Did you know that fashion and beauty content on YouTube spikes during Ramadan? The busy social calendar drives an acceleration in searches for hair care (18% increase), makeup (8% rise) and fragrances (22% increase) during the holy month across the Middle East, finally peaking around Eid. Top search terms in previous years included ‘hairstyles’ and ‘oud’1. The Lifestyle & Comedy content genres also experience over 30% growth in viewership during Ramadan, which is where blogger Njoud Al Shammari shines.
On YouTube, watch time for this category increases by more than 10% during Ramadan. But the really interesting insight is the level of engagement and interaction. Average comments and likes increase by approximately 50% during Ramadan and then continue to increase through the rest of the year, according to Google data. These engagement levels are sustained after Ramadan, which goes to show that Ramadan is a period of discovery. If a brand builds user engagement during this period, its users are likely to stick with it long after.2.
Creator Spotlight: Meet Njoud Al Shammari
For content creators like Njoud Al Shammari, a 21-year old Saudi lifestyle and comedy vlogger with 1.2 million viewers, Ramadan is a key period to connect with an engaged audience. She is the first Saudi female creator to cross a million subscribers with videos that range from comedy and makeup tips to funny tutorials.
Last Ramadan, Njoud shared how she prepares for Ramadan, Ramadan tips and tricks, and her favorite Ramadan recipes with millions of viewers on her YouTube channel. The majority of Njoud’s audience (60%) is made up of females in Saudi Arabia, over 50% of which are aged between 13-24. In Ramadan, Njoud’s channel viewership grows by 50%!
She often features her brothers Moha and Lofan who are also widely-followed YouTubers. Third party research shows that Njoud scored the highest on the Tubular Influencer Score (TIS) making her Saudi Arabia’s Most Influential Female on YouTube. The report takes into account 10 different metrics when generating the rankings such as: the creator’s reach, engagement with viewers and subscribers, and the channel’s activity. Results revealed that the top influential female creators on YouTube make content that's nearly 5 times more engaging than average video.
Rise of Female-Lead Video Content
Online video intelligence company Tubular Labs recently released a report ranking the most influential female YouTube creators in Saudi Arabia last year, placing 21-year-old Saudi lifestyle creator Njoud Al Shammari at the top of the list with more than 1 million subscribers. Lifestyle and beauty vlogger Asrar Aref came in second, followed by Amal Elmziryahi, Hessa Al Awad, and Juhara Al Sajer.
Female content on YouTube continues to grow as total number of hours spent watching female-related videos grew by 75% in Saudi Arabia last year (2015 - 2016). In Saudi Arabia, total watchtime on YouTube grew by 50% between 2015 and 2016. Saudi Arabia also has the highest watch time per capita globally.
"Collectively, content created by these top female Saudi creators has drawn more than 184 million total views,” said Denis Crushell, VP at Tubular Labs. “Clearly, these creators make content that's nearly 5 times more engaging than average video."
Subscribe Njoud’s YouTube Channel to learn how she connects with her audience.
