Let’s say that you’re a content creator on Twitch and/or YouTube. You’ve done a couple of streams here or there, but you noticed that there aren’t a lot of people looking into your stream? Twitch’s current platform isn’t really made for discovery, so how do you find your audience? This blog post is my advice on how you can find your audience for your content creation goals.
Know your Content
If you were asked, could you define your content in 2-3 sentences? Could you tell someone what kind of content you make in a ride up or down an elevator? Before we go and look at the stats of what you’re currently doing, it might be a clever idea to think about what you are providing for your audience. This will be the “backbone” of how you go forward in your search.
If you were to ask me what my content is, I would define my content in this way: “I create content so that I can play video games but not alone. I strive to play a lot of diverse types of games and emulate the feeling of sitting with your sibling and watching them play a game. I try to foster a sense of community and as my favorite game is Banjo-Kazooie, a lot of my content tends to lean toward games of that style.”
Do Some Research
Twitch is big. It’s really big. It’s hard to fathom sometimes how mind-bogglingly big it is. According to Twitch, there are over 2 MILLION streamers, with 10 MILLION Daily Active Users (source). There is a good chance that there are a handful of people who like the same content you do. I’ve been so amazed on the groups of people that I’ve come across in my time as a streamer on Twitch.
As an example, I’ve been a part of a few different communities:
- Diddy Kong Racing Speedrunners
- Other Streamers’ community (A few examples being Fish, TheGigglepussGang, and Tridenttail)
- Extra Life Charity Fundraisers
- And so on
There are content creators who also span past the few types that I’ve mentioned before. Some people are competitive eSports players, some solely do “Just Chatting” types of streams where there isn’t much if any gameplay.
If you’re not sure what attracts your community, you can do a few things. First, you can do a quick look at your Twitch/YouTube Analytics if you’ve posted a few videos or streamed a few times. Twitch specifically has some really good ways to see what viewers you have in common with other content creators.
Twitch actually has a really good tool that you can use in their analytics that tells you where your viewers come from, whether it’s from sites outside of Twitch (like on social media sites, etc.) or inside Twitch by notifications or other streamers. Check out their article about analytics, specifically their Discovery Analytics!
Another great way to find “your people” would be to go on your platform of choice and search for the games you are interested in or games that you stream. I have found so many friends by either streaming or watching games such as Banjo-Kazooie, Diddy Kong Racing, Knockout City, Fall Guys, and more!
Keep in mind the times when you stream as well. Streaming at one time might be good for one group, but time zones exist and people don’t all watch Twitch at the same time. I have viewers from all over the world, but I only see certain ones if I stream at certain times. I also am only able to watch certain streamers because of my free time for the same reasons.
Get Involved
Typically starting out you won’t have a lot of audience members. Check where other people who have similar interests are gathering, whether community Discords, forums, or other mediums like that. Don’t just go to promote your stream, though. Get involved, make friends, and become a part of the community and when you do go live, you would then be able to attract those viewers from your community.
While I do advocate to self-promote yourself, a word of caution: Don’t spam. Posting your go-live messages to streamers already live or in communities that you’re not actively involved in can be considered spammy and won’t net the viewers that you want.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it’s not beneficial to just stream if your goal is to build an audience. Taking the steps to getting involved in communities, knowing your content, and doing your research will greatly increase your viewers and community members for the content you create!
Do you have any other thoughts on building your audience on Twitch and/or YouTube? Leave me a comment below or discuss it in The Bear Cave Discord #creator-chat channel!
