El Reino Infantil hits an incredible new milestone
May 24, 2022 – [[read-time]] minute read
Kuky Pumar, one of the creative minds behind El Reino Infantil, a Spanish-speaking channel for children, shares about their journey on YouTube and how they managed to reach a community of more than 50 million subscribers.
Active on YouTube for more than 10 years, El Reino Infantil has become one of the largest family-friendly channels on the platform. Thanks to characters such as Bartolito from La Granja de Zenón, To-To el Hormiguito from Bichikids, Sammy El Heladero from Canciones del Zoo, la Familia Blu and Paco el Marinero, they've built a community of more than 50 million subscribers who enjoy their original videos produced for YouTube and translated to nine languages. However, their history begins years before, when Kuky founded Leader Entertainment, his own record label, in 1983. Living the beginnings of the digital transformation of the industry, his vision led him to create El Reino Infantil in 2011. Constant training, experimentation and not being afraid to take risks, are the aspects he considers fundamental in creating content for YouTube.
We had been creating music content for a long time, but we saw that something was lacking, especially in children´s content. That's why we sought to merge two worlds that were not connected: children's songs and video clips. With this goal in mind, in 2011 we created our YouTube channel: El Reino Infantil, and at the same time we started the process of digital transformation in our company and we focused on the creation of videos.
When we started with our YouTube channel, for us it was very important to keep our eyes focused on the future and to understand the changes that were taking place, not only in the industry but also in the way music was consumed. Before, the main channel to promote music and turn the track into a hit was the radio, but we began to see that there were new spaces and that YouTube was a key ally to reach new audiences. Anticipating and betting on a possibility that we saw as remote, but probable, was what allowed us to gain a place in a segment that was not so popular at the time.
From Argentina to the world
In our early days on the platform we saw how some creators grew by leaps and bounds, and their versatility and the audience reach they had achieved seemed distant to us. But open platforms, like YouTube, have the ability to democratize content. In other words, everyone, no matter where they are, their age or what they want to watch, can find the videos they like and explore their interests. A well-known phrase I often repeat is "content is king" and I believe it has never been truer. The opportunity for a known or unknown creator is the same, the important thing is to understand the audience and provide them with content according to their interests.
Sharing our videos on our YouTube channel opened many doors for us. We found on the platform a global network that allowed us to reach out from Argentina to Spanish-speaking families in different parts of the world and then, with the translation of the videos, to many more people. This represented a window to the world that allowed us to continue transforming our business, and accompany the growth of children with multiplatform content and new complementary business units.
Teaching through entertainment
The most important thing about the milestone we are celebrating is that we have gained the trust of families, who open the doors of their homes to share moments through music, often uniting different generations. Gaining this trust is no easy task; it is a daily work that allows us to continue accompanying the growth of children.
Our two flagships are music and entertainment, but we also seek to transmit lessons and values, to leave something more to the community, not just a fun time. Finding the way to entertain and teach through different contents and in various formats is what differentiates us.
Knowledge and willingness to experiment
When planning and creating a new video, I think it's important to be original and true to ourselves. But we must not lose sight of the fact that we have an audience with their own interests, who are looking to watch their favorite videos on our channels, in their preferred formats and on their favorite device. That's why listening to our community and getting to know them is essential when thinking about what content we want to share.
Even after 11 years on the platform, YouTube is still the place where we experiment and produce the content that everyone loves.”
Another key component when creating is to be willing to innovate: to try new ideas, scripts, sections and content. And we must not forget the different formats, or at least understand which ones allow us to have a greater reach according to our audience, and exploit our creativity to offer interesting and quality content.
Although El Reino Infantil is already a 360 company, with a presence in the offline world through merchandising, plays and other verticals, YouTube is still our number one priority and the place where we experiment and produce the content that everyone likes. With our minds on what's next, we keep our eyes peeled and have a front row seat whenever there is an innovation on the platform so we can be closer and closer to our community.