As millions of people are drawn in by the Twitch craze, many are starting to wonder how to quickly become a Twitch affiliate. Twitch is an online platform for live streaming video games, but has expanded beyond gaming.
The streaming site was created in 2011 by Justin Kan and Emmet Shear. From 2007 to 2011 Justin Kan had hosted a show called Justin.TV, but with the success of Twitch, Kan’s channel has since become focused on streaming video games. The one thing you need to do to make Twitch your career is to tune in to the channel often. You can sign up through Twitch’s website, but you are not able to start broadcasting until you are 13 years old. To become an affiliate, it is recommended that you
Twitch has a few requirements you need to meet before you will quality for affiliate: 50 followers, at least 500 total minutes broadcast, 7 unique broadcast days, and 3 or more constant average viewers.
Streaming on Twitch to Achieve Affiliate Status
Over the past few years, Twitch has skyrocketed in popularity. It’s now one of the most popular websites in the world, with users in over two thousand countries. The site has also become a major player in the gaming industry, generating $2 billion in revenue in 2020.
To get even more in-depth, in 2017 it was estimated that there were around 2 million active Twitch users.
So, how do you become a Twitch Affiliate? You might be thinking, “well, it’s too late to sign up now”, but that’s not the case. It’s actually relatively easy to sign up for Twitch and become an affiliate. But, you’ll need to be streaming quite often, so make sure you have enough free time.
Engaging Your Chat While Streaming
Setting up an account on Twitch is just the first step. Then you need to know how to set up your stream. Then, you need some followers. Some of the most common ways to get followers are Twitch chat giveaways, having an active chat on your stream, or by donating.
Be sure to be asking you chat questions a lot, as chatters love to voice their opinions and respond. You can also offer your followers rewards for certain activities. For example, you might reward chat participants with points that can be exchanged for gear or exclusive content.
You also need to grow your audience on Twitch. If you’re just starting out, then it’s best to collaborate with someone else who already has an audience on Twitch—even if it’s a small, tight-knit community.
Have Fun & Connect with Fellow Gamers
Your main goal in being a Twitch streamer is to have fun and make a name for yourself in the community. You can also make a living or bring in a lot of money from your Twitch channel.
I recommend hanging out and chatting in other small streams that play the same game as you. You can then connect with these streamers and collaborate in the future. For instance, you can meet a few streamers through the Twitch directory and decide to play a show together.
Twitch Schedule
Some say that your Twitch schedule is very important, and it is. Your community needs to know when you will be online, so they can always be there. Many streamers schedule their chat with the Twitch Desktop App. There is no perfect time so you can start anytime.
The best time to stream on Twitch might be during US Prime Time, but you’ll have to experiment to see what your audience likes. I recommend trying to stream at least three times a week at the same time. And if you aren’t getting viewers in the timeframe, try streaming at a different time of day.
How Much Do Twitch Affiliates Make?
There are a lot of ways to make money on the internet. If you’re looking for an alternative form of income and you’re passionate about games and games culture, Twitch Affiliate is a great place to start.
Streamers make money a few ways: donations, ads, subscriptions, and bits. Twitch splits sub revenue 50/50 with affiliates, so you’ll always make the most from donations and bits. There are different tiers for subs. Here’s the payout for each:
- Tier 1 and Twitch Prime Subscriptions: $2.50
- Tier 2 Subscriptions: $5.00
- Tier 3 Subscriptions: $12.50
Bits are equivalent to $0.01, but most cheers on Twitch are around 100 bits, so expect to make around $1 per cheer from chat.
Unfortunately, at first, you won’t make much as a new Twitch affiliate. On average, I would estimate that most Twitch affiliates make around $100 per month streaming occasionally.
One of the cool things about being a Twitch affiliate, however, is that there are many ways to build up your audience and gain followers. Affiliates have a large incentive to do this because a lot of affiliates can actually make a ton of money and eventually become a Twitch Partner.
Getting three concurrent viewers can be tough. I would say it’s important to play a popular game, but one that a lot of people aren’t playing at the time. When users of Twitch go to the explore page to find a streamer, you want to stick out so they click on your stream.
Play a game that you enjoy. I didn’t really enjoy Overwatch when I first played it, but I loved playing it once I saw my first chatter. Once I started to have fun while streaming, my viewer count really picked up.
The key truly is enjoying yourself, and showing it on your stream. Keep trying new things. Chatting is only one of the many things you can do while streaming on Twitch.
If you clearly don’t enjoy doing it, try something else. You may love it! Find your style. Each streamer on Twitch has a unique personality. Your viewers will definitely appreciate it if you are true to yourself!
Update your streaming equipment
If you haven’t purchased your equipment yet, check out our article on the best cameras for streaming on Twitch. I use an SL2 currently, but you don’t need a fancy DSLR when you start. The Logitech C920 is a great webcam for beginning streamers.