Every day more and more people join Twitch to get in on the hype surrounding streaming and making it big. But for those just starting out, the climb to the top might be a daunting one. Kotaku Australia attended TwitchCon Paris recently and took the opportunity to ask a range of Twitch Partners to share their advice for aspiring streamers wanting to make it big.
According to TwitchTracker, over 7 million unique Twitch channels were actively streaming during the month of June (and, of course, this doesn’t take into account the millions more accounts viewing these channels). Looking at these numbers makes breaking through seem like a pretty difficult task, much less growing a community base, but the streamers we spoke to had plenty to share when it comes to how to not only be successful on Twitch, but also how to enjoy yourself.
Here’s what they had to say when we asked for their advice for new streamers wanting to grow on Twitch:
sylveey
“I think the preparation kind of deters people a bit. Sometimes, you just need to go live and start, and narrowing it down – getting what you’re good at and seeing what you like to do – later is more helpful than trying to figure it out before you start. Because you never know, if you try to do something and you end up not liking it, and then you’re like, “oh, I prepared so much for this, and it’s not doing well and I don’t like it!” That’s just a waste of time. It’s better just to start.”
Nalopia
“I think a lot of people think that you have to stream like a lot and a lot. It’s so much deeper than that – my biggest tip would be to plan what you’re gonna do on stream, and make it interactive. If you’re a gamer, that’s cool, implement things that are very interactive for your community and you, so that everyone’s getting involved, but plan it so that you know that you can clip and repurpose the content on TikTok, Instagram, and Youtube. That should be your main focus, is creating content for people that have never seen your content [to] understand it so they then want to come and watch your stream. So that’s my biggest tip: plan, and then repurpose.”
AustinShow
“Find something that nobody else is doing, and do it the best.”
Plumbella
“My one’s a bit backhanded, but someone’s always going to be doing better than you, but someone’s always going to be doing worse than you [on Twitch]. So, there’s no point comparing yourself to other streamers on how they’re doing; everyone gets their turn in success with streaming, so stay away from competition because you never know what’s round the corner.”
Tubbo
“My top tip is never give up unless you feel like it, then you can.”
Steph0sims
“So when I first started [on Twitch], I probably only started with like one or two viewers. It’s kind of intimidating to be talking at someone and not getting much of a response, so I streamed with friends so that way I felt like at least I had a response at all times, it wasn’t me just talking at a wall all day.”
F1nn5ter
“Literally just do something that’s gonna be fun, cause you’re gonna be doing it for ages, for hours at a time, and probably not getting many viewers for a while. Make sure it’s something fun, play with friends, and just get started so you get comfortable. Have fun while you’re doing it!”
Vixella
“I think for discoverability and growth [on Twitch], it can be really important to diversify on other platforms as well, so taking your streams and turning them into other pieces of content can be really, really helpful, so posting to YouTube or TikTok is key. I also have this saying that there’s room for everyone at the table, no-one is really your competition, everyone can do it.”
While there are plenty of ways to break through on Twitch, the common advice was not to sweat the small stuff too much and to focus just as much on how you cater to growing your community as you do to enjoying yourself. If you’d like to read more about TwitchCon Paris, which was by all accounts an international celebration of community as much as it was a celebration of the livestreaming service, check out our wrapup here.
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