Wouldn’t it be cool to make money just by being a full-time
Disney fan?
That’s what I thought on a hot sunny Sunday, sitting in my
South Florida apartment. I was in bed, hadn’t changed out of my pajamas yet,
and on a whim started watching a Disney-themed YouTube channel called “TheTimTracker.”
Tim and his wife Jenn are Orlando locals who go to the Disney parks a lot (as
well as SeaWorld and Universal), and vlog about their day-to-day lives. They
are charismatic, funny and charming, and I was instantly hooked. They have over
200,000 “subscribers” and film a video every day. Even the videos where they
don’t go to the parks and just hang out at home were enjoyable! When I watched
some more and found out that Jenn, the wife in the videos, basically made a
living out of going to theme parks and editing their videos, I was in awe. She
got to stay home all day and edit; when she wasn’t at home, she was out having
fun! And I wanted in on the game too.
On my next Disney vacation with my husband, I found myself
wanting to do the things I had seen in their videos. I wanted to eat at the
restaurants they recommended, I wanted to wear cool handmade Minnie ears like
Jenn did, and I wanted to buy the Disney products I had seen in their home.
Ever since I started watching their channel, I now eat at basically every
restaurant (Disney or otherwise) that they praise, I buy Minnie ears from Etsy
(which led me down a whole other path of Instagram and Etsy shops where people
make homemade Disney items- everything from bows, to eats, to shirts, to cups
and more), and I even buy the makeup and hair products Jenn uses.
This got me wondering- how much money do they make off
Disney? Does Disney give them free stuff? Are they paid to advertise certain
items and places in their videos? How many other Disney “YouTubers” are out
there?
The first few money-related questions are uncertain. Most YouTubers
make money from ads or donation links on their sites, but in some videos, Tim
and Jenn mention that they were “invited” to places (for example, SeaWorld
invited them out to try their new Food and Wine festival, supposedly for free).
It totally worked- my husband and I recently went to that same festival and
loved it, because we saw how much they enjoyed it and, well, we love food. They
also mention saving their receipts from Disney meals (and, I suppose, receipts
from their annual passes and other purchases). I’m not sure how it works, but I
know that they make enough money for only one of them to have a “real-life” job
(Tim, the husband, does work and makes a living outside of YouTube). And
although they technically advertise different aspects of the Orlando area by
visiting places, they specifically state that they don’t get everything for
free. Plus, they’re so humble and down to earth, that none of their videos
feels like an advertisement.
After some searching, I found that there are hundreds of
Disney vloggers out there- people from single guys and girls (young and middle
aged), families, couples, Florida-residents and non-Florida residents- a lot of
people have a passion for Disney and show it through YouTube. The most popular
videos include “haul” videos (where they show purchases from the parks), “best/worst
lists” (their opinions on the best and worst rides, shows, hotels, and theme
parks), “day in the life” videos (where they just film themselves enjoying a
day at the park, or their park routine), “POV” videos (videos of
ride-throughs), and “Q&A” videos (where they answer questions about the
parks and themselves). There are tons more videos and content out there, but
what fascinates me most are the so-called “Disney Influencers.”
These influencers have cropped up on Instagram in recent
years, usually sipping a Starbucks and wearing custom Minnie ears in front of
the purple wall in Tomorrowland, or the bubblegum wall in Epcot. They twirl
around in their custom Disney tank tops and their custom Disney hand-painted
Vans, and they make video montages with artsy shots of the castle. For the
influencers, their videos tend to include a lot of “hauls” and “park makeup
tutorials.” There are even some “park packing” videos out there and “park must
dos.” Basically, they are living, breathing ads for Disney.
The realistic part of me scoffs at their photos and videos.
How come they don’t show the long lines, or the complaining husbands, or the
fact that their feet hurt and they must go to work the next day? They never
seem to sweat in the 100-degree Florida heat either- their hair is always
perfectly in place and tied back either with a pair of ears or a Disney
character-themed bow. (Did I mention that most of these videos are run by
girls, and/or couples)?
The jealous side of me, however, envies them. I want to be a
cool Disney hipster sipping my violet lemonade and taking a photo shoot on the
hub grass with my Starbucks too! However, writing is my thing, and I am
incredibly un-photogenic. Nevertheless, that doesn’t stop my fascination and
discovery of these perfect Disney beings and their addicting YouTube channels.
You’d think as someone with two published books about
Disney, and the fact that I’m a past Cast Member, would put me in the Disney
influencer category. To be completely truthful, however, I don’t make much
money off my books, and my blog has a total of 0 followers and 0 comments. I do
it for the love of the game and the love of the parks.
I’m not bashing these Disney stars, but I think I’ve been
watching them long enough to tell the genuine ones from the “glamorous” ones. I
love watching videos from TheTimTracker, but I can only stand so much of young
girls twirling in front of purple walls (why do they twirl so much anyway?). I’m
much more likely to buy a product or take advice from someone who seems real.
And I have- I now have a growing collection of ears, a pair of my very own
handmade shoes, and have a long subscription of Disney YouTubers that I
currently watch. All you have to do is search, say, “wire mouse ears” on
Instagram or Etsy, or “Disney Youtubers” on Google, and you’ll come up with
lists and lists of names. Pick and choose what appeals to you most, and go from
there.
If you’re like me, you’ll lose a whole Sunday fantasizing
about quitting your job, moving to Orlando, and filming yourself going to
Disney every day- and making millions.
I know not a lot of people “make it” on YouTube, and even
the Trackers (as they call themselves) have said that it took years filming
themselves before they got a steady stream of viewers, but I admire everyone
that has the guts to put themselves out there and try to make their hobby into
a real dream come true. If I could look pretty, not sweat in a park, had the
money to buy all the custom Disney wardrobe items in the world, and had a husband
who was willing to show himself on camera, hell- I’d do the same thing.
Being a Social Media “Influencer” is the new hottest trend,
especially among my friends. There are the #healthyeating influencers, the
#fashion influencers, the #beauty influencers, the #fitness influencers…I could
go on and on. And as much as I would love to get free products and money from advertising
as well- kale makes me sick, I can’t draw a “winged” eye to save my life, and
one of my favorite dresses is from Wal-Mart.
For now, I think I’ll stick to writing.
Here are a few of my favorite Disney YouTube channels if you
want to check them out:
Any recommendations?
Hugs and Fishes,
Arielle
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