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Finding your Niche in Streaming

5/19/2016

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By: After5

One of the obstacles with getting started in streaming is figuring out a system that works for you.  A big part of that system is finding out what sort of streaming content makes you feel most at home.  Streaming is a bit tricky in the sense that, just like speedrunning, your favorite games may not always be the best games for streaming.  Your role as a streamer is that of an entertainer; video games are just the medium that unites you and your audience.  The focus of this article will be on two major sections.  The first will get you thinking about your personal history to steer you onto a path.  The second will discuss experimenting and how you can make the most of it.
 
Personal Assessment
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The first and easiest step in personal assessment is considering your favorite games and genres from your library.  The number one policy is to have fun with what you’re doing, so go ahead and push aside all the games that don’t match you.  The next two parts are a little bit more complicated.  Kind of like picking your favorite Race and Class in an MMORPG, you now need to start finding your Approach and Personality.
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Full-Time Streaming – More Than Meets The Eye

4/7/2016

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The dream of a lot of streamers on Twitch is to someday make the jump to full-time streaming. Being able to work from home and make your living from doing something you love is an opportunity that not many get, so it’s understandable that so many partnered, and even a few non-partnered streamers are making the decision to go full time. While streaming is one of the most rewarding jobs, there’s a lot of work involved to make it work. Streaming isn’t just sunshine and rainbows; there is a lot of work to be done if you want be successful on Twitch. There are a lot of aspects of streaming full time that get overlooked that require a lot of commitment.  
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I see so many people who are growing their streams and are thinking about going Full-Time that only think about the fun and positive side of streaming for a living. Today I want to have a real conversation about some of the harsh realities of going from streaming just as a hobby, to making it your primary source of income.

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Streaming and Taxes

2/29/2016

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By: Yielder89 (Accountant By Trade)

So you’ve been steaming big.  You’ve got that shiny sub button, a strong following and maybe you even got yourself a few big donations. Life is good. But as we enter 2016 the IRS wants their cut.  As a new streamer or even a veteran streamer there may be some things about your tax return that you did not know.

So what are these forms and what do they mean?

So chances are that if you have earned money streaming on Twitch you have received 1099-MISC or even a 1099-K.  Not only are these forms sent to you but they are also furnished to the IRS so that they know how much you made during the year.  Ultimately, this means that the IRS has a rough idea of how much tax you will owe.  These 1099’s that you received, for the most part, represent your gross streaming receipts with a few exceptions.  If you receive your money from subs and twitch ads through your PayPal, you may have your income double reported.  It is important to keep track of all of the money that goes into your PayPal and bank accounts as you don’t want to be taxed on deposits that were not earned through streaming.
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Donations – Common misconceptions

​So you have received a 1099-MISC, but you may be wondering what the 1099-K is because you did not receive one.  Payment processors, such as PayPal, must report the gross payments you received only if it was over $20,000 and over 200 separate transactions in a year.  This does not mean you should not report how much you got from people donating to your stream.  Even though you did not receive this form you still need to report this on your tax return.  

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The Difference Between Finding a Crowd and Growing an Audience

2/11/2016

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By: After5
 

One very common issue streamers tend to bring up when looking to grow their stream is their follower count and how it doesn’t accurately show their growth. The follower count is going up, but the viewers are not sticking around. Why is that?  Today I will be introducing a way to think about your viewers by defining them as members of a crowd versus an audience.  This comparison will help you analyze what it takes convert those followers into active members of your community!

Crowd vs Audience
What is a crowd?  Think of a busy day at a mall.  People are out and about and you can easily meet hundreds of people for the first time.  Most of them are there for their own personal objectives, and generally you rarely overlap with them.  The people you meet amongst a crowd generally exit your life forever after they take care of their business.

So then what is an audience?  Think of the audience that attended AGDQ 2016.  All of them are there for individual, but similar reasons.  The likelihood of having similar objectives is much higher, and that group of people has a genuine interest in what they’re showing up for.  A good portion of the audience probably contains returning attendees, and anyone interested in the event but unable to attend find their own way to participate.

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Why Content Must Come First Before Networking

1/18/2016

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In previous posts I discussed the importance of networking. This is something that I want to stress a lot: networking is incredibly important to growing your stream. If you’re a good streamer, but no one knows you exist, how do you expect to grow? There’s a very big key to what I just said: if you’re a “good” streamer. The point of today’s post is talk about why content can create the networking, and how important the content is to your stream.
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Content is King
I come from a marketing background in college and worked for a few companies in their internet marketing department. A phrase that I learned very quickly working in this field is “Content is King.” The phrase itself is pretty straight forward:  You can do all the magical steps of getting your product & information out there, but if your content isn’t quality, no one will care. 

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Qualities of a Lasting Stream

1/14/2016

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By: After5

Before I started streaming, I spent a lot of time watching streamers and determining for myself what I believed a good stream is made of and what kept me coming back to certain streams.  The information here is very personal, but the objective of it is to inspire deeper thought into your own definition of an enjoyable stream and how you can blend the features of other streamers into your own special cup.  These are some of the thoughts that I considered when creating my library of Twitch entertainment and how I wanted to structure the foundation of my stream.
 
Streamer’s Behavior

This topic comes first and will be the largest as I think it is the most important factor when deciding if I plan on sticking with a stream.  I personally prioritize streamer over content since a consistent streamer is much more reliable than leaning on specific stream content.  I think of streamers like co-workers or classmates.  If we were in the same environment where we needed to frequently interact, would I feel comfortable doing so?  There are a few factors I consider when determining this.​

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Introducing After 5 to the StreamBIG Team!

1/11/2016

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By: After5

*Iateyourpie Note: I'm incredibly excited to introduce After5 to the StreamBIG team. I've been meaning to expand the amount of people who have access to writing on the site for a long time. If you've noticed, content has somewhat slowed down due to many reasons. One of the main issues was a lack of other writers. With After5 on the team, we're looking to get more content on the site as well as more events happening for Stream Big. After5 and I have a ton of great ideas that we'll be working on in 2016. I'm excited for the direction of StreamBIG, and I hope you are too!*

Introduction

I go by the username After5 on Twitch and have recently been given the opportunity to involve myself with behind-the-scenes activities in Pie’s Twitch channel and streamBIG.net.  Going forward, I will also be writing articles on StreamBIG. 

Coming in as a writer, I hope to bring a different but relevant perspective to the current information provided on StreamBIG.  I am currently a small streamer who has viewed and interacted with a range of streamers over the past couple years to develop a growing understanding of the Twitch climate.  When I first found StreamBIG I was glad to see both reassuring information that agreed with my own thinking as well as interesting new topics.  Pie and I will be working together to accelerate the content on StreamBIG, so we hope you look forward to it! 

 
A Look inside my Head

I have been into video games starting from a very young age.  Despite going from a pre-med student to a graduate in game art & design to working as a cook, video games are the one thing that have persisted throughout my life.  What I think about video games, my reasons for playing them, and what I think I can contribute to the medium have evolved a lot through the years.  Recently, my attention is on the consumer end of video games, considering topics like expectation, demographics, and the vocal minority. 

For the sake of simplifying things, it’s pretty valid to think of me as Asian Pie.  We share similarities in a lot of aspects other than being the same age and sporting glasses; I’m just made of more fried rice and less height slice.  I am quite a bit more RPG and MMORPG focused but enjoy all genres of games across the board, minus FPS.  Also, this is the only place on StreamBIG where you’ll get to see this sentence.  I watch and enjoy anime.

By nature, I enjoy giving a helping hand to people so long as I feel that I am capable and relevant.  I love seeing cool ideas and honest hard work turn out results, and if I can contribute towards that success then even better.  I also enjoy sharing information particularly via writing or discussion.  I strongly believe the one thing that people often lack most is information.  More or less, these are the reasons why I chose to get myself involved.

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Launch Games Part 2: Understanding the Potential of a Launch Game

11/19/2015

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So in our last post, we discussed how launch games can have a huge impact on your stream growth. But before you randomly decide to stream a game on launch day, there are some factors to consider that determine how much influence a launch game will have on your stream.  Not all games are created equal, and that difference carries over to launch day streams.  Today, I want to explain the concept of oversaturation as well as breakdown three important points regarding launch games and their potential for promoting stream growth!  I will be comparing Splatoon and Super Mario Maker on each point for the sake of example.

Oversaturation

​Before we tackle the 3 points that separate big and small launch games, I want to address the concept of oversaturation.  I’ve touched on it before using the example of the sheer quantity of League of Legends streamers making it easy to get lost in the crowd.  Launch games are no different.  There are some games that are just incredibly crowded at launch.  One that I feel a lot of people can relate to at the time is Fallout 4.  Day 1 of launch, there were 30+ streams that had over 1k viewers.  If you’re looking to make an impact with a game like Fallout 4 and have a small viewer base, waiting a few days for the hype to die down is not a bad idea. 

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Launch Games Part 1: 5 Steps to Prepare for a Launch Stream

10/23/2015

 
In part 1 of the Importance of Game Choice, we talked about how the games you play can have a huge impact on your stream growth. When someone comes to your stream for the first time, they have no idea what kind of personality you have, so the first point of interest is the stream content.  In today’s article, I want to cover how helpful it can be to stream a game the night or day it comes out and how to go about a launch night/day stream!  I was recently able to use the launch of Super Mario Maker to take my Twitch channel from just over 44,000 followers to 56,000 in just over a month’s time. 
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New Games Mean New Viewers!

Launch night is the first chance gamers get to see extended gameplay of a new title they are interested in. With the rise of Twitch, many gamers hold off on making their purchase until they see what other gamers think about new titles. YouTube content creators have been taking advantage of this method for years.  Now with Twitch, you get a completely different angle. Instead of just passively listening to someone talk about the game, viewers now get the chance to ask questions and really figure out what makes the game great or unfortunately bad.

​Due to this quest for knowledge on new games, launch game streams have helped many streamers grow from a smaller audience to a much bigger audience overnight.  With people interested in checking out new games, they will also be willing to check out streams they have never seen before.  With more people looking to watch a new game, viewers help push that new game way up on the gaming directory.  When people see a game in the directory that’s not League of Legends, CS:GO, or Hearthstone, it catches their eye.  I myself have watched many streams that I never thought I’d check out simply because they were playing a new title, and I was interested in how the game plays.
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Super Mario Maker has helped grow a ton of streams!
​Step #1 Do Your Research!
If you haven’t researched everything about a new game before it comes out, you’re falling behind those who do. New viewers are going to want to know about the game when they come to your stream. They are going to ask you a lot of questions pertaining to the game and you’ll want to have answers.  If new viewers come to your stream on launch day and you really don’t have much to say about the game, they’ll gladly find someone else who does.  Be an expert on your game when it comes out and be ready to talk about it!

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Guest Post: Examining the Factors of a Stream-Friendly Game

9/23/2015

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A common question I hear a lot with streaming revolves around which game would be "best" to play. The game being chosen translates to a lot of things, and ultimately helps define the identity of the product.

Most large streamers will tell you that the key to finding a game to stream (and stream regularly) is to enjoy what you’re playing. That's obviously true - the key to growing your stream is consistency, and being able to have fun in the early stages is paramount.

However, there's merit in discussing the factors that tend to contribute to larger games gaining mass appeal — this column isn't to say that you should immediately choose one of these titles, but try to work it into your perfect Venn Diagram of a stream game. I try to narrow down a couple different factors that I want all to align for me; this is what I've found.

As you can see, there's three factors that I believe work into a "good" stream game (and keep in mind this is subjective): mass appeal, demand, and personal enjoyment. Ideally, you'd like to find something that fits into the overlap in the center, but that isn't required, as you can make concessions and find mid-way points as needed if you're willing to make the sacrifice.

Personal enjoyment is fairly self-explanatory, as you need to be able to play the game for a long time without getting tired of it. It needs to be something that you feel isn't a huge chore; while grinding any game can get like that after a while, you have to be able to have the base fun that allows for you to offset fatigue with other things, like stream interaction.

Mass appeal

Mass appeal refers to a number of factors that seem to make up mainstream, successful games. At the time of writing (Sept 13, 2015), the most-watched titles on Twitch look like this:

Some titles, like Super Mario Maker or Rampage Knights, represent new releases, or one large streamer playing a game. However, the others have a number of qualities that they share.

User or randomly-generated content: Ever wonder why Minecraft is so nuts on YouTube? The ability to discover new mods and try out themed playthroughs means new content with new twists every time.

This extends to games that have randomly-generated maps, monsters and loot, like Diablo III, Binding of Isaac, Spelunky or survival games like ARK: Survival Evolved. Viewers are treated to a promise that content is going to be unique every time, and they will be able to react to that randomness with the rest of the chat and their community in real time.

This reaction is essential to the live Twitch experience because sharing things with other users enhances the time spent. It also leads people to chase that "epic" moment, which leads into...

Gambling: We're seeing a number of different mobile games experiment with this model, but the "gamble" of opening cases, chests or caches has been made extremely popular with Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and the associated raffling/"jackpot" secondary industry.

Turns out, people love gambling without risking any of their own resources, and sometimes the schadenfreude of seeing someone else suffer a loss is just as satisfying as seeing them get a huge payoff. Obviously this remains up to the streamer to know their limits and how much they're willing to put up.

Developers are becoming aware of this positive feedback, and building more pseudo-gambling mechanics into their games to both serve the players and spectators with hits of dopamine. Common examples include card pack opening in Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft and "Ultimate Team" pack openings in FIFA, Madden and other sports titles; the tense moments before the payoff can be got through in-game achievement or by paying for packs.

The caveat with these streams is sometimes they become less about the game being played and more about the act of gambling. Remember that it's highly unlikely that you'll be able to make a huge stream following just by dumping a bunch of money into cases, because your stream is all about producing epic moments, and the house will likely always win.

Nostalgia: These games have an inherent value to a lot of people due to them being "classics." This doesn't just apply to things like Super Mario 64, or Ocarina of Time: every game that has had a reasonably big audience can qualify for nostalgia points, and seeing it played in a different way can open a lot of eyes.

A good example is Super Metroid: the game has a very high skill cap, and so many people have played it that there's a large built-in fanbase. However, older games may lack moments of randomness or reasons to replay them, leading into our last point...

Demand/Niche

Judging demand is the ability to give people a reason to watch your stream and become involved with your community. You want people to become invested in your stream, and feel like they're a part of something. Look at your stream as a service: always constantly look to create value for people watching.

Look at big streamers and the value they create:

  • - Are they really good at the game they play? If so, do they explain it well, or is that greatness just entertaining to watch?

  • - Are they reliably entertaining?

  • - Are they doing something unique?

  • - Do they have a secondary talent, like cosplay, contests, giveaways?

Essentially, you need to ask yourself a tough question: "why would people want to stick around my stream?"

Also, you need to consider how easily your value can be replicated by other people. This is why pro eSports players or speedrunners often have a built-in value that makes starting up streaming simpler: their experience is not easily copied without a large time commitment that not everyone has the dedication for.

It's also what makes case-opening streams hard to start up: there are people who do it better, and without some extreme creativity it will be unlikely that you can replicate it to a degree that will pull loyalists away. In the same vein, if you're trying to break into a huge game (say, League of Legends), you will have much more competition than something niche.

It all comes back to the original point: you should be streaming a game because you enjoy it. However, being cognisant of the factors that some games bigger than others will help you find a sweet spot.

Good writers do a lot of reading, and good streamers should do a lot of watching; even if it isn't to your taste, examining what makes successful streamers successful from an outside perspective will help inform your decisions and help you grow your community.

Matt Demers writes about video games and streams them on Twitch. You can follow him on Twitter.

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    About The Founder -
    Iateyourpie

    I'm a 32 Year Old Full Time Streamer most known for speedrunning. I love interacting with viewers and helping people reach their goals with streaming!

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