Since launching Husskie in late 2016, we’ve conducted over 300 one-on-one interviews (or one-on-two if you count our Love Stories series) with top influencers from all over the world. From influencers with millions of followers to the more micro influencers that we’ve picked as “ones to watch”, we’ve scoured Instagram to deliver exclusive interviews that take readers inside the lives of what we consider to be some of the globe’s best content creators in their various fields.
With the end of the year wrapping up, we’ve been taking a look back at the statistics from the past 12 months to see just which influencers have had the most engagement on site – and thought we’d let you in on some of the intel we’ve found. With results not always indicative of how many followers someone may have on Instagram, what these results do show is who has managed to gain traction away from the Gram. Who is being searched for on Google… Who has evergreen traction… Who are people wanting to know more information about… And yes, who makes the best influencers to work with – as people genuinely care about their movements.
Below, we reveal who made the list of top 20 influencers on Husskie in 2018 in order of article views*:
1. Renee and Elisha Herbert
While our article with the Herbert sisters originally went live last year – with the twins topping our list of best performing influencers of 2017 – it’s managed to hold its place at the top of the list for a second year running. With the majority of readers coming to this article from Google Search – it’s clear these two have a highly engaged and active following.
2. Belle Lucia
Another influencer that continues to draw followers to Husskie via Google Search is Belle Lucia. With 1.3 million followers on Instagram, on Husskie we chatted to Belle about everything from typical days to food and fitness regimes… and the article continues to be one of the most widely read articles on the site each day.
3. Troy Pes and Zander Hodgson
After first getting to know Troy Pes last year when we had him on the site for our 50 Questions series, we were thrilled to have him back on Husskie in 2018 – but this time doing a Love Stories with boyfriend Zander Hodgson. We were so excited about making this story live, and seems like Troy’s followers have been too – with literally thousands of people jumping onto the article to take a read.
4. Jade Tunchy and Lachie Brycki
While they might like to have a laugh, when we did a Love Stories with Jade Tunchy and Lachie Brycki – it was clear that these two both also have a softer romantic side to them. And our chat with the duo about everything from nightclub stalkings to DM sliding to rekindled romance got a huge response from the couple’s following – making it our fourth most read article of the year.
5. Laura Jade Stone
It seems the Love Stories series has been a bit of a hit this year, with a third one making the top five via our couple interview with Laura Jade Stone and boyfriend Benjamin Khaney. With the two meeting in a nightclub when Laura was just 17, we found out a bit more about their 10-year relationship history.
6. The Sunday Chapter
She went from 25K followers to 446K in the space of two weeks – with no dodgy tactics involved. When we interviewed The Sunday Chapter to find out just how she did it, we weren’t the only ones interested in her story…
7. Karina Irby
Another article that was published late 2017 but continues to gain a huge readership in 2018 is our Fast 50 with Karina Irby. Here, she chatted to us about everything from hiit cardio sessions to online trolls.
8. Elise Cook
With both her Fast 50 and her Love Stories with husband Domenic Palumbo making the top 10 read Australian interviews – it was our 50 Questions with Elise Cook from May the previous year that just snuck in on top.
9. Roxy Jacenko
She made the top 10 last year, and Roxy Jacenko’s back in the high rankings again – this time talking about the 15 health, fashion, and beauty rules she swears by. And with a figure and wardrobe like hers, it’s pretty easy to see why this one hit a note with followers.
10. Matty J and Laura Byrne
Announcing their baby news just three days ago, right from the start it was clear Matty J Johnson and Laura Byrne were going to be another of the Australian Bachelor’s success stories. And while we may have been able to watch the initial stages of their romance being broadcast across the nation, we got to have a more intimate chat with the duo about love once the cameras stopped rolling.
11. Pepamack
With her fashion posts seeing Pepamack attract over 650K followers to the Gram, it seems audiences are eager for all the information they can get when it comes to the stylish Instablogger. On Husskie, we had a quick chat with Petra about typical days, favourite influencer aspects, and top advice.
12. Stacey Allen and The Friendly Pirate
Meeting these two at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Australia, we couldn’t help ourselves but pull Stacey Allen and The Friendly Pirate‘s Ash Keillah aside for our Love Stories series. And they couldn’t be cuter (or more in love). Then, just as we were about to go live with the article, Ash went and popped the question – making for the perfectest of timings. Now we can’t wait to watch the wedding plans start rolling out (plus see their television debut on My Kitchen Rules in 2019).
13. Kjtilse
Partner to Sarah’s Day and an incredible content creator in his own right, we were instantly drawn to Kjtilse Kurt Tilse’s infectious energy. Announcing their pregnancy via a YouTube video in September this year, followers were all jumping onto the Husskie Fast 50 to find out more about the baby daddy.
14. Yan Yan Chan
While we did this article with Yan Yan Chan back in January 2017, it continues to rank highly on Husskie (and highly on Google – where it sits in an average position of 4.6). In this interview, we talked to Yan Yan about when and why she entered into the world of blogging, how she met boyfriend Nathan Jolliffe, and what it’s like to be a part of a creative power couple.
15. Ashton Wood
We first noticed Ashton Wood when she went on an influencer trip to Bali with Cartia Mallan earlier this year. Eager to have her on Husskie, we tracked Ashton down to do a Day on A Plate. An article that immediately began raking in the reads. Not content with just knowing her food habits, we recently got in contact with Ashton again – this week publishing an article with her where we get up close and personal about what her life looks like behind the feed (and how she came to be friends with Cartia and Isabelle Mathers).
16. Saasha Burns
Since launching Husskie, we’ve done a few different articles with Saasha Burns – what can we say, we’re big fans – but it’s our original one with the stylish Instablogger that continues to be most popular. In this, she chatted to us about working with Sammy and getting outside her comfort zone.
17. Tully Tee Smyth
Another Fast 50 interview to make it into the top 20, our interview with Tully Tee Smyth saw us chat to the ex-Big Brother contestant about dealing with online trolling, finding love, and career sweet spots. Up there with our favourite of the 50 Question articles – we’re super happy to continue to see this one ranking high.
18. Alex Hayes
Originally going live in March 2017, our Q&A with Alex Hayes explored his first involvement in content creation, why his ADHD is working for him, and thoughts on Jay Alvarrez comparisons – an article that continues to find an audience. With Alex now sitting at 633K+ Instagram followers, this is one talented young Aussie we highly recommend keeping an eye on.
19. Sarah Czarnuch
Her figure is what #bodygoals are made of, so it’s little surprise that our Day On A Plate with former Miss Tourism Australia and Melbourne influencer Sarah Czarnuch pulled in a heavy readership. With Sarah breaking down exactly what foods can be found in her typical diet, we got an inside peek into her kitchen rules.
20. Olivia Molly Rogers
Our Day on A Plate with Olivia Molly Rogers saw the former Miss Universe Australia get detailed with Husskie on her daily routines, exercise and diet. With the article ranked in Google Search just behind her Instagram and Facebook Page, this is another interview that is buoyed by organic audience searches.
* Source: Google Analytics Jan 1, 2018 – December 17, 2018
Main image: Stacey Allen
To see a full list of influencers interviewed on Husskie since launch in October 2016, check out our A-Z List of Social Media Influencers.
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