Welcome to our rundown of the most-watched branded YouTube videos of the week.
We’re publishing this snippet of a larger Gospel Stats Weekly Brand Report in order to analyze sponsorship trends in the creator economy. Any video launched in tandem with an official brand partner is eligible for the ranking.
And – as the name up above would imply – all the data comes from Gospel Stats. If you’re interested in learning more about Gospel – and which brands are sponsoring what creators on YouTube – click here.
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While tallying up data for our latest Gospel Stats Weekly Brand Report, we realized that this is the biggest week we’ve seen so far. There were 2,536 sponsored videos published on YouTube during the week of Nov. 25-Dec. 1–more than in any other week we tracked previously. This surge is thanks to the upcoming winter holidays: it’s the single biggest time of the year for ad spend, and with creator-led marketing continuing to grow, we’re not surprised many brands are choosing to invest their ad dollars in sponsored content.
Check out this week’s Top 5 Branded Videos right here:
#1 Beat Ronaldo, Win $1,000,000
Channel: MrBeast
Brand: Yahoo Sports
Views: 137,022,798
Soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo said he wanted his long-teased collab with MrBeast to “break the internet.” And it did; Ronaldo’s upload featuring the duo has nabbed nearly 54 million views since it went up Nov. 21. Now it’s MrBeast’s turn. His video from their meetup went live Nov. 30, and takes spot #1 on our Weekly Brand Report with a whopping 137 million views. In traditional MrBeast fashion, the 22-minute upload is a competition with cash on the line. The video’s sponsor, Yahoo Sports, chimed in with its own giveaway: Anyone who signed up for the Yahoo Sports app in the 10 days after the video went live could get a shot at winning a meet-and-greet with MrBeast–and $10,000.
#2 My New Satellite Can Take Your Selfie From Space
Channel: Mark Rober
Brand: T-Mobile
Views: 8,300,790
Mark Rober loves to put things in space, and his latest thing in space is SATGUS, named after the runaway star of his backyard squirrel Olympics series. SATGUS launches in about a month, and when it does, Rober’s fans will be able to go to its official website and request that it take a “selfie” of them when it’s over their coordinates. The satellite was built in partnership with Rober’s headquarters/STEM subscription box company CrunchLabs, and lets anyone around the world file a request with space.crunchlabs.com. All they have to do is upload a picture of themself, put in their location, and SATGUS will snap a photo from space as it swings by, then arrange the person’s photo over their “Earth selfie.” This 24-minute video is a space enthusiast’s dream, showing the science behind Rober’s project, the build process, and how it’ll work once it’s in orbit. The video is (appropriately) sponsored by telecom T-Mobile, which we’ve noticed is becoming more active on YouTube lately. Over the last few weeks, it’s regularly sponsored YouTube-exclusive livestreams of Saturday Night Live‘s opening monologues–something we’re keeping a close eye on.
#3 I Tested 1-Star Theme Parks (again)
Channel: Ryan Trahan
Brand: Shopify
Views: 8,051,012
Ryan Trahan is back at the world’s (potentially) worst theme parks, and he’s taking us all along to see if 1-star locations are as riddled with ride problems, raw food, and maybe just a little tetanus as the online reviews make them seem. This is only Trahan’s second video about theme parks, but it’s one of several videos he’s made lately about various businesses with 1-star reviews–or even zero reviews. After making a major splash with his penny series, Trahan has spent the past year opting for lower-key content that often profiles small businesses. And clearly it’s paying off with viewers: this episode has over 8 million views, which we’re sure pleased sponsor Shopify.
#4 GAMER GIRL Won’t SHOW HER FACE In School | Dhar Mann Studios
Channel: Dhar Mann Studios
Brand: Dragon City
Views: 4,521,036
Dhar Mann Studios is no stranger to our Weekly Brand Reports. Known for its long videos stocked with life lessons, the studio regularly hits our list–and the sponsor of this week’s episode, Dragon City, is also a frequent flyer. The mobile game has sponsored numerous Dhar Mann Studios videos before, and this week alone sponsored six videos from other creators high on the list, including one from kids’ entertainment channel SML (#13), one from Pokémon enthusiast WolfeyVGC (#24), and one from The Game Theorists (#105).
BONUS #2,393 Making a BEAST of a 3D Printed RC Tank with Dual Speed Gearbox
Channel: How To Mechatronics
Brand: Onshape
Views: 30,857
Like we mentioned above, there were more sponsored videos published on YouTube this week than any week we’ve tracked previously–and the videos toward the end of the list are still bringing in tens of thousands of views. One of YouTube’s biggest pluses is how it allows niche hobbyists to build communities around their passions, and How to Mechatronics is an excellent example. His latest video follows the birth of a beast: an RC tank that churns over rough terrain with an impressive gear shift system. Robotics projects like cage-fighting robots and custom RCs (aka radio-controlled units) have been a mainstay on nerdy TV for decades, but YouTube allows for a deeper look at how these creations come to life. It also allows creators to connect their audiences with brands in their wheelhouse–like this video’s sponsor, product development platform Onshape.
…and there’s a lot more data where that came from. If you’re interested in learning more about Gospel – and which brands are sponsoring what creators on YouTube – click here.
