The Streaming Grind and Who Are These Streamers Part 30

If you are new to streaming or a streamer who is struggling to get viewership and views you will come across a number that will tell you “grind more” or just “grind” your way to viewership, but I don’t subscribe to this theory that you can “work harder” to suddenly and magically make viewers appear in your stream.  Instead I subscribe to the “work smarter” method where you analyze and grow from dissecting your streams and then see where you can go from there.  Do split testing, try streaming 1 week on one schedule and another week slightly adjusting schedule, then analyze the insights to see if a difference is noticed.  Stream a different game but not once, do it for a few days, get some insights to see if a different game has a better draw.  Try a few Just Chatting streams or start off with Just Chatting and be creative, invite conversation, banter and discussion.  Try some streaming participation games like Stream Captain Stream Raiders which can bring in it’s own people to just participate even if just to level up their units they may stick around and become fans.  Set sub goals and clearly display them, do event streams to generate excitement and promote your streams on social media at least a few days ahead of time to build buzz for your event stream.  Make it an event when you are gonna play a new game, or go for an achievement in a game, invite people to watch you and see if you will fail or succeed.  Invite backseat gaming which tends to draw people who either like providing feedback telling you what to do in a game, or those who criticize what you are doing wrong in a game, either way it is engagement and gets viewership and don’t get discouraged.  Also you can be a successful streamer from a PlayStation 4, Xbox One or Gaming PC, it doesn’t matter what you stream from and many streamers can get popular without a webcam but it is harder to display personality without a webcam and I think the merits of the games itself count more in many cases unless you have a really good avatar.

What most streamers don’t realize is that being a Twitch streamer is really no different than being an entrepreneur where you are the brand and you are trying to build clientele and sell a product, in this case the product is you and the entertainment you provide.  So learning about marketing, upselling, SEO and phrasing for maximizing titles is important.  Developing business and marketing skills even from free classes and YouTube videos is a great way to help think of new ways to market and promote yourself.  I do not think it is enough and the “just stream and they will come” is a hit/miss luck at best kind of thing, unless you are a pro in a game and can do speed run records, or have an excellent skill set that people would watch just to learn from you then you really have to make your mark.  Expand your social media presence like wild, as the more social following you have the more potential audience you have to entice to visit your stream and entertain this includes building following on Twitter, Facebook, Gaming Tribe, Instagram, Tik-Tok (while it lasts), Pinterest, Tumblr, Reddit).  Join the various Facebook Groups and be engaging/interesting, don’t just ask for follow for follow or lurk for lurk.  Instead tell people about you, tell a story, be entertainment, be remembered.

Nobody gets remember for just saying “Going live playing XXX come join me”, instead tell a story, and remember the Who, What, Why, Where and How and pack it into a 2-3 sentence top that generates the emotion you want to invoke in people.  Get them ready for some frights in a scary game, or some laughs in a fun Jackbox Party game…etc.

Throw me some pitches in the comments on some of your best and most engaging streams, I want to hear you sell your stream and yourself.

Now, on to this weeks streamers which include:

AirConda

My name is Anthony, I am an Active Duty Military variety streamer who cannot stick to just one game. I stream more as a hobby to have fun and hangout with people who share my interests. I would love to explain the method to my madness and how I came to be.

How did I get the name AirConda? Well it evolved over the years which is a fairly long story but to keep it short I will just start with the inspiration behind it. As I stated earlier, I am AD Military currently serving in the US Air Force for about 15 years now. At my first Duty Assignment in Japan I ran into the issue of everyone pronouncing my last name as “Anaconda” because they weren’t sure how to actually pronounce it. So for almost 3 years I was known as Airman Anaconda.

This lead to my gamertag on Xbox eventually changing to AirConda as a tribute to that time. It was on the Xbox One, when it released, where I discovered Twitch and the world of streaming. This gave birth to my channel today.

The games I tend to play are of all sorts. I play Ark, Satisfactory, Deep Rock Galactic, War Thunder, Hell Let Loose, Tank Mechanic Simulator, and TheHunter: Call of the Wild… Like I said, I am all over the place with my games. But I game to have fun and I stream to share the fun with others.

I do strive to grow my Twitch Channel as well as my YouTube Channel but it is more of a hobby than a job. To me, it is all about the love of gaming and sharing it with others like me. Which is what has lead me to the content creator community that I am most active in, Regiment. They are a community of Active, Guard, Reserve, Veterans, and their family that all love to game and streaming. They are associated with and a branch of the professional esports organization, ElevateGG.

I am by no means a gamer on the level of professional esports but Regiment is still the perfect org for me. A bunch of people who can all connect with our love of gaming, questions of streaming, and our history in the military.

Gaming isn’t the only thing I stream. I also host a podcast with my good friend JD (TheMindKiller) who is a Navy Veteran that I’ve met in Japan and known for my entire time in. The Podcast is live every Wednesday at 8pm EST and is call Not The Worst Podcast (We may be the worst you’ve ever heard, but you have heard of us!” – is our slogan). We talk about gaming news and topics, pop culture subjects, and military topics to include some news stories. We just started about 4 months ago. We have a lot of fun with it as JD and I banter back and forth a lot and use our differences in personalities, as well as our similarities, to our advantage.

What makes my channel interesting and worth the watch? It can be anything really. My ability to have fun and joke on myself for being bad at a game, the joking around with my brother and military friends whenever we are in discord together, the podcast, talking about issues like depression and anxiety (being there for my viewers) *I am no professional, just like to talk*, the games I play, and sadly… the times I may lose my cool at a game and rage a bit. That last one I’m not proud of but people sometimes have fun with it.

Why should anyone want to watch my stream? Simple answer? To share the love of gaming and hanging with friends. As I said earlier, I play to have fun and stream to share that fun. I like to game, hangout, and chat. Streaming allows me to do all 3 quite easily. I’ve met some pretty awesome people because of it too. Streaming is an experience. I want to use my differences as an individual to make it unique and I hope to help someone have good time along the way.

Lastly, I will finish with my schedule for this one is bit of a tough one. With my job, being newly married this year, and my wife’s job, I am not always able to have a set schedule to stream. Honestly it is one of my biggest hindrances to my growth. Work keeps me busy and I will always put my personal life before gaming/streaming. I love my wife with all my heart and don’t want to take unnecessary time away from her. She is a Registered Nurse so our time is limited during the week with her working 12s sporadically throughout the week, I get to only stream sporadically throughout the week. So my schedule depends on 3 things. How buys I am at work, the days my wife work, and if it will interfere with any plans that I’ve made with my wife.

Good news is, her schedule is supposed to become more consistent in the near future so I am hoping to have a posted schedule for my streams. Until then, they will remain at random.

I want to end with saying thank you for considering me for this. I am not sure what brought you guys to my channel or made you interested in picking me, but I am grateful none the less and I apologize for it being a bit wordy…. I’ve been known to never being able to keep anything short!

You can find AirConda also at: Twitch | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | | YouTube

Watch live video from airconda on Twitch

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Eravander

I am a father of two, lifelong gamer in all its mediums, urban fantasy author, and Necromancer. Eravander began as a Dungeons and Dragons character, then I brought him to life at LARP, and now it is my online handle in all things. The character is a charismatic, twisted, and friendly Necromancer with strong ideals that may not always line up with others expectation. I try to embody the friendliness and dark sense of humor while sharing my passion for gaming with my community. I began streaming on Twitch about two years ago where I quickly affiliated and gathered a small viewership before having my son, at which point taking care of him took priority. Now that he and my daughter are a bit older, I have found the time to pick things back up and I am working on rebuilding my community. I am a variety streamer that loves to play off the beaten path games and mix in big names. The latest being Fallout 76, Kingdoms of Amalur: reckoning, Borderlands 3, and Escape from Tarkov. I stream every weeknight from 7pm to 11pm Eastern time and foster an open, supportive chat where we specialize in weird conversations and fun times. I may be a software developer by day, but I am a dreamer by night and I dream of writing a best seller and streaming full time one day. So come watch as I plan out a love story between a bard school dropout and an undead corporate lawyer while exploring the games that inspire me.

You can find Eravander also at: Twitch | Twitter | Patreon

Watch live video from Eravander on Twitch

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BluDruw

Hey guys, my name is Andruw, or Druw for short, I’m 23, have been serving in the national guard for 5 going on 6 years. I currently work two jobs to support myself, my brother, and my granny who I live with. I really want to make it big doing the thing I love most and have a lot of passion in and that playing video games and streaming it to the world. I’ve been streaming since February 25th 2020, so I’m relatively new. However, I’ve be playing video games since I was a little kid. I remember the first game I ever played was Adventure for the Atari Flashback. It was mind-blowing and set me off on video games. Currently I stream a variety of games ranging from American Truck Simulator all the way to Valorant and Modern Warfare, and any game in between. Like I said I love streaming and making everyone’s day a little bit better.

You can find BluDruw also at: Twitch | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Discord

Watch live video from bludruw on Twitch 

Shalalagirl

I am a former commercial model, voiceover actress, and Disney entertainer. Currently earning my M.A. in Clinical Counseling and providing therapeutic services.

I am the CEO and founder of the nonprofit organization, A Home 4 Art. Here, I provide art, music, drama, and literary programs to impoverished youth. I am a children’s book and YA author at The Barrie Patch, which I founded in 2014. My books and game applications aim to inspire, encourage, and motivate young minds.

Moreover, I am a certified Reiki, Meditation, Hypnosis, and Life Regression Therapy, practitioner. I am currently working towards an additional certification in Expressive Arts Therapy.

I have also recently partnered with the Fierce Women Project as a live Instagram co-host for VisionBookMondays. For more details please view my most recent Media Interviews, which can be found on my websites and YouTube channel.

In my free time, you can find me hanging out with my soulmate, writing, building websites, or trying to learn new languages and instruments.

Location: Sunny Florida
Height: 5’4″
Pets: 2 Meows – Jinx and Salem

For any other inquires please contact me at my email: TwitchGirlShalala@gmail.com

You can find twitch.tv/shalalagirl also at: Twitch | Instagram

Watch live video from shalalagirl on Twitch 

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KCisSICKnasty

I’m KC. (: I stream on Twitch. I try to focus on games I’ve missed out on from my childhood because I was poor. Every Wednesday, I play Minecraft and every Thursday, I play Dungeons & Dragons. Monday I devote to playing multiplayer games, preferably with viewers. Every other day of the week, I’m playing something random. Weekdays I play at night, and weekends I’m usually on around noon. I’ve wanted to do gaming videos since the old days of YouTube, but never could financially start. Decided to make Twitch my home, and have been trying to make something out of it. It’s been a climb, but I’m dedicated to organically gaining viewers and chatting with people. :D Few games I’ve been trying to complete lately are Psychonauts, Luigi’s Mansion 3, and if I ever get back around to it, the OG FF7. Well, that’s pretty much it. You can learn more about me on stream. ;D

You can find KCisSICKnasty also at: Twitch | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

Watch live video from KCisSICKnasty

Watch live video from KCisSICKnasty on Twitch