How to become a successful streamer

Hi guys, Callum here from SAF. For those of you that don't know me.... I'm the founder and CEO of SAF.gg! 

I started streaming about 18 months ago on my Facebook Gaming page

Over a perious of time I have gron my following to over 80 thousand and currently have close to 300 paid supporters

I am now a Partnered Streamer and LOVE my job!

Streaming has allowes be to quit my full time job as a financial advisor and streaming is now my main source of income. The freedom and lifestyle this has allowed me to acheive is something that I could have only dreamed of back in 2018, startin off as just a Facebook group!

The guys at 1st11 and I thought it might be helpful to share some tips on how to set yourself on the right course to become a successful streamer.

In this guide Iwill tall you how to stand out from the crowd, how to get organised and what you need to get started as a streamer

As of November 2020 there are over 8.5 million streamers... on Twitch alone! For some people streaming is of course just a bit of fun. 

For those that are slightly more serious, what to earn a second income or even make it a full time career (like me) this guide is perfect for you.

Here is the guide, I hope you enjoy it. 

Streaming is all about this, first off you should decide when you can stream. how long you can stream for and who you will stream for. 

Set up a schedule, make it consistent, same time, same place, same days. 

By doing this your followers know Exactly when to expect you to be going live!

Once you have your streamer schedule set, you can let people know when they can expect to see you.

You may need to tweak things as time goes on but it's really important to have this as your starting point

Once you have chosen your streaming schedule you want to tell people about it.

Set up social media accounts, the more the better!

Make sure that your branding stands out and is as professional as possible. Choose your hanfles and account names so that it reflects what you will be streaming about, or relates to YOU!

Once you have set up your social media channels, you should start by folling accounts that have a similar audience that you want to target.

Get active in these communites, comment, like and share content from other creators and accounts that will appeal to people you want to target.

You should advertise your stream schedule on your platforms and post when you are about to go live.

Having a strong social media following can really help to boost your streaming figures and really helps you to interact when not streaming. 

When you first start out streaming it's not always possible to make a big investment in equipment to get you started.

The truth is, you don't need to!

Of course you will need a gaming system if you are planning on getting started in streaming, the fact you are here already. I'm guessing you already have this

The three main things you need to get started are: 

1. Webcam

To allow for the best engagement viewers should be able to see you! Find a webcam with a minimum on 720p resolution. 1080 is even better. You can pick up a very basic camera for £30 to get you started.

2. Capture card 

This piece of equipment allows you to capture, record and stream your content. Ideally again 1080 resolution is great starting point for capture cards. You can pick up very chep capture cards for £25-£30

3. Microphone

Tinny and muffled sound through a headset isn't the best way for your viewers to hear what you have to say. Try and pick up a digital micriophone, analogue mic's can lead to poor sound quality and can really effect the proffesionalism of your content.

Nobody wants to watch poor quality video, laggy streams with bad sound. Start as you mean to go on.

First impressions are everything!

The most successful streamers bring a good mix of content.

Viewers want to be engaged and see different things.

Playing the same game mode, on the same game each and every stream ..... it gets boring!

Not only does it get boring for your viewers but it will also be boring for you! To bring your A-Game you want to be excited about your content, if you aren’t excited neither will your viewers.

It’s great to have a core game or a few games that you specialise in, but don’t be afraid to mix things up either!

The gaming community is vast! There are also some really cool people that can help to grow your community.

They key here is to speak to other streamers! Actively seek out endorsements and collaborations, these can either be in stream or via social media.

Don’t be afraid to work with larger streamers and smaller ones. As you grow remember where you started and always help new people.

If you want to hook up with streamers of all sizes make sure you check out the 1st11 channel on our discord.

From here you can chat, engage and meet other like minded streamers to get you sharing each other work. Who knows, maybe one day you can stream with 1st11 too! 

This is really important, lots of people fall at this hurdle! Before your start your streaming journey it’s important to know, it’s a GRIND!

If you are already planning your first collaboration with KSI .... you may need to set and manage your expectations slightly You will spend times were you feel you are the only person in your
stream, quite honestly you might be!

Don’t worry, we all start here. What’s important is that you manage
your expectations.

Streaming isn’t a get rich quick scheme, you should stream for the
love of entertaining people first, the rewards come later. Be ambitious of course and set yourself very high standards, it’s good to set targets and also share them with your audience.

For now, we recommend thinking FIAT Punto over Ferrari’s :-)