos.

I would argue that vlogging hasn't exactly died off completely, but that it has evolved into more curated, specialized content. The chapter even discussed that 44% of YouTube's most watched content is still vlogging, so the popularity of it still remains. I think that controversies between some of the most popular vloggers also put a damper on the traction vlogging once had because content halted due to hiatuses or completely retired from the public eye. With the rise of TikTok, and an emphasis on short binge-worthy content, the landscape of content has thoroughly shifted. Creators who were once part of the vlogging scene have adapted their content to fit newer trends specifically on Tik Tok. The fall of vlogging is more of a shift in how content is consumed and created and it focuses less on daily video length updates and more on short, attention-grabbing clips for people to enjoy.