Twitch has fully established itself as one of the leading platforms for live streamed content. A decade on since Amazon acquired the platform, millions of users still tune into Twitch daily to watch their favourite streamers and personalities.
A growing number of people are turning to Twitch as a potential pastime or career. If you’re one of them but you need some help to get yourself set up, our guide will walk you through the process of becoming a successful Twitch streamer.
Preparing Your Equipment
Your first port of call should be to invest in the right equipment to facilitate a good Twitch stream. The last thing you want is your audience to struggle to see or hear you. In many cases, you only get one shot at attracting a viewer to become a follower or subscriber, so get your setup right from day one, including:
- A rock-solid internet connection is a must. Ideally, you should have a full fibre connection, ensuring consistent uptime. If you want to stream in 1080p or even higher resolutions, you’ll need an upload speed of 20Mbps or better.
- A desktop PC with plentiful memory is also hugely beneficial. 16GB of RAM is fast becoming the norm and a respectable graphics card (like a Nvidia GTX 1660) would suffice.
- Invest in an industry standard microphone and webcam. The microphone should be good enough to cut out ambient noise which can be an immediate turn-off for viewers.
- Finally, if you want to produce your own Twitch shows, opt for streaming software like OBS Studio or Streamlabs OBS to customise your streams.
Popular Niches on Twitch in 2024
Although recent reports have suggested Twitch is still not a profitable business for Amazon, there are many niches on Twitch where communities thrive. Gaming is comfortably the most popular category on the platform. It’s helped usher in the world of Esports, live streaming the biggest Esports events and leagues. Some of the biggest Esports personalities will also stream themselves playing or training to connect with their followers worldwide.
It’s a similar story for poker enthusiasts, who increasingly use Twitch to keep tabs on the biggest online poker tournaments and players. There are educational benefits too though, as many of the leading online poker rooms have their own channels dedicated to helping newbies to learn poker strategies from the best in the business and hone their craft.
The arts and crafts scene is growing fast on Twitch too, with creators, artists and musicians able to interact and stream the unfolding of their creative processes live. There’s even a “Just Chatting” category which has proven hugely successful for Twitch streamers who have gone on to become online influencers and personalities.
Decide The Type of Content You Want to Create
Before you hit the all-important ‘go live’ button, it’s a good idea to plan the type of content you want to stream. Consider developing a weekly or monthly schedule to plan your shows in advance, ensuring everything goes smoothly on-screen. Consistency is the key to Twitch success. If viewers get what they’re looking for time after time, it’s a sure-fire way to grow your subscribers.
Creating and Promoting Your Twitch Channel
The key to growing your base of Twitch subscribers is clever marketing and promotion. Make sure you create social media accounts across Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube to promote upcoming shows. It’s best to verify your Twitter account to demonstrate your credibility. Use your Twitch page to share your streaming schedule to ensure followers are aware of when you’re live. Sticking to the schedule is vital too, otherwise you’re unlikely to get repeat viewers.
One way to broaden your exposure is to collaborate with other Twitch streamers, ideally those with well-established audiences. You could offer to host another streamer’s channel or co-stream a show. Collaborations with streamers that have the same target demographics can boost your visibility and credibility.
When viewers are prepared to subscribe to your channel, you can also put together tiered subscription plans, offering increasing perks to those who pay for the highest subscription package.
Live streaming about your passions and interests takes time and dedication. However, with the right approach, it can be a rewarding experience, introducing you to a new community of like-minded people from all four corners of the globe.
