Getting started with your Twitch channel? There are more than 9 million streamers currently active on Twitch, so attracting viewers to a new channel won’t be a piece of cake.
More views bring higher revenue and you need 25 streaming hours to start the Twitch partnership program. Moreover, getting more viewers will attract new sponsors. Now the question is how to get more viewers on Twitch.
First, you must remain consistent with your streaming schedule and connect to your audience. Choose the right game that’s popular on Twitch and you too enjoy playing. Promote your videos on other social media platforms to engage more viewers.
The Twitch algorithm rewards engagement. Overall, you need to create your own distinct identity that makes you stand out among all the other gamers on Twitch.
Let’s dive deep into the details and find out how to quickly gain more viewers on Twitch and build a strong streaming community.
How to Attract More Twitch Viewers − 16 Proven Tips
Twitch streamers often share useful tips and tricks on forums and social media platforms. However, not all of them are the cherries on top when it comes to being effective.
So, I’ve listed some of the sure-to-work tips that are effective and super relevant. Here’s how to get people to watch your stream on Twitch:
Get the Right Equipment
First things first, you need to gather all the necessary equipment before you start streaming. There’s no point in going live if your target audience can’t even hear you clearly.
I’m not saying you should spend a fortune to get the best microphone or camera. However, you must get one that will do the job in the best way.
Choose a good-quality microphone that delivers a clear sound without any muffling. Get a nice camera with long battery life for longer streams.
Ensure the fastest possible internet speed to prevent lagging or buffering during the stream. Otherwise, your viewers will be irritated and leave the channel no matter how engaging your streams are.
Finally, arrange the perfect lighting with a key light, backlight, and fill light to make yourself properly visible to your Twitch audience. To get viewers on Twitch, try going live 3-4 times a week and make long and entertaining streams like those of Emilycc or Ninja.
Be Smart While Choosing Your Game
This is probably the most important factor in attracting viewers to your live stream. You’ll see many opinions online about which game you should choose for streaming.
Some recommend going for the most popular games as people are more interested in those. Whereas others prefer less competitive ones so that you don’t have to compete against the big names.
So, which way should you go?
I recommend going for a relatively less popular game that has a loyal fanbase. Of course, you can’t choose obscure games that aren’t appealing to the Twitch audience.
Choose games that popular creators don’t usually focus on but it’s still popular among the viewers on Twitch.
To find out what are the best and worst games to play on your Twitch channel, you can visit Twitchstrike. It will tell you which games are the most popular on Twitch and how many people are watching them at that moment.
Choose the game that is ranked a bit lower but consistently holds its position in the top ten list. This way, you’ll easily get new viewers as the competition is low.
Make a Schedule
If you want to turn regular Twitch users into a part of your gaming community, you must maintain a fixed schedule. This way, your Twitch audience will know when to join your stream.
It’s an effective way of increasing the viewer count on your streams. Now the question is when should you stream?
As you can guess, it will depend on your target audience. For example, if you want to attract more viewers from the USA, you should fix your schedule according to their local time.
The next thing you need to check is when other streamers are going live. Don’t choose the peak time when more popular players stream games on their Twitch channel.
Typically, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. is the busiest time of the day. So, you can start at midnight or early morning to avoid strong competition and get viewers on Twitch.
Analyze Your Competitors
There’s a reason why some Twitch channels are more popular than others. Analyzing your competitors is essential as it will help you figure out why people are interested in watching streams from a particular content creator.
When you start browsing on Twitch, you’ll see two different tabs− Live Twitch Channels and Categories. If you select categories and then search for the game you’re willing to play, and Twitch will show all the other channels that are currently playing the game.
You need to sort the streamers by selecting ‘High to Low‘ to get the list of the most popular streamers. Check out the top Twitch streamers and try to understand what makes them different.
Typically, famous streamers interact with their audience more often, use better graphics like chat overlays, webcam frames, stream panels, etc., and have attractive personalities full of positive energy.
On the other hand, channels with zero viewers don’t personalize their channels or improve the game screen and skills to connect to potential viewers. So, you should aspire to be more like the popular creators and avoid making mistakes that the least popular ones do.
Make Your Username, Bio, and Tags Stand Out
Choosing a creative and attractive name for your channel can easily hook a potential audience. The name can be related to the game you’ll be playing or something funny that amuses people.
Typically, shorter names work better on streaming platforms simply because short names are easy to remember. Take popular channels like Ninja or Shroud for example.
So, choose a short, creative, and memorable name that will hook anyone who takes a short glance at your channel. Similarly, your bio should be precise and to the point.
It should describe the activity you do on your channel and tell the user why they should visit your channel. For example, if you’re playing first-person shooter video games, you can pick names like ‘EliteSnyper,’ ‘ShadowAssasin,’ or ‘HeadHunter.’
As for tags, Twitch tags work somewhat similarly to the hashtags on other social media platforms. Use short keywords like ‘Fortnite,’ ‘Live,’ and ‘Streaming’ that relate to your game and streaming.
This way, when a user searches for a particular game stream, your stream title might pop up due to the Twitch tags.
Build Your Own Brand
To make yourself stand out on different streaming platforms, you must create a unique brand. Choose a recognizable and eye-catchy branding logo for your Twitch channel and use it on all your social media accounts.
When users watch your streams on Twitch, they might want to know you outside the platform. If you use the same branding on different platforms, it will help them to locate your profiles easily.
This way, you can increase audience engagement and make them your regular viewers.
Use graphics or animation to improve the quality of your profile pictures. You can hire a professional for this job as it would be totally worth the cost in the long run.
Apart from that, you should make yourself presentable to the viewers. Try to wear costumes that are different yet relevant.
Pick something that will help them recognize you instantly among millions of other streamers.
Interact With Your Audience
Another key to getting more viewers on Twitch is audience interaction. Even if there are only a few people watching your stream, you should always keep talking and entertaining your audience.
Think of a radio jockey who continuously talks for their audience in an empty room. You should follow the same route to attract a potential audience who might be paying a quick visit.
Don’t worry about the topic as it will come naturally once you get used to it. For starters, you can talk about the game you’re playing and share fun tricks with your audience.
Ask them questions and open a chatroom for them to let them join the conversation. Choose trendy topics to talk about and make jokes so that people are entertained.
Another easy way of engaging people is to give them tasks.
For example, you can ask your viewers to roast you with fun remarks. Make sure to keep the community non-offensive, as you might get banned from Twitch otherwise.
Greet Your Followers
As your Twitch viewers start joining the stream, you can offer them a warm welcome. Greet them by taking their username and passing casual remarks.
This will make them feel seen and help you to easily bond with your audience. If you have too many viewers on your Twitch stream, try to remember the regular viewers and give them a special shout-out.
Promote Your Twitch Channel on Social Media
When it comes to promotions, there are no other tools as strong as social media. You have numerous platforms to promote your channel. Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Reddit, etc., are some most popular ones you can use to promote your Twitch stream.
On Twitter, try to follow the big names of the gaming community and interact with them. You can find numerous groups on Facebook related to Twitch.
Join those groups and be active. There you’ll find many streamers like you who regularly post various tips and tricks for getting more viewers on Twitch.
YouTube and TikTok are video streaming platforms where you can post short videos cut from your Twitch stream. Choose the entertaining portions of the stream, such as when you’re winning the game, getting excited about it, or cracking a joke.
Such videos that add rewatching value will attract more people to your Twitch account.
As for Reddit, you can ask questions related to Twitch, games, or anything else you want. Also, promote your channel there and try to reply to the queries of other users to increase engagement.
If you can hit the right place, your channel will be flooded with new followers in no time.
Reach out to Your Fellow Streamers
So, what to do on Twitch when you’re not streaming? A good idea is to reach out to other popular streamers on Twitch.
Raid regularly and join the chatroom with other users. Make engaging conversations and do volunteer work like becoming a moderator for a fellow streamer.
This way, you’ll create a good impression and people will be interested in checking your channel out. Apart from that, you should join the Twitch community on different platforms like Twitter and Facebook.
Make allies with other Twitch users and share your channel with them. If they find you relatable and entertaining, they might become permanent viewers of your Twitch streams.
Networking will open cool new doors for you. You might get invited for collaborations, cross-promotion partnerships, in-game challenges, and guest appearances.
All of these will help you get new viewers on Twitch and attract sponsors such as C.
However, you should never promote your channel on the chatroom of a fellow streamer. This is unacceptable to many and creates a very bad impression.
Join Discord
This streaming platform has become a go-to option for Twitch streamers to build a strong community. Creating a discord server is easy and it has many benefits.
It allows you to interact with your viewers whenever you want. You can create a new discord server to give your followers a great community to hang out with.
Besides, you can share events, arrange giveaways, and notify your followers about the streaming schedule using your discord server. Overall, discord is great for bringing your viewers together and hanging out with them.
Let Your Audience Join the Game
There are plenty of games that can be played in groups. In fact, it’s more fun that way.
Instead of asking a friend to play, let your viewers join you. Invite your followers to play a game and be appreciative even if they are new to the game.
This will make them feel like a part of the game. As a result, they will keep visiting your channel and might bring new friends to play with.
Rust, Warzone, Among Us, Dayz, and Apex Legends are some trendy video games you can play in groups.
Play New Releases
As a part of the gaming community, it’s your job to keep yourself up-to-date with new releases. Sometimes, people are hyped about certain games and want to watch them play just as the games release.
You can take the opportunity to use the hype around a game to get more viewers on Twitch. Alert your followers on Discord, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and all other platforms before playing.
Try to start as soon as it releases to become the first player to play the game. It might give you more viewers than many popular streamers!
Participate in Tournaments
As you might know, you can’t play tournament videos on your Twitch channel. So, what’s the point of participating in tournaments?
Well, it will spread your name in the community. Imagine beating the most popular streamer in a tournament and everyone will know your name instantly.
Curious people will come to check out your streams on Twitch and some of them will stay if your live streams are engaging enough. Therefore, you should always try to join tournaments if you think you’re a good player.
Try Something Unique
Although Twitch has become a gaming platform, you can actually do other things on your streams. Your audience might become bored of watching you play games for months.
As a change, you can try something different like cooking while streaming, gossiping with your followers, taking a physical challenge, etc.
Set Up Channel Rewards
Rewards are easily one of the best crowd-pullers. Everyone will be interested in a stream that says ‘$50 steam cards giveaway!‘
While it’s not necessarily the most sustainable way of gathering more viewers on Twitch, it will intrigue people and make them come back for new rewards.
OWN3D has a customizable rewarding program that lets you reward your followers with perks.
Wrapping Up!
So that was all about how to get more viewers on Twitch. If you have a strong personality and the ability to entertain people, you’ll surely gain more viewers in a very short time. Before anything else, you must use a good mic and webcam.
Choose less saturated games to play and maintain a schedule while playing. Be a part of the community and people will start noticing you sooner or later.