How Not To Network 

I’ve written a lot of articles on good ways to network, but today I want to talk about what you shouldn’t do in trying to grow your stream. So many streamers have a very small understanding of networking and because of this, they approach it the wrong way. One of the quickest ways to destroy any chance of improving your relationship with other streamers is to force your channel on them. By following these easy steps today, you’ll be well on your way to improving your ability to avoid these networking traps.

DON’T PROMOTE YOUR STREAM IN OTHER STREAMS

If there is one thing that really grinds almost every streamer’s gears, it’s the viewer that comes into the chat, and nonchalantly starts talking about THEIR STREAM. No matter big or small, no streamer wants to have to deal with someone who is only coming to a stream to promote themselves. Networking is hard, and sometimes it might feel right to take the easy route and try and force yourself in other streams, but DON’T DO IT! I know from personal experience that when people do this in my stream, I immediately do not want to help them.

This also goes for messaging the streamer through their inbox or Twitter and asking for a raid or a host directly. This does not work! It will never work, and doing so will only hurt your chances of ever forming a good relationship with the streamer.  

DON’T SUBSCRIBE/DONATE/CHEER JUST TO GET RAIDS/HOSTS/SHOUTOUTS IN CHAT

Donations, subscriptions, cheers, or any other form of giving something to the streamer should be viewed as a thank you for the hours of entertainment streamers give, not a binding contract that requires hoops to jump through. So many people donate and subscribe with the expectation that they will be more noticed by the streamer, or that the streamer now owes that person something. There is nothing more off-putting than a viewer who feels entitled.  

I will say that when you subscribe to someone and spend more time in their channel, and show a love for their stream, streamers will likely want to interact with you more and want to help you out, but that isn’t something that HAS to happen. These kind of relationships take time, and it isn’t something that can just be bought in a single moment. There are countless viewers, ones that have never donated a single dime, that I would be willing to help in a heartbeat because of how much they support the stream in other ways.

DON’T JUST TALK ABOUT YOU

Let’s say you are going to your favorite convention to meet your favorite streamer.  We’ll call that favorite streamer BESTSTREAMERNA69. You’ve been so excited to meet BSNA69. You’ve tweeted at him, you’re looking to talk with the streamer, and you’re really looking forward to getting a picture with him and chatting for a few minutes. When you finally get the chance to meet the BSNA69, you make a costly mistake. Instead of talking to the streamer about them, and telling them how you enjoy THEIR stream, you instead start talking about only YOUR stream. I’ve had countless people do this, and it’s annoying.

When talking to a streamer, try to bring up a topic that you can both relate to. “Hey, I really enjoyed your Dark Souls play through --  that moment when you beat X boss was super intense! You beat it so differently than I did, I really enjoyed it!” These statements show that you’ve spent time in their stream and that you care, and also open up the opportunity for them to ask more about you.

So many people are thinking about only themselves when it comes to networking, that they forget the fundamental rule of networking: it isn’t about you, it’s about everyone. When you’re looking to network people, I always encourage people on how they can help the other person, not how the other person can help them. 

THE LIST

I want to briefly talk about what I believe is an unspoken streamer subject, something that I truly believe every streamer has, but rarely mentions it out loud. When viewers do things that are obnoxious after being told to stop, or attempt to take advantage of the streamer, they tend to get put on the mental “list.”  I’ve talked to quite a few streamers about my “List”, and many of them chime in with “YOU HAVE A LIST TOO?” How people end up on The List is going to vary from streamer to streamer, but I find that doing any of the previously listed no-no’s are a very quick way to get on that list.

Once you’re on The List, it’s not impossible to get yourself removed, but you’ve essentially made your first, and second, and possibly third impression of yourself to the streamer a bad one. I tend to straight up ignore any messages, comments or suggestions from those type of viewers because they simply do not understand the rules of how you go about interacting with the streamer. Don’t be that person!
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On the flip side, streamers don’t just write off viewers due to one bad experience. From personal experience, quite a few of my favorite viewers started out to be incredibly annoying. People grow up and learn to better conduct themselves in streams. Always be willing to give people a chance.
 
Networking can be a scary thing. Doing it the right way can be tricky, but just avoid these pitfalls and you’ll be on the right track to networking the correct way!

Whether you’re a partnered streamer, an affiliate, or just someone who streams as a hobby on the side, many of us have taken extended breaks from streaming. Momentum is a huge thing on Twitch, and any extended break can be a huge momentum killer for your stream. You may have stopped for so long that you think making a comeback and getting back to your normal routine/numbers will be close to impossible. But making a comeback is definitely not impossible. Just like anything else, the hardest step to getting back into something you use to do is taking that that first step.

​Today’s post is all about making that first step back easier. I’ve broken down the keys to a comeback into six simple steps. There are obviously a lot more things you can do to help you get back into the swing of things, but these are six that I believe are incredibly important!

1.  Consistency is KEY

​If you are serious about rebuilding your stream, you’re going to need to have a solid schedule of consistency. It’s crazy to think about, but many viewers actually plan their schedules around certain streams. If they hear one of their favorite streamers is coming back, there’s going to be a lot of excitement, but that excitement will quickly dissipate if the streamer isn’t consistent. If you say you’re going to stream that Tuesday, unless an emergency happens, you better follow through. When your viewers see you’re serious about streaming consistently, they will be serious about showing up to the stream consistently.

2. Have a Main Game to Focus on

For a lot of streamers, there was a specific game that shot them up to popularity on Twitch. It could be a speedrunning game, a multiplayer game you played competitively, a challenge run you did, or even a casual game that took your channel to the next level. Going back to what got you started is a really easy way to reboot the stream. A lot of your old viewers will have a lot of fond memories of those streams, and if you can recapture the magic of those streams, it’s a great way to rejuvenate your stream.
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But let’s say playing those old games was one of the main reasons you stopped in the first place? Let’s face it, burning out on streaming is a real thing, and a lot of times the game that you stream can be the main instigator. If that’s the case, you’re going to want to do some research on what your new focus is going to be. I always suggest trying to find something similar to what you use to stream, but different enough to avoid burn out. So maybe your stream was mainly focused on speed running Super Mario Sunshine, but you got burnt out. Giving another 3D Mario speedrun a try would be a great alternative to keep something fresh, without losing what made your stream special. 

3. Talk to your Friends/Mods/Viewers

This is a step that I think all streamers should be doing, but it’s especially important for those who are looking to get back on the grind. A great way of finding out what worked and/or what didn’t work for your stream is to reach out to those who use to watch you all the time for feedback. I’m not just talking about random people that occasionally checked into the stream. I’m talking about the trusted people within your stream circle that won’t be afraid to give you constructive criticism. Not only will taking to them give you further insight for improving your stream, but it will also give you a chance to let them know that you’re serious about streaming again, as well as a great way to get people excited for your return.
 
4. Make things look and sound nice!

​I’ve always been a big believer in the idea that the content of your stream is way more important than how your stream looks when you first get into streaming. But if you’re making a comeback, you’re essentially getting a 2nd chance at a good first impression. You’re definitely going to want to have good content lined up, but making sure your stream looks and sounds good is going to be super important. If your stream looks or sounds worse when you return, it’s going to leave a bad impression on a lot of people. Ensuring high quality in the appearance of your stream also shows those viewers who are on the fence about your consistency that you are serious about your return to streaming. 

5. PROMOTE PROMOTE PROMOTE

If you’re making a big comeback to Twitch, you want as many people to know that it’s happening. That means taking advantage of social media as much as possible and plenty of talking about the return. Setting a date that you’re making your return and organizing a big event are great ways to get people excited for the return. If you have the right kind of relationship with certain streamers where it won’t come across as shameless self-promotion, talk to a few streamer friends to let them know that you’re serious and that you hope they stop by and check out the return. The more of your old viewers that are aware of your return, the more success you’ll have! Networking is important!

Promoting isn’t just for the first stream back though; it’s also for your vision and future that you have with your stream. If you’re making a comeback, and you have a solid plan, be sure to share with your stream viewers about all the cool ideas and plans that you have. Seeing the excitement that you have for your stream and its future will get your viewers excited as well.

6. Have Fun

I know this sounds obvious, but for many streamers who stopped streaming, not having fun was one of the main reasons they stopped. Even if your “growth” will take a hit, focusing on fun before growth will be incredibly important for the long term. Don’t be afraid to stream games that aren’t your main genre, or that will bring in less viewers, because in the long run you’ll be much happier and way more consistent. 



Be sure to also check out our Twitch Streaming Team 
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Hey everyone, Iateyourpie here! It’s been a hot minute since the last StreamBig blog post (2016). Sorry about that! 2017 was a crazy year for me in terms of streaming, and I got tied up with a bunch of other projects that kept me from updating this site regularly! I actually wrote a few posts in 2017, but didn’t want to post them without having a plan in mind for consistent content! I felt like starting fresh with something more consistent in 2018 was the better plan and so here we are! I’ve got a lot of thoughts/plans for StreamBig in 2018 and I want to outline them in this post.

Blog Posts

First off, blog posts should come back in a more consistent fashion in 2018. Starting this Sunday (Jan 21st)  around 2 PM EST, I’m going to try publish a blog post on a weekly basis with varying types of content called StreamBig Sundays. Content to teach, content to inform (Twitch Feature Updates), and content to promote (Events, streams, and products) are going to be my focus! Over the past couple of years, the response to StreamBig has been overwhelming! People tell me all the time how helpful the blog posts are, and how the changes they made to their stream from StreamBig advice has helped their streams grow! I’m excited to get back to consistent content and I’m looking forward to helping even more people in 2018!

StreamBig Team

In October, we announced the creation of the StreamBig Twitch Team. This was something that was brewing for a long time, and I’m super happy we were finally able to go public with it! We kicked it off with the streaming event Waifu Wars! Right now our focus as a team is just jelling and supporting each other, but we’ll have some more stream events coming in 2018! We’re a group of 8 dudes that not only want to grow together, but are great friends! I highly encourage you to check out everyone on the team, as I promise you won’t be disappointed with the content!

Social Media + Stream
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With the content on the site slowing down, I didn’t really touch the StreamBig Twitter account. In 2018 I want to be way more engaging with people on Twitter! The increase to 280 characters gives a little more wiggle room in terms of posting stream thoughts. It also opens the door for answering questions streamers have! So expect a lot more activity on Twitter this year from us!

I’d also like to get back to doing bi-weekly StreamBig streams where I take time writing out blog posts and answering questions about streaming! I’m incredibly passionate about streaming, and I love being able to share that passion with others! Expect more of those nights in the future, and maybe even a few special guests!

Overall, I’m super excited for the future of StreamBig in 2018. I love helping people, and I’m super excited to get to do that more in 2018! If you personally have suggestions for content that you’d like to see in 2018 from the site, leave a comment!