Ranking of Japanese influencers and their collaboration on Youtube 2019

With the increasing presence of Japanese influencers, social networking sites and blogs are becoming more common in Japan. It has become possible to gather information by selecting only “information that you like” and “information that interests you” while blocking unnecessary information.

Japanese influencers significantly impact a particular genre, so tweeting on Twitter, sending out messages on YouTube, and posting on Instagram have a considerable influence and dissemination power.

Therefore, more and more Japanese influencers are taking advantage of this to promote their services and products. More and more marketing techniques are being used to deepen awareness of products and services with influencers’ help.

For example, it was common to sell products and services using TV and other media and online advertising. Still, nowadays, we often ask influencers to spread the word and do PR using social media (SNS).

Related article: What is SNS in Japan? | Meaning and popular Apps ranking in 2019

This is called influencer marketing, and its impact on the market is increasing.

Influencer marketing is evolving every day, and what was common knowledge two or three years ago may already be insane. Marketers need to update their understanding of influencers continually.

Related article: Top Japanese Social Media Apps: Demographics of 7 Major Apps in 2020

Japanese influencers and YouTube

YouTubers are probably the most representative of influencers. These are the people who are seen on TV these days, but they are the ones who are most registered on YouTube.

Related article: Top Japanese YouTubers By Categories 2020: Gaming, Beauty, Cosmetic

BitStar, a provider of total influencer marketing solutions, has released its data, Japanese Influencer Power Ranking 2019, which is independently compiled in Influencer Power Ranking (IPR). The rankings are broken down into four categories: total number of channel views per year, number of video views, number of new channel subscribers, and number of tie-in video views.

The results of this year’s rankings are as follows.

Japanese influencers’ total channel views ranking in 2019

No. 1 Tokai On Air (東海オンエア)

Tokai On Air comes in at number one. A six-member group based in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture, is a creator channel that attracts viewers with its “overwhelming personality and planning power.”

The total number of views is close to 1 billion, making it the channel with the most views in 2019, up from third place last year.

On January 10 of this year, the members also released the movie “Tomorrow, in a World Without You” on January 10, and they are expanding their activities at a fast pace.

No. 2 Takiron (タキロン)

In second place is “Takiron.” This is a large channel representing the leading kids’ channel that posts high-frequency videos of colorful toys moving in time slots.

Although it didn’t make it into the top 10 last year, it has over 970 million views in 2019, just ahead of No. 1 Tokai On Air, and it’s truly an “explosive growth” channel.

No. 3 Fischer’s (フィッシャーズ)

Third place goes to Fischer’s – Fischer’s. They are the creators of a seven-member group formed by their classmates from junior high school.

After that, fans are impressed by the members’ bravery in taking on and clearing various challenges, sometimes with their fans.

In 2019, they also became the first Japanese creators to win the Streamy Award/Asia Pacific category at the Streamy Awards 2019, also known as the Academy Awards for online video. Stay tuned for more of their challenges in the future.

Japanese influencers’ video views rankings for 2019

No. 1 Takiron, “Spider-Man: Iron Man, Captain America, and the Marvel Avengers raid the red spore block box.” (タキロン “スパイダーマン アイアンマン キャプテン・アメリカ マーベルアベンジャーズが赤いスポスポブロックボックスに突入”)

In the first place is “Spider-Man: Iron Man, Captain America, Marvel Avengers plunge into a red spore block box” from “Takiron.” With frame shots, fun sound effects, and unpredictable character movements, what happens next? And the creative structure built into the film is evident in how children can’t help but look at it.

No. 2 Official Bearded Man dism, “Pretender (Official 髭男 dism, “Pretender”)

In second place is “Pretender” from “Official Bearded Man dism.” It became the first time for Reiwa to be ranked No. 1 in the “Number of Views by Work Sales Category” in the Oricon Annual Streaming Ranking 2019 for the period, and its performance at the Kohaku Utah Festival for the first time also became a hot topic.

Furthermore, many Japanese influencers covered a cover video, including ‘Asaginiyo’ and ‘Mafumafu,’ and the overseas professional a cappella team ‘Pentatonix,’ making it an indeed ‘Influenced’ video.

No. 3 King Gnu Official YouTube Channel, “Hakujitsu” (King Gnu Official YouTube Channel,”白日”)

Third place goes to “Hakujitsu” from the King Gnu Official YouTube Channel. The song gained recognition as a newly written theme song for a drama, and the visual beauty of the music video and the seven-colored voice were a big hit.

Therefore, like No. 2 Pretender, the song spread further through cover videos by all kinds of Japanese influencers. It became an essential topic of conversation on social media, including the first appearance on the Kohaku Uta Gassen and the members’ unique characters.

Japanese influencers’ new channel subscriber rankings for 2019

No. 1 ARASHI (ARASHI)

In first place is “Arashi,” the national idol group Arashi, whose activities were announced to be suspended after 2020, created an official YouTube channel on August 21, 2019, and surprisingly, the number of subscribers increased at an unprecedented rate, with the number of subscribers exceeding one million the next day.

For instance, the above video includes some rough scenes in which we can see the members’ faces, which has caused a storm of joy among fans. It will be interesting to see how they will perform this year as there’s less than a year left until they go on hiatus.

No.2 Mrs. GREEN APPLE (Mrs.GREEN APPLE)

The second place went to Mrs. GREEN APPLE, a new generation rock band that has been together for only two years and made their major-label debut. They are a new generation rock band that created their major debut just two years after forming.

Many people are fascinated by the unique worldview created by vocalist Motoki Omori, who wrote songs since he was in the sixth grade. The band has the highest number of registrations for a rock band that started posting in 2019.

No. 3 Human Bug University (ヒューマンバグ大学)

The third place went to “Human Bug University.” The creator of “manga content” ranked in the top 3 for the first time in the Japanese Influencer Power Ranking.

This video’s theme is, “What happens to humans when they are cornered?” A variety of content is frequently posted to stimulate the viewers’ desire to know. With titles that grab viewers’ attention and the 2-split thumbnails, the number of views is stable!

Japanese influencers’ collaboration video views ranking for 2019

A marketing method gaining attention with Japanese influencers is YouTuber collaboration advertising, which uses popular YouTubers (YouTubers) for advertising on the video-sharing site YouTube. Companies ask YouTubers to create videos to promote their products and brands, and this has been overgrowing in Japan since 2015.

Until 2014, companies’ requests considering YouTuber tie-up ads tended to be concentrated on the extremely popular “star YouTubers.”

However, recently, the average number of views of a video has dropped by half from 260,000 in 2014 to 130,000 the following year, which shows that the number of requests from companies is increasing even for mid-tier YouTubers who are not as famous as the stars, and this is helping to expand the YouTuber tie-up ad market.

No. 1 KNIVES OUT (荒野行動)

The most-viewed tie-in product on YouTube continues to be “KNIVES OUT,” as it was last year. In 2020, we will be featuring the entertainment series “Eiji Kirizaki,” whose family videos are also popular, as well as “Eizi Kirizaki,” a subchannel of “Hajimashachou,” which has been a top-ranked channel for the year since last year.

Eiji Kirizaki” and “Hajime Shoucho 2,” the sub-channel of “Hajime Shoucho,” which has been at the top of the annual channel total views rankings since last year, and a wide range of video game YouTubers will be regularly distributing tie-in videos. The total number of views has exceeded 110 million. We can’t wait to see what they’ll do this year.

No.2 Molly Fantasy (モーリーファンタジー)

The second place went to “Molly Fantasy” by AEON Fantasy Inc. Japanese influencers such as “Hanemari Channel” and “Himahima Channel,” which are geared toward the elementary school generation, drove the number of views.

These were driven by elementary school-age influencers such as “Hanemari Channel” and “Himahima Channel,” which feature multiple creators with a strong affinity for each other and provide immensely popular content.

No. 3 Simeji (Simeji)

In third place is the smartphone dress-up app “Simeji,” a project featuring “Tokai On Air,” the No. 1 channel in total views in 2019, with a collaborative design with member “Shibayuu,” whose system allows users to enjoy the creator’s face and voice every time they use the app.

They have also cast many other popular creators in the project and are running a large scale promotion for young people.

The next trend of Japanese influencer is Youtuber.

In conclusion, in the past, the mainstream trend was “from YouTube to the mass media,” with Japanese influencers who gained popularity on YouTube appearing on TV.

Recently, however, the opposite trend has been increasing, with celebrities setting up channels on YouTube. In the rankings, Mrs. GREEN APPLE (673,000 viewers), model Nicole Fujita (606,000), and comedian Meisei Shimobori (422,000) were ranked second, fifth, and ninth, respectively.

Edamame Digital Marketing Japan can help your social media advertising through Youtube. Please feel free to contact us for more information.