I recently had an experience while watching a streamer on Twitch that I would like to share. I am not going to name the person or go into too many details because I don’t want to drag them down. My goal is simply to encourage other streamers to consider how their stream looks from the viewer’s perspective.
Not Being Prepared
The streamer started his stream on time with a monologue, during which he talked for a while before starting to play a game. The length of the monologue varied, and viewers didn’t know when or if he would start playing.
On the night that Elden Ring was released, the streamer claimed that he was excited to play the game. He said that he was going to role-play and solo kill all the things, and he made it clear that he would not be playing multiplayer. In order for both players to get credit for boss fights, they would have to do them twice, back-to-back. This was not a good viewing experience for viewers, as they would have to watch the same fight twice. However, the streamer soon realized that he had made a grave error: he had never installed Elden Ring because he forgot to buy the game.
After watching the streamer for 45 minutes as he bought and installed Elden Ring, the game didn’t recognize his controller. This led to another 45 minutes of troubleshooting before he decided to play with keyboard and mouse. By this time, he had been live for 2 hours with no actual game play.
I left the stream for about 10 minutes to get some snacks. When I came back, instead of doing the role-play he had promised, the streamer was now playing in multiplayer mode with one of his gaming buddies, who apparently insisted on playing Elden Ring together. It’s important to note that the streamer had previously said that he would not be playing multiplayer, and he had even discussed this with his friend a few days earlier.
This is one of the many mistakes I see streamers make on Twitch. They range from:
- Not starting on time.
- Do too many sponsored segments.
- Play too many ads during their stream, or have ads block things on the screen.
- Play games they’re not interested in, which means they’re not putting on a good show.
- Not following through with the promises they made to viewers (like playing a certain game at a specific time/day).
- Going into a rage when chat points out technical issues, like not being able to hear anything (and this is when chat is being nice).
- Having animations that block gameplay and play sound effects appear on the screen every time someone subscribed or renewed their subscription.
- Begging for money, to the point where they guilt viewers into financially supporting them.
Successful streamers on Twitch don’t do the things that I’ve described in this list. In my opinion, streamers who do these things don’t respect their viewers’ time, and they take advantage of those who are willing to put up with their poor behavior.
I’m Starting to Appreciate TV More
Imagine a situation where you are trying to watch a TV show that was supposed to start at 8pm. You are there on time, but 2 hours later, the show still has not started. Instead, the streamer expects viewers to enjoy watching them troubleshoot problems with their equipment or game. And during this time, a huge image pops up on the screen every time someone gives the streamer money. When the show finally starts, it is not what was advertised. And even if you are a subscriber, you still have to watch ads because the streamer displays company logos on the screen throughout the stream. This situation is similar to what I experienced on Twitch.
Most viewers would have left in this situation and likely expressed their frustration on the internet. The streamers that I mentioned earlier wouldn’t put up with this either. Why? Because they rant all the time about how shows could be better, and how they stopped watching something because of poor quality. They don’t apply the same quality standards to themselves as they do to others. It is no surprise that the streamers with high viewer numbers do not do this.
If these streamers took the time to watch their own shows, they would realize why they don’t retain new viewers and why their viewer numbers are stagnant. By paying attention to the quality of their content and considering their viewers’ experience, they could improve their streams and potentially attract more viewers.
