Behind the Prime Hydration phenomenon | WARC | The Feed

Behind the Prime Hydration phenomenon

An energy drink brand launched by two YouTubers has generated extraordinary levels of interest and significant sales among a target audience of tweens and teens, but is it about anything more than playground FOMO? 

Why it matters

The Prime brand managed to make $250m in its first year and is on track to double that in its second, so that in itself is worthy of note. Admittedly, those figures come from one of the influencers selling it, so can perhaps be taken with a pinch of salt, but the social media videos of shoppers scrambling for limited supplies are real enough.

It’s also a good example of popular social media influencers using not only their follower base (in this case the combined 39 million of Logan Paul and KSI) to engage with a target audience but also YouTube’s own algorithmic networks to further increase the numbers of that audience.

“Their win may form something of a blueprint for other content creators as YouTubers become more professional and look to harness the platform’s algorithm for their commercial success,” suggests Hantian Zhang, senior lecturer in media at Sheffield Hallam University. 

Takeaways 

• Zhang explains in The Conversation how famous YouTubers dominate the platform’s recommendation algorithm, making their videos more visible, which in turn results in more similar content being recommended to viewers. 
• By inviting other well-known YouTubers to sample their new drink in their own videos, Logan Paul and KSI increased the likelihood of YouTube’s algorithm recommending further Prime-related content to viewers.
• Both YouTubers also responded to fans’ comments and questions about the drink, increasing engagement. 
• Concerns have been raised about the levels of caffeine in Prime Energy and whether the electrolytes in Prime Hydration are suitable for children.

Final thought 

Many children have their own social media accounts, even those who are supposed to be too young to have one. And they tend to have a very different relationship with influencers than an older generation. “They follow them, understand the algorithms, they are learning from them. [Because] they think that they can do it, younger kids are smarter than a marketing executive,” PR executive Mark Borkowski told the Financial Times.

Sourced from The Conversation, Financial Times, YouTube, Wales Online, WSOC-TV

[Image: Prime]