How you can become a Professional Streamer?
Streaming has been a way of entertaining people for years. It can be everything from playing video games to going out in real life with a camera to stream your everyday life or activities with friends. You may even have your own favorite streamer.
Popular streamers began to rise when people began streaming themselves playing various games for fun years back, but as time went by this became a career path for the most dedicated streamers. Most successful streamers are now able to earn large amounts of money while entertaining people and creating their own brand.
We will begin learning about the streaming carousel, take a look at some of the best streamers out there, and learn some useful tips and tricks about how to get started. Streaming can be done in very simple ways, but it can also be an advanced high-quality production where several things have to be in order to succeed.
What exactly is a professional streamer?
The easiest way to explain a “professional streamer” is someone who makes a living off live broadcasting games, music, art, live content, and more. Back in the days, streaming was all about games, but over the last couple of years, we have seen new streamers trend all over the web with a lot of other activities.
Even though gaming streams are still the biggest thing, we now see big “IRL(in real life) streamers” who take their audience with them in their everyday life, just like a vlog, but live video with a live chat to communicate with.
Another big trend is the “just chatting” streamers who are simply just streaming themselves with a camera while talking to their audience. These streamers usually have a loyal community that tunes in every day to hang out and talk about whatever comes to mind.
Lastly, we have the game streams. Streaming games has been a thing for a long time, but it hasn’t always been a real career path. Now we see some of the biggest gamers pull in 30-35 thousand average viewers while playing games.
A full-time streamer is usually an entertainer who streams various games, such as Ninja and XQC, or professional players that stick to only one game like Doublelift, Bjergsen or S1mple. Today you find a variety of streamers from women streamers, family streamers, and even animated streamers.
What is the best streaming platform?
Picking a streaming service to set up your streaming channel is the first really important thing if you want to get into streaming. We all know Twitch, but some other platforms are actually on the rise. The following list will give a short introduction to some of the biggest platforms out there.
Twitch
Twitch.tv is the current king of streaming platforms and has been for several years. Twitch was launched back in 2011 as a place for gamers to stream. Since then a lot has happened and now Twitch is the main hub for gamers, artists, musicians, and a variety of different streamers. In 2014 Twitch was acquired by Amazon for $940 million.
Twitch is by far the biggest streaming platform, which means that it is also the one with the most competition between streamers. There is no doubt that getting started on Twitch can be difficult and it takes something special to break through on the platform.
Mixer
Mixer is one of the new kids on the block, even though the site has existed since 2016. The site is owned by Microsoft and was made to be a real competitor for Twitch. Despite several years in the game, Mixer still hasn’t made its big break-through yet, but with deals with big streamers like Ninja and Shroud, it is starting to get somewhere.
Mixer might be a good place to start a streaming channel since the number of streamers is not that high, and it is easier to make a name for yourself on the platform. With that said, you have to keep in mind that the traffic on the website is pretty low, which will be reflected in the viewer numbers.
Youtube Gaming
YouTube is a website that everyone knows and has been using at some point in their life. YouTube has always been known for videos but recently they really started to get a grip on the streaming side of the business, with the YouTube Gaming section.
YouTube Gaming is a great place to stream, especially if you already have a YouTube channel, or want to have one. We are already starting to see big streamers go towards YouTube instead of Twitch, but there is still a long way to go before they can compete with Twitch.
Facebook Gaming
Just like YouTube, we also see Facebook getting into streaming with their gaming section. It has been possible to stream on Facebook for a long time, but it wasn’t before that gamers started to use the site for real. Facebook has gotten a lot of criticism for their streaming business since the social network’s identity is very far from gaming. Despite that, we have seen big Counter-Strike tournaments partnering up with Facebook Gaming, but without much success.
Streaming on Facebook currently seems like a gamble, but it might be worth it in the end. Facebook has already shown that they are already making deals with big Twitch streamers to come stream on their platform.
What you need to start streaming
Getting into streaming is really simple and doesn’t take a fancy stream setup to get started. You can essentially start streaming with just a phone and good wi-fi, that is pretty all you need for your streaming setup.
Most people want to stream through their PC, and if that is the case you will need a bit more gear, but nothing out of the ordinary. With a decent PC, internet connection, and a microphone you are good to go, everything from there will only provide a smoother streaming experience of your audience and your chances of getting loyal fans.
People who want to take streaming seriously might want to invest in the following gear:
A desktop PC
Mouse and keyboard
A gaming headset with a good microphone or an external microphone for good audio quality
A webcam or a high-depth camera for better quality
Stream deck and/or a mixer to control sound and overlays
The right streaming software
Fast internet connection
Keep in mind that these things are not necessary for the beginning, but might be things that you want to invest in to improve the quality of the stream.
The best streaming software
Credit: Streamlabs
To stream, you will need some streaming software that enables you to broadcast your screen. There are several different software out there that you can use, and in the end, it is all a matter of taste.
The most popular software has been Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) for a long time and is currently used by several big streamers. The software is great because it enables you to get the perfect layout, and switch between screens and sources without much trouble. The software isn’t necessarily the easiest to use from the start but you will get the hang of it after a tutorial or two.
The most popular software currently has to be Streamlabs. Streamlabs is fairly new compared to OBS and is getting picked up by more people each day. The software is great just like OBS, but might be more user-friendly to some people. Streamlabs is currently used by more than 15 million users and has truly taken over the throne from OBS.
Streamlabs also has a great interface for all donations and subscribers, which enables the streamer to keep a good overview of the people who support the stream.
Streamlabs also has great software for mobile, which makes it really easy to stream on the go with just your phone. According to Streamlabs, they currently have 480,000 streamers using their mobile app.
How to grow your stream
Getting into the streaming life is easy, but growing your stream is not. Streaming has become a mainstream thing to do and that means a lot of new streamers are trying to grow big every day.
The competition is enormous, so how do you actually make it all the way?
A successful debut
You can do a lot of different things to get a successful debut. The first thing you have to consider is what type of streamer you want to be while keeping in mind that you have to stand out.
Everyone can get into game streaming, but if you do it the exact same way as everyone else you won’t stand out. You can either pick a popular game or pick your favorite games that you are good at and try to win over some smaller communities.
With that said, being good at a game isn’t always enough. Plenty of people are streaming League of Legends on a high level, but that doesn’t mean they get a lot of viewers. When streaming big games, you have to include some personality or make original events on your stream that people have never seen before.
A success story: Ninja
A great example is Ninja. Ninja used to be a Halo player who streamed for years without anyone really knowing who he was until Fortnite came out. Ninja recognized that Fortnite was a trending game and took advantage of it. He started to play the game seriously as one of its first major streamers and became a Fortnite professional gamer.
Besides getting good at the game, Ninja realized that he had to create a character that would make people interested on a personal level so it wasn’t his Fortnite skills only. Ninja created his “persona” where he would always wear a ninja headband, and do funny dances whenever he won games.
These two simple, but important things, made Ninjas Twitch channel blow up on a level that the streaming world had never seen before. The success led to him playing with big stars like Drake and Marshmello and developing a dedicated following all over the world.
Maintaining a steady schedule
Maintaining a steady schedule is probably the easiest thing to do, but also the most important. If you want to be relevant as a streamer it is a must to stream consistently so the viewer flow keeps improving.
Streamers who are only streaming once or twice per week can have decent success, but they most likely never will have a large following or be able to make a solid living of it. The top streamers are usually the most dedicated ones who stream for several hours most days of the week.
A consistent schedule will prove that you are a loyal streamer that all your loyal viewers can count on each day at a specific time. It also allows you to get more viewers, that will hopefully end up coming back every time the stream is on.
Building a community is obviously not as easy as it sounds, and it requires a lot of patience when you are a streamer. Most people will start all the way at the bottom with no viewers and will have to grind for hours to reach an acceptable amount of followers, but it is without a doubt necessary.
Streaming communities
Growing a stream is not something that you should do alone, because it will prove to be a lot of hard work. You have to get involved in a streaming community and build up a network between you and other streamers who are in the same boat as you. Obviously, your stream is built on viewers, but other streamers can also be helpful with your channel’s growth.
There are plenty of different communities out there and they can be found through Discord, Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, and other online sources. The only limitation will be yourself and the amount of energy you put into this networking process.
Getting involved with streaming communities might get you new friendships, or just a general insight into what other streamers are doing that you can get inspiration from – without directly copying their work of course.
We often see some of the bigger streamers hang out with people who also stream. They do this because they are friends, but it probably all started because they made an effort to get to know other streamers within the several streaming communities.
Now they have solid friendships, but they also have connections to people that are in the same business, and therefore have opportunities to collaborate and combine their viewer base in a way that benefits both streamers.
If you are ready to begin streaming then be sure to read our other articles to advance your knowledge so you can be a streaming superstar! Be sure to share this article with your friends and social media followers so they can help you in your journey too.
Created by Vejvad & Dan
