Stylishness Sells
Amateurs follow the rules of traditional videomaking. They start with a title at the beginning of the clip, then move on to tell their story with the camera set at one angle and the background music set to one, simple song playing until the very end. The video mainly relies on the creativity and interesting story of the lone speaker, not necessarily the music, special effects, guest appearances or even fancy editing tricks.
Let's use Kevjumba again in a great example. He began posting videos in 2007. This is one of his earliest amateur videos.
He follows the traditional methods of creating his video by keeping it simple and relying on a list of reasons followed by short anecdotes of his personal experiences. As for the overall video quality, the lighting is dim and yellow. He sticks with one camera angle the entire clip (probably because he is using a computer webcam). He adds fuzzy audio once to add another dimension to his straightforward video. There is a back and forth dialogue with himself at the end of his video (when he changes his shirt and takes off his beanie to represent his "friend") as he cuts from one scene with himself to another scene with himself in different clothes.
Let's use Kevjumba again in a great example. He began posting videos in 2007. This is one of his earliest amateur videos.
He follows the traditional methods of creating his video by keeping it simple and relying on a list of reasons followed by short anecdotes of his personal experiences. As for the overall video quality, the lighting is dim and yellow. He sticks with one camera angle the entire clip (probably because he is using a computer webcam). He adds fuzzy audio once to add another dimension to his straightforward video. There is a back and forth dialogue with himself at the end of his video (when he changes his shirt and takes off his beanie to represent his "friend") as he cuts from one scene with himself to another scene with himself in different clothes.
Now, let's contrast to some of his more recent videos. The type of story is the same as the previous video. He lists reasons to support a claim. The editing is so tight-cut that the video itself moves at a much quicker pace. The lighting is bright and clear. He zooms in and out of his shots. He not only shoots, but also cuts to different scenes as he explains each of his points. There are guest appearances made by his friends and even a celebrity NBA player. There are drastic hair,costume, and location changes. There are musical changes. He uses timing as a comedic strategy. His demeanor has also changed as he shows much more exaggeration and expressiveness in his later videos.