New data reveals the top 10 brands on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube — from Shein to Epic Games

Influencers
Influencer sisters Amy Hembrow, Tammy Hembrow, Emilee Hembrow and Starlette Thynne pose during the Boohoo campaign shoot on October 07, 2020 in Piggabeen, Australia. Chris Hyde/Getty Images for boohoo
  • Brands are vying to grab the attention of consumers on social media. 
  • New data reveals the most talked about brands on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube in 2020. 
  • Brands like Shein, Netflix, and Fashion Nova came out on top. 
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Brands want to be known. And the best way to be known today? Social media. 

From casual mentions by everyday users to paid sponsorships with influencers, brands rely on social-media platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube to get their names and products in front of consumers. 

But which brands are stirring the most buzz? 

A new report by the influencer-marketing platform HypeAuditor analyzed 12 million Instagram accounts, 4.5 million YouTube channels, and 5.2 million TikTok accounts throughout 2020. Out of that data, the company ranked the brands that are most talked about on each platform.

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Shein, a popular Chinese fast-fashion retailer, is one of the leading brands across all three platforms HypeAuditor analyzed. Coming at No. 4 on Instagram, Shein had over 136,000 mentions by more than 30,000 influencers. The brand ranked as No. 1 on both TikTok and YouTube. 

On Instagram, though, the most talked-about brand was LikeToKnow.it, a shopping platform that influencers to earn money with affiliate links. The brand had over 600,000 mentions by about 20,000 influencers, according to HypeAuditor's data.

Netflix and Barstool Sports were ranked as No. 2 and No. 3 on TikTok, respectively.

Netflix has leaned into TikTok's marketing power by utilizing both paid ads and influencers to promote its latest shows and films. The streaming service was also ranked as No. 14 on Instagram. In 2020, Netflix was estimated to have spent $57.3 million on social and digital video advertising, according to data from Pathmatics, which tracks advertising on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, in addition to mobile and digital video. 

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And Barstool Sports has found a new audience among TikTok's users and its creators, such as TikTok star Josh Richards (24.7 million TikTok followers) who co-hosts a podcast series with Barstool's founder, Dave Portnoy.

"45% of our new audience growth in 2020 was from TikTok," Barstool's CEO Erika Nardini told Insider in January.

Other key trends from HypeAuditor's report reveal that fast-fashion brands — beyond Shein — are incredibly popular among influencers. Fashion Nova, for example, was among the top 10 brands across Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

And brands with robust influencer-marketing strategies and ambassador programs (including Fashion Nova) also came out well. Some examples were Dunkin', Sephora, Bang Energy, and Epic Games.

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Dunkin' was ranked No. 4 on TikTok and has made a name for itself on the app through Charli D'Amelio, one of TikTok's biggest stars, as well as its own employees.

Here's a breakdown of the top 10 most talked-about brands on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube in 2020:

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Fashion brands have found their niche on Instagram.

shein
Iskra Lawrence walks the runway during Walk Your Wonderful presented by SHEIN Together on September 19, 2020. Getty Images for SHEIN
  1. LiketoKnow.it
  2. Instagram
  3. Zara
  4. Shein
  5. Fashion Nova
  6. TikTok
  7. Nike
  8. Spotify
  9. H&M
  10. Pretty Little Thing

Entertainment brands like Netflix and Barstool Sports stood out on TikTok.

bridgerton
"Bridgerton" is currently streaming on Netflix. Liam Daniel/Netflix
  1. Shein
  2. Netflix
  3. Barstool Sports
  4. Dunkin'
  5. TTDeye
  6. Bang Energy
  7. Fashion Nova
  8. Fortnite
  9. McDonald's
  10. Netflix en Español
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Fashion, beauty, and gaming take the lead on YouTube.

Sephora
Reuters
  1. Shein 
  2. Sephora
  3. Epic Games
  4. Fashion Nova
  5. Ikea
  6. Ana Luisa
  7. Duvolle
  8. Raycon Global
  9. Teami Blends
  10. Plarium
TikTok Influencers Instagram
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