How many deals go to small channels
- 749 of the 1,990 fitness videos with a brand's code or link in the last 12 months were on channels under 100,000 subscribers.
- Counting only the 117 videos whose description names the brand as the sponsor, it's 43 of them, or 37%.
- Across every year we hold it's 35%, so the last year ran above it.
- Big brands do it too. WHOOP put 14 of its 15 fitness YouTube videos with a WHOOP code or link in the last 12 months on channels under 100,000 subscribers.
Source: Our own count of fitness YouTube videos, with each channel's subscribers as of October 29, 2026
The small channels brands keep
These channels carry one brand's code video after video.
| Channel | Subscribers | Brand | Videos |
|---|---|---|---|
| LucyShawVlogs | 10,700 | TrueStrap | 49 |
| Chanon Finley | 15,100 | Stick Mobility | 25 |
| SAMOK FIT | 14,200 | Flag Nor Fail | 20 |
| Nicky Lyan | 58,000 | Calisthenix Pro | 18 |
Source: Our own count, October 29, 2026, with every channel's numbers on our influencers page
- LucyShawVlogs has had the TrueStrap code Lucyshaw10 in her descriptions since September 2024.
- All 25 of Stick Mobility's videos in our data are on Chanon Finley's channel, since November 2025.
- Each channel is built around one kind of training: running for LucyShawVlogs, mobility work for Chanon Finley and calisthenics for Nicky Lyan. Stick Mobility and Calisthenix Pro sell gear for exactly that training.
Small channels do reads too
A code in the description is the light version. In a read, the creator talks about the product on camera.
The smallest creators are the ones your audience already trusts, not the biggest ones.
How to use it
- Find the small channels built around the exact way your buyer trains.
- Look for a brand code that has stayed in a channel's descriptions for a year or more, then ask the creator how it sells.
- Ask for a read on camera as well as the code, so the creator says it in their own words.