Tooshi’s Top 10 Streaming Tips
1- Picking the game
*Everyone gives this tip, but they do so because it’s important. Make sure you enjoy the game you are playing. If you’re enjoying yourself you are more enjoyable to watch and chat with, and you tend to stream a lot longer too!
*Pick a game that gives you many opportunities to talk/interact with chat, these games are more stream friendly. Avoid games that need your full attention 100% of the time.
*Biggest mistake you can make is streaming in oversaturated game directories.
*A niche, less known game will provide more growth than a well known game, when starting streaming.
*A technique I see a lot of streamers doing is what I like to call playing the directory.
2- Talking
*Project your voice
*The more you project your voice, the stronger your vocal cords will become
*Start up conversations with your viewers
*Tell stories, go on long tangents, talk about things people can relate to (Ex: Food, Games, and Streaming)
*Read message out loud (paraphase) when answering someone
*reinforce positive comments/questions, by saying it was a good comment/question
3- Do NOT over invest in equipment!
*Fake tips -buy 100+ dollar microphone, webcam, green screen, ect… Having thousands of dollars of streaming equipment does not help start a channel, it helps already established channels content quality.
*Real tips -Get a basic webcam and microphone, get the webcam close to your face so they can see your reactions. Do not underestimate the power of a cheap mic stand/arm, a condenser mic under a foot from your mouth as compared to 2+ feet, is a world of difference.
4- Layout tips
*Maximize game size, while maintaining aspect ratio.
*Avoid scrolling text if you can
*Don’t have dead space (even artwork I consider deadspace, only have it if integral to the stream theme and necessary)
*Get your webcam close to your face so people can see your emotions, don’t have dead background unless integral to your streams persona/theme
*Don’t use break screens for short breaks
If you leave the stream for a bit, have the game music running, or play some music.
5- If you receive a raid, host, or your stream has an influx of viewers, tell people about yourself, explain what you are doing, and periodically tell people when you are going to be live next!
6- Networking
*Get to know other streamers with similar interests
*Make friends
*Get involved in communities
*If you can afford it, events you can travel to do a great deal making new friends, strengthen old ones, and motivate you to stream more.
*Get help from your fans! Many fans will help you out if you just ask! Whether it be making a chat bot, artwork, or highlighting videos.
*Do a giveaway. Using gleam you can have people enter by following all your social media, aka twitch, twitter, youtube
7- Common mistakes
* Do NOT stream at 1080p HD as a non partner, I would recommend 1200 bitrate/480p/30fps because else you are limiting your audience! Maximum 2200 bitrate/720p/30fps
*Turn on past broadcast saving
*Don’t go to crazy on text on both your stream, and your panels.
8- Dedication
* Putting in tons of hours is the crucial to growing a stream.
* Streaming at the same times everyday is a great way to hold viewership.
* If you get a raid/host, or just have lots of viewers, be prepared to stream for as long as you possibly can, provided your stream is still being entertaining, and not falling asleep and/or not talking.
*If you have a whole day free, consider doing a marathon, they a basically always successful.
9- Changing it up
*Try to bring something new to the table. Doesn’t have to be something drastic, or big, but just something that will separate you a little.
*It’s important to change things up a bit every once and awhile, don’t be afraid to change something in your channel!
*One big mistake I see people do is get play only one game until they get so burnt out on it that they stop playing it and switch to a new game, and drop the old one completely. What you want to do is slowly diverge from your current game into a new game for a seamless transition, this could take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks just depends on your situation. Start the change before you are burnt out!
10-
The most important thing for streaming is not the settings, equipment, layouts, notifications, or social media. It’s hitting that “Start Stream” button! No Excuses!