Monetizing eyeballs

The things you can do when your first thought on your YouTube video going viral is "how can I give fans a reason to buy" instead of "let's put the video behind a pay wall and sue YouTube if infringing copies stay up". Writes Business Insider:

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? YouTube "David After Dentist" Family Rolling In $150,000

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While they weren't too creative with the title of the video, "David After Dentist," the DeVores have been innovative in turning their once-in-a-lifetime viral video into a money-machine.

Initially, the video was meant to be shared amongst friends and family. At the time, however, YouTube's only alternative to sharing a video with the world was to share it with just 25 people. So, instead of setting "David After Dentist" as "Private," the video went "Public" for everyone to see.

The one seemingly minor decision to make the video available all over the Internet set off a whirlwind of changes for the DeVore family.

Within just four days, "David After Dentist" received 3 million views on YouTube and the younger David quickly became an Internet celebrity. His father quit his job in residential real estate (did we mention they live in Florida?), and the family started selling t-shirts featuring cartoon drawings of their son post-dental surgery.

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Their largest deal came from a Vizio Super Bowl ad featuring several other Internet celebrities, such as the "Numa Numa Guy." In total, they received around $8,000 and young David DeVore, already used to the on-screen exposure, was seen by millions during the biggest game of the year.

The DeVores revealed to us that they just signed a deal to make medical scrubs for dentists, and they're also looking for deals with other dental products in the future.

"We'd love it if Crest or Colgate would sponsor the website," David tells us.

HT: BoingBoing