The Haunting of Sunshine Girl premiered in December of 2010 – a collaboration between Sunshine and her mom, Mercedes Rose. She tells me, “My mom and I had been wanting to work on a project together for awhile.” Nick Hagen, a friend and also director of the show, collaborated with the mother-daughter team to bring the production to life. The series is shot at Hagen’s house, and features Sunshine and Rose as mother and daughter, and chronicles the “paranormal activity” in the house.

When I asked Sunshine to clarify what’s real and what’s not about the series, she told me, “We call our style ‘fictional unscripted reality’ …because it is very much a reality show. I am so being me! And my mom and I have very much that relationship you see on the show. We all come up with the storyline, Nick directs and does most of the editing and I do the social media. Mom does most of the marketing.” How much of the “paranormal activity” is real? Well… you’ll just have to watch and judge for yourself.

Surprisingly, Sunshine tells me, “I hadn’t even WATCHED YouTube before we started the channel! In fact, none of us really had. We just knew it was a growing medium for storytelling, and it would fit the ‘documentary’ style we were shooting the show in.”

Now, two and half years later, Sunshine has gone from being a YouTube novice to aYouTube expert. I asked her what advice she’d offer those looking to become successful on YouTube. She told me, “The key to YouTube is creating innovative, unique content, consistently. So many people just turn on a camera, rant about something and throw it up on YouTube and think it will go viral. Storyline is still a new medium on YouTube so there is a learning curve for all of us – the creators, the viewers, even Youtube! Have fun, make great videos regularly, use good tags, titles and thumbnails, and ignore the naysayers and trolls!”

So what’s up with all the names? Depending upon where you look, you may see Sunshine’s name listed as Sunshine, Frances Jones or Paige McKenzie. I asked Sunshine, what’s up with that? “I always went by Sunshine,” she told me, “and kept my real name out of it. If you saw some of the email I get you would understand why! After a few months, as the channel got more popular, fans began to really search for my name. So in desperation, I released a video saying my real name was Frances Jones. And it worked. Fans calmed down and stopped trolling the internet looking to discover my name. But with the announcement of the Seventeen Magazine Pretty Amazing finalist, the name Paige McKenzie is finally out. Most people still call me Sunshine!”

Founded by Adam Winnick, Kevin Stone and YouTube celeb Elle Walker, Subblime capitalizes on the fact that many popular YouTubers are already pushing their favorite products to fans and gives them a way to further monetize on this fact.

Winnick told Sam Gutelle of Tubefilter, “Subblime creates an authentic and actionable relationship between subscriber and creator oriented around products. Fans frequently inquire about YouTube influencers’ favorite things and now Subblime can help facilitate community and commerce around these curiosities. We’re already seeing off the chart click through rates and engagement from our beta testing.”

The site gives YouTube creators the opportunity to create lists of their favorite things, complete with photos, recommendations and calls-to-action to ‘Get It’ or ‘Fave It’. The screenshot below of Elle Walker’s, aka WhatsUpElle‘s, Subblime profile will give you an idea of how it works:

A partner page on the Subblime website states, “We are working almost exclusively with YouTube channels affiliated with the largest multi-Channel Networks.” YouTubers interested in becoming Subblime partners can contact the company here. Merchants or brands looking to spread the word about their products are also invited to contact the company to pitch YouTube influencers about why their product is special and why they should introduce it to their audiences via Subblime.

The statement that the company is working almost exclusively with channels affiliated with big networks implies that only the biggest YouTubers will be accepted, but I’ve reached out to the company for more info on what criteria YouTubers need to meet in order to become partners. I will update this post with whatever I hear.

Update [June 18, 2013, 10:31pm ET]: A spokesperson for the company confirmed, “We are looking to influencers who could most benefit from the platform, so likely those generating revenues on YouTube would be ideal fits for Subblime.” Ultimately, though, the company isn’t limiting itself to YouTube, but “could be for traditional celebrities and influencers of all kinds.” They have started with YouTube though because YouTubers “have the most engaged audiences and their fans have organic curiosities around product.”

What do you think about this new service? Is it something you’d like to use to share your favorite things with your subscribers? Something you’d join to find out what your favorite YouTubers are recommending? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

A group of students at Columbia College Chicago analyzed the 240 most-subscribed to channels on YouTube in an attempt to answer these questions and more in their 2013 YouTube Study. Their findings, which have been compiled into a massive 175-page document, may not give you all the answers but they’re certainly a step in the right direction towards finding out what (outside of awesome content, of course) makes a YouTube channel successful.

Wojciech Lorenc, assistant professor at Columbia College, reveals some of the findings in a post on ReelSEO, reporting that on average the top YouTube creators:

• Edit their videos down to 4 minutes 19 seconds
• Upload 1.25 videos per week
• Speak at a rate of 150 words per minute
• Edit at a rate of 9 cuts per minute
• Type 56.6 words in the video description
• Post on their Facebook pages at the rate of 0.7 posts per day and tweet at the rate of 2.93 tweets per day

The students that helped out with the study, including Chanel Armstrong, Courtney Aubrecht, Gabriel Gitlevich, Quinton Hampton, Melinda Heaney, Adan Hernandez, Danielle Lucovich and Leland Tellefsen, also break things down by genre and offer analysis and insight into the specific behaviors of some of the top creators, including The Fine Brothers, Sxephil, Shaycarl, Vsauce, Shane Dawson, Annoying Orange, Jenna Marbles and more.

Of course, I think it’s important to remember that content is, first and foremost, what makes or breaks a YouTube channel. Great content rises to the top while “meh” content gets lost in the shuffle (after all, there are over 4 days worth of video uploaded to YouTube every minute). That being said, it’s definitely interesting to take a look at the specifics of how these top creators are doing things.

Download the full study, check it out and let us know what you think!

YouTube now has over 75 million Facebook fans and, to celebrate, they’ve put together a playlist of videos that their Facebook fan base has shared most over the years. The 20-video playlist includes everything from Rewind YouTube Style - YouTube’s own look back at the top videos of 2012, Psy’s ‘Gentleman’, trick shots, cute puppies, and more.

You can check out the full playlist in the embedded player below, or click here to view a list of all the videos. Have you shared any of these videos on Facebook over the years?

Oli posts videos to his YouTube channel, OliWhiteTV, where he currently has 157,700 subscribers and over 4.4 million video views. Last month he was selected as one of YouTube’s Next Vloggers of 2013 – an elite group of YouTubers, handpicked by YouTube and rewarded with production equipment, industry expert training, and the opportunity to collaborate. He tells me, “I’ve been making videos for a couple of years now but only recently started taking it seriously and treating it like a business.”

Things really began to take off for Oli in September of last year, when he tells me he received a call from Base79, the EMEA-based YouTube network that represents him. They told him about a great opportunity to travel around the world presenting for Guinness World Records. He auditioned, got the gig and embarked on an amazing adventure, travelling around the world meeting the world’s fastest sheep, seeing the world’s largest pizza and the burger with the most calories, and even setting a record of his own. “That’s right,” he says, “I’m the fastest in the world at eating a doughnut without licking my lips or using my hands!”

Oli is now creating content for Volvic Water as well:

If you’re thinking about beginning to take YouTube more seriously and treating making videos as a business, Oli says, “The YouTube Creator Playbook is brilliant and will teach you everything you need to know about YouTube. You also need to be different. No one is going to watch you if you’re doing something someone has done already.”

Despite the fact that Oli is now making a living through YouTube, he doesn’t recommend doing YouTube solely for money. “The main bit of advice I give everyone is if you’re doing it because you want money or to become ‘famous’, don’t do it because that’s the wrong attitude and people will see that. Do it because you love it.”

Check out Sparky Sweets, “reppin’ the 1%”, in the video below and let us know what you think.

According to a tweet from Sparky Sweets last week, To Kill A Mockingbird is up next. What other classic literature would you like to see Thug Notes take on?

The idea for the project arose from the fact that Gloria and her boyfriend, Derp, don’t embody the image of a “perfect couple” by traditional beauty standards.  Gloria told me via email, “My boyfriend and I get weird stares out in public and even hate online,” and she’s heard from many of her subscribers that they’ve dealt with the same thing. ”The Beauty Adjustment Collaboration started because girls and guys feel like they have to fit a certain standard to be with someone that society calls ‘attractive’ when beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder.”

Gloria launched The Beauty Adjustment, a collaborative video project featuring herself, her boyfriend, and subscribers that are dealing with, have dealt with, or can commiserate with those facing similar issues, speaking about beauty, love and why traditional standards need to go.

The project started with an “Advice Friday” video posted back in April, in which Gloria shared her own thoughts on beauty and introduced her idea for a collaborative video:

The following Friday, Gloria shared a script with her viewers and invited them to record a video of themselves reciting the script, adding their own story into the mix, to share with her to be included in the project:

Finally, Gloria cut the submissions together into The Beauty Adjustment Collaboration:

The video, which was uploaded last month on May 11, has racked up over 12,000 views so far as well as a whole slew of positive comments. YouTuber xshabootiex says, “Gloria, I don’t know how much you realize this, but you are making a huge mark in this world, for everyone that sees your videos, you make them feel awesome. Thank you for these, I can speak for all your fans when I say that you have the biggest heart and we love you.”

It’s pretty awesome that Gloria is using her influence on YouTube not only to entertain, but also to help people, and we’re looking forward to seeing what other sorts of projects The Beauty Adjustment may inspire throughout the YouTube community.

Last month Gloria was selected as one of YouTube’s Next Vloggers of 2013 and I had the opportunity to speak with her about that as well, so stay tuned for that interview as well.

In the same way that Quirk Classics puts a more “modern” spin on classic literature with revamped versions of novels like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Android Karenina and Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Sparky Sweets brings Dostoevsky to the streets, putting his own spin on the classic tale of “C & P.”

But stay tuned after Sparky Sweets finishes rehashing the plot, because it gets really awesome when he starts talking about the novel’s themes (or “peepin’ motifs” as it were). “You best be lookin’ out for Dostoevsky’s use of duality up in this heezy.” I think the Thug Notes’ tag line says it best: “Classical Literature. Original Gangster.”

Check out the first episode below and let us know what you think. According to a tweet from Sparky Sweets, The Great Gatsby and To Kill a Mockingbird are coming up next. After those, what classic books would you like to see Thug Notes dissect?

If you’re anything like me, you’ve waited until the absolute last minute to set up your new YouTube One Channel so we’ve  put together a quick last minute guide to help you make sure you’re ready to go when the new design launches across all channels.

Before we get to our guide – a quick note from Allison Bransfield, Product Specialist, who writes about the benefits of the new design on the YouTube Creator blog:

“Channels that have already made the switch are experiencing several benefits. Their branding shines through in more places because Channel Art is visible on iOS apps, Android apps and TV. For the channels that have opted in, we’ve seen 20% more page views on their channels because clicks from the YouTube guide go directly to their channel pages instead of to their activity feeds.”

And now… To the guide!

First things first – you’ll have to enable the YouTube One Channel on your account, if you haven’t already. When you go to your channel, you’ll probably see a popup asking you if you want to switch to the new channel. If you don’t see it, just head over to your Channel Settings page and click ‘Get the new design’.

Once that’s done, it’s time to design and upload your channel art. Things get a little wonky here, since you’ll have to upload a graphic that is large enough that it’ll work on TV, in addition to desktop and mobile – but don’t freak out! You can totally do it and, if you can’t, YouTube offers some pretty nice built-in images that you can use for your header.

So in the top right corner of the gray banner area that should now appear on your page you’ll see a little pencil icon. Click on that and choose ‘Edit channel art’.

You’ll have the option to choose an image from YouTube’s Gallery, upload an image, or select from photos in your Google Plus account (if you happen to have your Google Plus account connected to YouTube). Note that in order to use an image it has to be 2120 x 1192 pixels and, ideally, should be 2560 x 1440 pixels.

Now here’s where things get a little complicated. On mobile and desktop a small portion of this image will show as a banner at the top of your page. On TV screens, the entire image will show. For this reason, it’s important to put a little thought into how you want this image to appear on all platforms, and make sure to fit all the pertinent information into the section of the image that will show on smaller devices.

If you’re using an abstract image or simple photo this should be less difficult – but if you want to include graphics and text in your banner you’ll have to put some work into where all the different elements are placed. YouTube has provided the following specifications for making channel art to help you out:

It’s important to note that, while you can ‘Adjust the crop’ slightly after you upload your image, it doesn’t work the same way as a Facebook Cover does, where you can move the image around to position it in any way you want. You’re pretty restricted to the format in the above image, so it’s important to stick to YouTube’s specs.

Once you’ve designed and uploaded your channel art, YouTube will show you a preview of what it will look like on the three different platforms. Note that on desktop, as users resize their browser window it will change the way the banner looks so you may have to play around with your design a little before you get it too look just right.

Once you’re satisfied with your design, it’s time to get all your social and custom links set up. Click on the pencil icon on your banner again, and choose ‘Edit Links’. From here you’ll be able to add custom links, as well as links to all of your social channels. Note that up to 4 social links and 1 custom link (which could be your website, a link to Subscribe to your YouTube channel, etc.) will show as overlays on your channel header.

Here’s what my channel header looks like once the channel art and links are taken care of:

Once that’s all set, you can add a trailer video to your channel that will play when viewers who have not yet subscribed to your channel visit. Ideally, this will be a video that tells people about what they can expect for your channel and why they should subscribe, but in the meantime clicking the ‘+ Channel Trailer’ button will let you choose any of your videos to display here, so if you don’t have a trailer ready, just pick one of your best videos.

Of course, there are a lot of other little things you can (and should) do with the new channel design, but this should be good enough to get you ready for the change-over on Wednesday.

In the coming days and weeks I’ll be updating you with more info on how to set up and get the most out of the YouTube One Channel, so stay tuned! And feel free to leave a link and share your YouTube One Channel design with us in the comments below!

For more information and examples, check out YouTube.com/OneChannel.

20-year old Elly has been making YouTube videos about technology, and more specifically apps and gaming, since 2010. Last month, she was selected as one of fifteen YouTubers to be a part of the Next Vlogger program–an elite group of vloggers, hand selected by YouTube to receive special training, production equipment, and the opportunity to collaborate.

I asked Elly to tell me about how she got started making YouTube videos. She told me, “I’ve been watching YouTube videos since around 2007. I would always share them with my friends and admired how people making these videos by themselves could be so entertaining. I love to make other people happy and I wanted to be a part of the YouTube community and entertain people too.

“I’ve had multiple YouTube channels over the years trying to find my niche. One day I saw other people making videos about technology on YouTube and in 2010 I made ‘AppChat’ where I talked about awesome apps you could get for the iPod Touch. At the time my iPod Touch was my favorite piece of technology and because I was a young teen with not a lot of money I would search for my favorite free apps (games) to download. I shared my favorite apps through YouTube videos and at this time apps were just starting to become a big thing (and I was passionate about talking about them) so I think that’s why I gathered a following.”

Over the years, Elly has built up a reputation with her app reviews and technology videos and says, “These days I get multiple emails every day with requests from developers to review their apps.”

Since the early days of AppChat, Elly has branched out to product reviews, general vlogging about life and skits, and she’s even dabbled in rapping (as you can see in this awesome music video about the ’90s):

It’s pretty evident from all of Elly’s videos that she’s having a lot of fun and she’s really passionate about what she’s doing. When I asked her what advice she’d give someone looking to start vlogging she said, “Make sure you’re enjoying what you’re doing and not just trying to achieve fame or recognition! When I first started making YouTube videos I didn’t show my face and I wasn’t quite as enthusiastic but you just need to start.”

It may be difficult at first, she says, but as you begin making videos you’ll improve your shooting and editing skills and gain confidence on camera. “It’s all just practice and experimenting. But I will say this – put some lights on! Good lighting makes all the difference between a good and bad looking video.”

Check out more of Elly’s videos below or head over to YouTube.com/AppChat to subscribe and watch them all!