Streaming on Twitch is one of the most rewarding forms of content creation, especially when it comes to Dungeons & Dragons and other TTRPGs. However, it can be hard to grow your channel’s size and viewership when you’re just starting out. As a streamer for the Twitch channel TotalPartyChill, I’ve gone through my fair share of experimenting and researching to find the best ways to grow my channel. In the process, I also found that it helped more players find and use my paid DM services. Now, I want to use my experience to help you grow your Twitch as a professional Game Master.
Interconnected World
One thing I’ve discovered is that running my streaming shows in the same world as my paid games brings in viewers. It turns out that the Twitch viewers love getting the chance to dive into the world themselves by joining a game. And players of my paid games are likely to tune into Twitch to see how their actions affected the stream’s story.
Imagine watching your favorite TV show, and then being able to immerse yourself in that world and explore an adventure inside of it. Then, the next time you watch your favorite show, the actions you made have now shaped it. My Twitch viewers love the chance to play in the same world as their favorite characters, meet familiar NPCs, and leave a mark that is often shown on the show. Not only does this make the story more engaging, it’s also a great way to build community.
This works in reverse, as those who join my paid games not knowing about our twitch at first now find themselves playing in a world that is much bigger than they originally thought. They are introduced to our community because they joined a game, enjoyed the world and story, and wanted to explore more of this world by becoming part of our Twitch community.
Now, this is just one way to grow your stream as a professional Game Master, and it’s not the only way. There are many players who would rather play the game than watch, so don’t expect everyone who comes to your table to also want to catch every episode of your Twitch stream.
Running Games For Your Community
StartPlaying is the #1 way to introduce people to my games and world because StartPlaying focuses on advertising. Twitch can be difficult for discovery, and so natural growth on Twitch can be daunting. However, it’s easier to grow an audience through StartPlaying because it actively markets to a wide audience. It’s also an audience dedicated to TTRPGs, meaning you’re not competing with video games and chat streams.
Running games for new players through StartPlaying introduces new people to my world and my stories. This is one of the best ways to grow my engagement on Twitch while also making money.
Creators with established audiences can also take advantage by running games for their community through StartPlaying. If you have a wonderful community watching your YouTube or Twitch, they are probably the very people who will want to book your games!
Don’t Forget YouTube
Lastly, if you stream on Twitch, one of the best tips I can give you is making sure your videos go up on YouTube after and that you’ve done some simple edits to them. Take out your countdowns and your breaks, and make sure your videos start at the beginning of your game! Players who might be interested in joining your games can see your GMing style and get a feel for what to expect. Not every player does this, but you do yourself a favor by being on every available platform. And who knows, you could even end up growing a sizable following on YouTube!
As always, this is just what I have seen work for myself and those that I have shared these tips with. Not everything that works for me will work for everyone else, but I wanted to share these tips in hopes that they either help or inspire you in your next adventures!
