YouTube star Stas Davydov (“This is Хорошо”) to appear at Click&Connect, the only influencer marketing conference in the Baltics

Stas Davydov is one of the most popular celebrities among Russian-speaking YouTube audiences. Almost seven million people watch his comedy show This is Хорошо, and several million more follow Stas himself. This is Хорошо is also one of the oldest YouTube channels.

“When we started producing a YouTube show in 2010, none of us had any idea how things would turn out. You could say we were pioneers. My team and I were very happy about the first million views, and it was an unusual feeling when people began recognising me on public transport,” Stas recalls.

Over the course of ten years, Stas and the Machine Gun Media team have achieved incredible success—their show has been broadcast on several television channels and has received Runet awards for its contribution to the Russian internet; their channel has entered the top five of the world’s comedy shows, while their programmes have repeatedly become the most-watched on YouTube as a whole. Nevertheless, they are not resting on their laurels.

“The fact that we have managed to maintain high ratings for so long is a phenomenon, because rapid rises and equally rapid declines in popularity are typical of the YouTube environment. As new channels continue to appear, competition increases every day. In addition, many YouTube projects receive substantial investment and hire presenters who have already achieved popularity to attract audiences. These are carefully developed business projects with their own strategies and investors. Meanwhile, we have to work without respite and constantly keep up with trends. One of them is that YouTube videos are increasingly being watched on mobile devices,” Stas reveals.

The This is Хорошо team’s work has resulted not only in popularity and millions of views, but also in valuable cooperation agreements with brands such as Coca Cola, Procter&Gamble and others. The fee for a single product placement on the channel is approximately 4,000 euros; in the case of long-term cooperation, prices are negotiated individually.

“We do not work with the alcohol industry, bookmakers or unfamiliar brands. We carefully select our partners and spare no effort to integrate the advertised product into our content in the best possible way,” Stas says.

The YouTube star also skilfully monetises his own popularity: he has personal YouTube channels, profiles on the social networks Instagram, Twitter and Facebook with more than two million followers, as well as his own T-shirt shop. A crowdfunding project is also currently being developed.

At the Click&Connect conference, Stas will reveal the latest vlogging trends, explain how entrepreneurs can obtain the greatest return from the opportunities offered by YouTube channels, and discuss what cooperation models are possible with him and This is Хорошо.