How to Get Past Zero Viewers on Twitch

When you are just starting, streaming to no viewers is natural, but can feel depressing. Growth feels good, but if it eludes you, read this post for seven ways you can bring new viewers to your channel and have them be the start of your community. In time, as you get more followers on Twitch, you will be able to look back on your zero-viewer days as a part of your past.

7 Ways to Stream to More than Zero Twitch Viewers

To stream to more than zero viewers on Twitch, you will need to continually grow on the platform and convert new viewers to community members. Here are 8 strategies you can use to find your audience:

1. 1. Stop Streaming Oversaturated Games

   StreamScheme conducted a Fortnite stream case study and found that over the course of a year, the top 5 steamers in the Fortnite category accounted for 26.3% of the total game hours viewed. 4.2 million channels had streamed the game throughout the same year. 

   The hard truth is that if you are playing a triple-A or trending game, it is likely that your channel will not be noticed no matter how perfect your content may be. Instead, choose games to stream on Twitch that are less saturated so that you can pick up a few extra viewers along the way. 

   If your goal is to stream Fortnite or another popular game, start in a smaller game within the same genre and slowly transition to larger games over time. Transitioning on Twitch is about building a community that will go with you regardless of what you play in the same genre. The rest of this post will cover how you can build that base.

2. 2. Invite 3-5 Friends or Family Members to Watch Your Stream

   You can skip streaming to zero viewers altogether by starting off streaming to 3-5 of your friends or family. When stating other places online, I have noticed that people reply that they don’t have friends or that they are worried about telling their friends what they are doing. 

   The difficult truth is that in order to be a good streamer you need to learn to make friends because to be successful, you need to be able to relate to your audience. Start off by making a few either in person or online. If you are worried about telling your friends about your channel, then they may not be good friends. Choose people who you trust. If you are embarrassed, ask yourself why and see if there is something you need to improve. Don’t be worried about asking people you love and trust to help you. 

3. 3. Plan Out Your Content in Advance

   In order to grow on Twitch, it is important that you produce streams that your viewers will want to watch. Write out talking points in advance and learn to talk to yourself on stream. While this may feel unnatural at first, remember that YouTubers have learned to practice speaking to themselves for years in order to make good content. Your job will be similar. 

   Keen a notepad of ideas that you can talk about. Write down jokes, stories, interesting facts, and other things you believe people would find interesting. Once you have a few viewers, you’ll be able to interact with them naturally and generate ideas that way, but you should always plan out things to chat about throughout your stream. 

   Try setting up a question on the day command through your chatbot. Change the question and use it to generate content when you do have viewers. Play games that have many things you can talk about so that you don’t find yourself constantly repeating what is happening. 

4. 4. Hide Your Twitch Count

   If knowing you are streaming to zero viewers messes with your head, turn off your view count or cover it with a sticky note or sticky tape. Seeing your viewer count will stress you out. If you see the number toggle to 1 then revert back to zero a minute later, you may become distracted, trying to figure out what “you did wrong.” 

   Instead, stream for your “ideal viewers” and pretend that they are watching. What would you talk about with them? Stream with confidence, then look at your content and stats after your stream to learn where you can improve better. 

5. 5. Stay Hyped and Excited

   Don’t get in your head. Do whatever it takes to stay positive. If you are getting burned out by a game, try a similar game until you are ready to go back to it. If you are building a community around you as a streamer instead of around a game, most of your viewers will stay with you. 

   Find new ways to keep things fresh or cut back your stream hours a little so that you can spend more time with your friends and family or work on creating a YouTube channel of your own. 

6. 6. Be Critical of Your Content

   Be critical of your failures so that you improve them and become better. At the end of your own stream, review it. Scroll through the VoD and stay for a minute or two. Honestly ask yourself if you would stay on your channel if you were a casual viewer looking to see a streamer. Why or why not?

   Find ways to improve your audio or visuals. There are often ways you can improve even with beginner equipment. Look for good graphics such as Twitch overlays and alerts that will improve your stream’s quality. Do what it takes to improve so that the next time someone happens on your stream, they will be more likely to stay. 

7. 7. Engage with Your Twitch Viewers

   When viewers begin to arrive on your channel, engage with them. One of the main benefits of being a small streamer is that you do get the unique opportunity to talk to a viewer one on one. Ask them questions about their day or where they are watching from. What brought them to your stream? Do they love the game you are playing?

   Create a culture around interaction. Encourage your small community to welcome new members. While one-on-one interaction with you may help someone to stay on your channel, when your entire chat welcomes them will really influence them to join your community as a member.

8. Bonus Tip

   When viewers begin to arrive on your channel, engage with them. One of the main benefits of being a small streamer is that you do get the unique opportunity to talk to a viewer one on one. Ask them questions about their day or where they are watching from. What brought them to your stream? Do they love the game you are playing?

   Create a culture around interaction. Encourage your small community to welcome new members. While one-on-one interaction with you may help someone to stay on your channel when your entire chat welcomes them will really influence them to join your community as a member.