How does one begin a blog? With an idea? A script? A camera? Perhaps the most crucial ingredient is often overlooked: courage. Indeed, it takes courage to be filmed on camera, and more so to post one’s ideas and videos to the internet where they can be seen, judged, and possibly enjoyed by millions.
Despite a cacophony of advice on starting a blog– the list of articles, videos, and even entire companies offering instruction seem endless– it is the courage to do things one’s own way that gathers the largest and most excited of audiences. A successful blogger thinks of new ideas and approaches, makes mistakes, and has the bravery to try again.
It was this inventive approach that the stars of the Vania Mania Kids channel used to begin their careers as successful bloggers back in 2015. Whereas many family blogs are started by parents who realize that they can monetize content for children, it was the kids themselves that initiated the creation of Vania Mania Kids. Indeed, young Ivan and Maria were watching channels where children unpacked different gifts from their parents when they had the idea to try making the videos themselves. Ivan and Marusya understood the strategy and approached their parents with the proposal to shoot something similar. It was a very inventive and rewarding scheme on their part, as each series would involve the gift of a brand new toy.
The Vania Mania journey had begun. The first year passed quietly; videos were filmed, and the children spent more and more time with their parents creating new content and growing closer as a family. They gained confidence with the camera and became more bold, more artistic. During the first year, the parents’ confidence inspired the filming of many new videos for the blog. As the channel developed, so did the family; in the second year of the channel’s life, there were already three children in the family. The mother’s interest and efforts began to pay off, with video views beginning to climb and subscribers growing in number.
As their popularity grew, they gained the confidence to begin investing in advertising for the channel. In 2017, an initial investment of $3,000 towards the channel’s first advertisement helped greatly expand the audience. While these investments have consistently paid off for the family, the feeling of earning their first dollar on YouTube will be a memory that they always cherish.
5-6 months later, the channel was beginning to bring in enough money to rival, and then exceed, the mother’s income. At a family meeting, the Vania Mania Kids family decided that the mom needed to take up charge of the channel, which she had already been running part-time. She spent the next year learning and perfecting the channel’s methods of advertising and promotion. Nearly two years after the blog’s creation, the family members were becoming experts. They had better control over the camera, were quickly thinking of new and exciting video ideas, and were even learning how to install subtitles. They were studying, trying new approaches, making mistakes, and persevering forward.
The channel grew, developed, and gained popularity. The Vania Mania Kids family also grew, now consisting of five children who, by modern standards, are already stars. The parents joked that, during their wedding celebration, they were asked how many children they wanted in their family and jokingly answered ‘five.’ The joke turned out to be prophetic; the happy family of five children were all already contributing to the channel. In return, they received a great deal of knowledge, love from their parents, and– of course– new toys.
Now, the channel is almost eight years old. The stars have grown up, with Ivan and Maria already busy with their clubs and studies. They still act on the channel with their little brothers and sisters, and they have begun helping their parents film new content. They often act as directors, helping the other children know what to do in the frame. Ideas, as in the past, are generated by the creative producer of the channel: the mother of the family.
What was once a small, family-run blog has grown considerably to include an entire team working for the channel. They have a screenwriter writing episodes, as well as camera operators and people in charge of props. Now a team of almost 20 professionals is involved in creating new content for Vania Mania Kids. An army of fans around the world is happy to watch every video and is waiting excitedly for new ones.
The content the family creates has grown greatly from their initial toy unboxing videos. They now enjoy creating educational content, the production of which involves the input and advice of teachers and specialists in child psychology. In fact, the family was recognised for their work in educational content at the annual event held by YouTube in Dubai. The hosting staff shared that the family’s video focusing on the physical properties of objects immersed in water was one of the best educational videos for children and a prime example of how family content should be filmed.
The courage the Vania Mania Kids family had back in 2015 has created a lifetime of fun and exploration, and they have many plans for new videos moving forward.
