One of the breakout creators on YouTube in 2023 was Pink Shirt Couple. Their channel saw the second greatest overall growth of any US channel last year and saw the largest growth in US-based subscribers.
In 2023, Pink Shirt Couple tripled their YouTube subscriber count relative to 2022, growing to 20M subs. And that’s just YouTube. On TikTok, the creators have generated just under 4M followers and 91M likes.
So, who are Pink Shirt Couple, and what’s making their content so successful? The secret lies in authentic, family-friendly, entertaining short-form content with a unique take on couple life.
They wear matching outfits every day, hence the unique name.
The Rise of Pink Shirt Couple: How to Succeed in Content Creation
Pink Shirt couple, real names Cayden Christianson and Alyssa Eckstein, crossed paths in college in February 2021. Both were creating content online: Christianson was sharing Airsoft adventures, and Eckestein was showcasing her braiding skills. It was at college that they discovered a shared dream of creating content as a couple.
The pair gradually built a following that allowed them to pursue this dream full-time by summer 2021. From mastering analytics to honing their editing skills, they approached content creation with clear intent, a learning mindset, and determination.
After attending VidCon in June 2022, Pink Shirt Couple was inspired to make a strategic shift, focusing on consistently posting short-form content on YouTube.
Ditching TikTok re-uploads for original YouTube Shorts proved to be a game-changer, propelling them to an astounding 20 million subs at the time of writing.
But how did they achieve such phenomenal growth? Arizona-based Pink Shirt Couple credits their success to two key principles:
1. Create a Community Around Your Channels:
Embrace positive interactions, both online and offline. The couple initiated a Discord server, fostering a sense of community among their followers. They also set up a merch store to foster those personal connections with their followers. Offline, they became visible in their local community, expressing gratitude to supporters and contributing through donations and visits.
2. Let Your Personality Shine Through Your Content:
Be authentic and embrace what makes you unique. Pink Shirt Couple advises creators to appreciate and develop their individuality and steer well clear of imitating other creators. With their distinct personalities complementing each other, Cayden and Alyssa created content that felt relatable, silly, and endearing to their fans.
Pink Shirt Couple: Top Performing Short-form Content
With 8M views, Pink Shirt Couple’s most popular YouTube Short is a thank you to their fans for 1.6M subscribers. The video subjects Alyssa to a leg wax as the counter hits the milestone. The video has generated an astonishing 319M views, and 8M engagements.
On TikTok, this hilarious prank call that sets Target and Walmart against each other generated over 58M views, and over 9M engagements.
@pinkshirtcouple You have no idea how many tries this took to get them to answer at the same time and then this is the result😳 #prankcall #prank #chimehasyourback ♬ Girls Want Girls – Drake
Lessons for Creators from Pink Shirt Couple
Aspiring creators, take note: building a community and showcasing your authentic self, alongside publishing engaging and consistent content, are the keys to thriving in the digital landscape. Pink Shirt Couple is living proof that developing a unique idea, your own production style, and dedicating different resources to different video platforms go a long way to building a strong platform for future success.
They are also building their presence into a brand, a solid business that allows them to earn revenue with sponsored video deals (with Barbie and State Farm, among others), merchandise sales, and channel memberships. As a business model, they are a great example of how to establish a brand around social video content.
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