Your Guide to Twitch Influencer Marketing
April 1st, 2024
When you hear the word influencer marketing, what’s the first platform that comes to your mind?
Probably Facebook or Instagram.
And while Facebook and Instagram are some of the hottest platforms for influencer marketing, it looks like Twitch could be the next big thing in influencer marketing.
Twitch is a video streaming platform where brands pay influencers to market their products in the most engaging way possible. In 2022, Twitch became a huge sensation with $2.8 billion in revenue. Since then, these numbers have been growing, so you might want to start leveraging its market’s potential.
In this article, you’ll:
- See how Twitch works.
- Discover some of the best marketing influencers on Twitch.
- Understand how you can use it for your brand visibility.
- Learn the best practices for Twitch.
What is Twitch and why has it gained so much popularity?
Twitch is where people watch live videos or stream themselves doing what they love—mainly playing video games. It was launched on June 6, 2011, and now it’s part of Amazon Inc. Simply put, it has come a long way since then.
As of January 2024, about 8.36 million people were streaming on Twitch.
Originally, people would go there to watch others play games, learn some tricks, or just hang out and chat while someone else played. Over time, it started to include more types of video content.
Now, you can find people making art, cooking, or just chatting about their day—so it’s not all about gaming anymore.
This change has made Twitch popular and greatly impacted the whole live-streaming world. Many people now like to use Twitch because they can interact with the streamers in real-time through chat. It makes watching videos a lot more fun and personal.
How does Twitch work?
Now, you might wonder, ‘Why is there so much hype around this platform?’ Well, Twitch has a smart algorithm that keeps its audience engaged. Like YouTube and Facebook, it monitors the types of live streams you’ve watched before and suggests similar streams based on your interests.
While watching a stream, you can chat with the streamer and other viewers live. Next to the live video, there’s an option to type messages and join the conversation. It’s a great way to:
- Ask the streamer questions.
- Make new friends.
- Share your opinions about the game.
The streamer can see and respond to your messages—so you feel you’re all hanging out together. This experience creates a community-level interaction.
Is Twitch free for viewers?
Yes, Twitch is free for viewers. You can hop on Twitch, find your favorite channels, and watch live streams without paying a dime. However, you can subscribe to your favorite streamers.
Subscribing is like giving a thumbs-up to the streamer and saying, ‘I appreciate what you’re doing and want to keep watching your content.’ When you subscribe, you get special chat badges, emotes, and access to subscriber-only chat rooms.
Earning through Twitch – is it even possible?
Many streamers earn a good amount of money through Twitch’s Affiliate programs.
Here’s a more interesting part:
Streamers can save broadcasts as Videos On Demand (VODs) for later viewing and create clips of their favorite moments. Viewers watch these VODs or create short clips from their favorite moments.
When such clips reach a wider audience, the streamer gets noticed and earns more views, ultimately multiplying income.
⚡ More views = More support and earnings.
It has a couple of monetization options for popular streamers like:
- Cheering with bits: Viewers use Twitch’s Bits currency to cheer on their favorite streamers or make direct donations.
- Subscriptions: Viewers can subscribe to their favorite streamers’ channels for a monthly fee.
- Ad revenue: Streamers earn money from advertisements played during their streams. However, these earnings are based on total views.
- Hype chat: Viewers purchase hype chats to pin their message on top for a set period. They can pay in multiple currencies, but streamers receive revenue in USD.
Influencer marketing on Twitch
Now you know how many amazing features Twitch gives its streamers. This is a great opportunity for brands like yours to use their audience for your benefit. You can pay these influencers to market your products to younger demographics, gamers, and stream lovers.
This could be done through creative partnerships, live streams, or sharing branded content.
Here are some brands that used Twitch influencer marketing the right way:
The Hershey Company with Ninja and DrLupo
Hershey is a chocolate manufacturing company. They partnered with Ninja and DrLupo—the most popular streamers on Twitch to introduce Reese’s Pieces chocolate bar.
When these influencers started promoting Reese’s Pieces on their streams, everyone watching wanted to grab a bar, too. That’s how Hershey’s introduced Reese’s chocolate bar to millions of viewers.
Uber Eats with Ninja
Uber Eats also came up with a super fun idea to excite people about ordering food while enjoying their favorite games. They asked Ninja to play Fortnite—one of the most-played games in the world.
Ok, that challenge was legit! Excited to officially announce my partnership with @UberEats! If you missed it, don’t worry – I’ve got a special offer for fans watching my stream all night: https://t.co/ihHdf0ctL0 Pumped to be part of the @UberEats squad. #ad pic.twitter.com/UrDIuXx5Uv
— Ninja (@Ninja) July 1, 2018
And here’s the twist—every time Ninja killed a character in the game, viewers would get 1% off their Uber Eats order. What made it more interesting was the challenge that Ninja was given.
He had a time limit to start the game only when he placed his order with Uber Eats, and he could earn rewards until his food was delivered right to his doorstep.
Ninja successfully won a 25% off coupon for his fans, while Uber Eats got to promote itself.
South Park with Jeriicho
South Park wanted to spread the word about their game, so they teamed up with Jeriicho, a gamer who keeps things fun and exciting. He played the game for the first time on his stream.
This introduced South Park’s game to his millions of followers.
Ubisoft with Lirik
Ubisoft wanted to promote Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege game and attract more gamers. They knew Lirik, with his big following and love for action-packed games, was the perfect match.
Watching Lirik play the game, share tips, and genuinely enjoy it made his viewers curious and eager to try it themselves. As a result, Ubisoft attracted many new customers.
Using Twitch influencer marketing to grow your brand
Are you wondering how profitable Twitch can be for your marketing campaigns? If yes, then you first have to understand how influencer marketing works on Twitch.
Find the right influencer
When choosing influencers, think about more than their follower count. Look for streamers who share your brand’s values and have an audience that would genuinely be interested in your products or services.
Before you partner with an influencer, look closely at their past work. Check if they’re the real deal, with a genuine connection to their audience and a history of honest and positive collaborations. This will give you an idea of whether they’re the right fit for your brand.
If they’re the right fit, build long-term relationships with them for ongoing benefits rather than one-off campaigns.
Here are some top Twitch influencers:
- Ninja (19M followers) is the biggest Twitch star known for playing games like Fortnite and showing off his skills to entertain millions.
- Shroud (10.8M followers) is known for his amazing gameplay and strategy, especially in first-person shooter games.
- KittyPlays (1M followers) mixes gaming with talks on lifestyle content, positivity, and wellness.
- LuluLuvely (1.3M followers) is recognized as a sharpshooter in the gaming community with impressive gameplay and engaging personality.
Have clear goals
Set goals for your influencer marketing campaigns.
Ask yourself: What do you want to achieve with influencer marketing? Is it more brand awareness, product sales, or customer engagement?
Understanding this will ensure your strategy fits broader marketing and business objectives.
But to measure the success ratio of this strategy, think about how you’ll know if you’re successful.
Set KPIs like:
- Viewership numbers.
- Engagement rates.
- Conversion goals.
These metrics will track the success ratio of your influencer marketing strategy.
Understand the Twitch audience
Did you know that over 70% of Twitch viewers are between 18 and 34? To tailor your content to them, familiarize yourself with their gender and interests.
Every viewer has different interests, from the newest video game to cool art projects to just chatting about their day.
So, you should aim to target communities. Understanding what makes each community special will help you create messages that can connect audiences under the streams.
Engage with your audience
Your marketing strategies must involve engagement initiatives to increase retention. Twitch is an active spot with over 140 million monthly users and about 30 million daily users. That’s a lot of potential, but you can’t tap into it without entertaining your audience.
So, how do you make the most of this huge audience?
- Request influencers to ask questions, share jokes, and respond to what others are saying about your brand.
- Pay attention to what your audience likes or dislikes.
- Celebrate with your Twitch family through giveaways, special streams, or sharing some exciting news.
Best practices to make your Twitch influencer marketing a success
Here are some best practices to take your Twitch influencer marketing from A to Z:
1) Filter the search to find your desired results
Follow these steps to find the influencer or streams that align with your brand values and goals:
Start with the homepage: Take a moment to see what’s featured to get a good starting point.
Go to the browse page: You can see all the stream categories available here.
Filter by content: You can decide which niche to target by filtering the content from gaming, chatting, music, art, and more.
Filtering by games: You can also choose a specific video game or genre (sports, RPG, first-person shooter, etc.) for filtering streamers.
Filter by specific keywords: Use the search bar to filter by keywords related to your products/services.
Send a short message to connect: Use any of these templates as per your needs to connect with your favorite influencers:
Template 1:
“Hi [Streamer’s Name]
We’ve been enjoying your streams on [topic/game], and we think you’d be a great fit for our brand. Would you be interested in a chat about a potential collaboration? Looking forward to hearing from you!”
Template 2:
“Hello [Streamer’s Name], We’re big fans of your work, especially how you [specific thing you like about their stream]. We’re from [Your Brand], and we’re exploring fun ways to collaborate with Twitch creators. Are you open to discussing this further?”
2) Prioritize entertaining over direct selling
Make things entertaining rather than selling directly. Team up with influencers whose vibes, content-telling style, and audience align with what your brand stands for and wants to achieve.
Then, get creative together to blend your brand into their show in a way that feels right and can hook the viewers.
Use features like polls or Q&A sessions to make everyone feel part of the action. You can also share something special or exclusive that makes viewers feel like VIP guests.
But always take feedback seriously. If they have suggestions on improving your product, take them to heart and tweak your plans. This will create genuine connections.
3) Tailor campaigns to your audience’s interests
Think about what matters to the Twitch community. Ask influencers to request their viewers to share photos, videos, or art related to your campaign on social media platforms like X or Instagram.
You can also add some fun with contests and giveaways. Plan exclusive events like a sneak peek at a new product or a visit from a surprise guest. Doing so will make your sponsored Twitch stream the hottest ticket in town.
Other than that, consider formats unique to Twitch, like ‘Just Chatting’ streams or collaborative streams with multiple influencers, to discuss or showcase your products.
4) Tap into Twitch’s growing segments like music, art, and lifestyle
Twitch is not all about gaming—its user base is moving towards many other content genres, such as music, art, lifestyle, and debates.
So, how can you tap into this potential? Here are some ideas:
- Plan music concerts, art exhibitions, or lifestyle workshops sponsored by your brand on Twitch.
- Develop a series of branded shows or segments, such as weekly music discovery sessions, art tutorials, or lifestyle talks.
- Invite the Twitch community to contribute to a large-scale collaborative project, like a mural, song, or digital cookbook.
- Give Twitch viewers early access to new product launches, music releases, art collections, or lifestyle products.
- Develop branded emotes for chatting during streams to amplify your brand’s visibility.
5) Leverage Twitch communities
To connect with your audience, start by tuning into the conversations. Observe your target Twitch communities’ language, norms, and interests. You can do this by:
- Engaging in chats.
- Responding to comments.
- Becoming an active community member without sounding sales-yy.
Then, find creative ways to market your products in those communities.
For example, you can team up with relevant streamers to feature your products or co-host streams to get involved in the communities.
If you want to try something different, why not start your Twitch channel? Create shows that reflect your brand and what your new Twitch friends love. You can encourage everyone to show off how they use your products uniquely, from unboxing videos to artistic tributes.
6) Monitor trends and be adaptable
Sticking to one style has never been the right tactic for any brand. Use Twitch’s built-in analytics to monitor streams’ performance, including:
- Viewer demographics.
- Engagement rates.
- Peak streaming times.
You can also try other analytics tools that provide deeper insights into trends, hashtag performance, and competitor analysis on Twitch.
Some tools that can help you with this are:
Adapting to new trends is the best way to maintain your brand’s relevance on Twitch.
Partner with the best Twitch influencers to boost your brand
The Twitch universe is still expanding, and not many brands have caught on. If you jump in early, you’ll have a better chance to stand out and make a real impact.
All you’ve to do is find the right influencers who resonate with your brand’s messaging and can make your brand shine brighter on this platform. If you’re looking to connect with your audience and build a viral marketing strategy, contact NowADays.