VidCon: Brands and YouTubers must find middle ground

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Fans cheer as their favorite YouTube stars from Our2ndLife arrive for a photo and autograph session during the three-day VidCon convention at the Anaheim Convention Center. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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YouTube actors from left: Connor Franta, Sam Puttorff, Trevor Moran, a fan, Kian Lawley, Jc Caylen and Ricky Dillon, who star in the show Our2ndLife, pose for photos at VidCon. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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Our2ndLife YouTube stars Trevor Moran, left, Kian Lawley, Jc Caylen, Connor Franta and Sam Puttorff rally as they arrive to pose for photos and sign autographs. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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About 18,000 video content creators, viral video stars and their fans were expected to pack the Anaheim Convention Center for the 5th annual VidCon. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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YouTube star Ingrid Nilsen, right, of the YouTube show MissGlamorazzi, greets a fan. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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Vivi Munoz, 4, of Orange, dances in front of an artistic motion video screen at a silent disco booth where dancers used headphones to listen and dance to music. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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People play quidditch, a game featured in the Harry Potter series, during VidCon at the Anaheim Convention Center. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

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Fans Welcome YouTube star Ricky Dillon at VidCon, which is expected to draw about 18,000 people to the Anaheim Convention Center over three days. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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Ricky Dillon takes a selfie in front of the hundreds of fans that came to meet him at VidCon. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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Stevie Rajcic, Iris Norby and Maddy Lorenzo pass the time while waiting to see their YouTube heroes at the Anaheim Convention Center. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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About 18,000 video content creators, viral video stars and their fans are expected to pack the Anaheim Convention Center for the fifth annual VidCon. Above, disappointed fans react as time runs out for meeting their favorite YouTube stars. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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Connor Simon, 15, and Evan Duran, 16, both from Irvine, check out a camera at the convention. The growth in VidCon’s popularity is a testament to the success of online video content, especially among younger people who use websites as creative outlets. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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Abby Ceaglske and Zack Nelson, both 17, make a video of themselves at the Fullscreen booth at the Anaheim Convention Center. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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When VidCon began in 2010, the conference took place at a smaller venue in Los Angeles and drew in about 1,400 attendees. This year, it occupies two halls at the Anaheim Convention Center. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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People line up Thursday for VidCon at the Anaheim Convention Center. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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Jenna Ward, Neve Dispenza and Casey Flanagan rush across the Anaheim Convention Center floor for the line to see Ricky Dillon. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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A security agent directs some of the thousands of YouTube fans gathered at the Anaheim Convention Center. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

June 27, 2014 1:20 PM PT

A successful partnership between brands and YouTube stars depends on striking a balance, according to industry insiders at a VidCon panel Friday.

With the huge fan bases that YouTube stars amass, brands like Ford, RedBull and L’Oreal are increasingly turning to online video talent to forge new followers.

But the dynamic between independent video makers and large brands can get strained. That’s because the creators are often more loyal to their audiences than the brand.

When the brand doesn’t meld with the creator, it’s “like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole,” said Jeremy Scott of CinemaSins, the popular YouTube channel devoted to joking about movie flaws. About 2.4 million people subscribe to CinemaSins.

“Brands have to find content that is thematically tied to the same audience that they’re trying to reach,” said Luke Simmons, director of branded content for Electus Digital. Electus owns and operates a number of YouTube channels and websites including CollegeHumor.com.

Simmons offered two pieces of advice for brands: 1) Find content that is good enough to survive without the brand, and 2) Don’t be “uptight and serious” about the brand.

In other words, don’t make branded content feel like “a straight up commercial,” he said.

Creators like Devin Graham have total allegiance to their audiences.

Graham’s YouTube channel “DevinSuperTramp” has more than 2 million subscribers. It focuses on off-beat outdoor activities such as having a slip-and-slide on the side of a cliff.

“My audience is more important than any brand I’m ever going to get,” Graham said. If a brand’s idea of content doesn’t mesh with what his audience likes, “it’s not worth the risk,” he said.

Graham said brands and creators have to find a middle ground. To do that, creators have to be upfront from the onset about making content that will keep the audience happy, he said.

“That way it won’t feel like a commercial, and it will be real for an audience of YouTubers,” Graham said. “Social media people want it to feel authentic and real.”

Scott of CinemaSins put things a little more bluntly.

“You come into our house, get in on our party, but at the end of the day, I’m going to side with my fans,” he said.

Twitter: @madeline_oh