Zero Punctuation and Niche Audiences

20th February 2015

Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw writes reviews of video games.

His reviews on YouTube have been viewed by over 18 million people. His latest video, released on the 18th February had over 100,000 views in under 10 hours. One of his January videos has had over 500,000 views.

Who are watching these reviews and why?

Ben was born in Britain but now resides in Australia. Back in 2007 he was writing for his own blog and would occasional review a video game. He wanted to try something different so with what he had on hand - Photoshop, Windows Video Maker and a headset, he put together a video review with stick figures. The combination of humour, quick delivery and visual gags made it a hit. Less than a month later Ben was hired by The Escapist online magazine to make a video like this every week. There are currently 188 videos by Ben you could watch on YouTube.

Here is an example. Warning - language.

This is not for everyone. I have watched some of his videos years ago, but I could not make it through this one. I am not his audience, I find him funny, but I am not a gamer and so some of the references fly over my head. But you can see how people would become fans. He is cynical, funny and talks about something they love.

With this sort of audience you can see why The Escapist pays Ben for his work. If you want to get your business in front of gamers, this is where you advertise. You could put an ad in your local paper and reach your local town, or on this website and put your business in front of 100,000 gamers worldwide in 10 hours.

Now your business does not need to be in front of gamers, but who does it need to be in front of? Can you create content that would get your customers coming back every week?

Takeaway

Your advertising dollars
- Where are you currently spending your money to promote your business?
- How many people listening to that radio ad or reading that paper need your services?
- How many people get the paper but don't need your services? How many people look right past your ad?
- Why not instead seek out your audience? Why not build your own fan base?
Content for niche communities
- What are you adding to your website for your customers?
- What information do they need and enjoy?
- What new photos or videos would they come back to your website for each week and tell their friends about?
- Could you create an audience of over 500,000 people each and every week?

Contact us to discuss how we can help your business get the most out of its online presence.