Twitch: A Sea of Marketing Opportunities

Twitch is the Internet’s biggest live streaming platform, watched more than Netflix, HBO Go, Hulu, and ESPN altogether. At the same time, it is a growing market of advertising opportunities for gaming brands, but not only. Let’s now have a look at Twitch from a marketing perspective.

The marketing potential of Twitch is still mostly unnoticed. It’s a vast and unknown territory that awaits exploration.

Let’s see what it is all about and what Twitch marketing opportunities are.

1. What is Twitch?
2. The most popular niches on Twitch
3. Gaming industry
4. Audience on Twitch
5. Ultimate Twitch marketing guide
   • Twitch influencer marketing
   • Twitch monitoring 
   • Branded content 
   • Traditional advertising
6. Twitch marketing benefits
7. Embrace Twitch marketing today!
8. FAQ

What is Twitch?

Twitch is a streaming platform mostly known for video game live streaming and eSports competitions, but there’s way more to be said about Twitch, so stick with me.

Since 2014, Amazon owns Twitch.

Here are a few stats about Twitch:

• It has over 15 million daily active users.
• It has between 2.2 and 3.2 million monthly broadcasters.
• Twitch users spend, on average, 44 billion minutes per month watching live streams.
• In 2023, there were 20,004,800 channels on Twitch.

Twitch leads the way among all live-streaming platforms, accounting for 72.2% of all hours watched live on the Internet.

Sounds impressive, right?

Gamers use Twitch to live record their gameplay, broadcast tournaments and engage with the audience via chat. Spectators interact with each other and broadcasters as well.

The cultural phenomenon of game live streaming is so appealing because it’s a return to the social experiences of arcade games. The only difference is that the interaction takes place virtually on Twitch, but the concept stays the same: one person plays a video game, and the rest is watching, cheering, and admiring.

A live stream consists of the main video, a webcam video, a chat, and information about the live stream, including user name, watching now, and view count.

Even though the majority of content on Twitch is related to video games, it’s important to remember that Twitch is more than that. There’s also a good deal of non-gaming live streams.

The most popular niches on Twitch

Twitch has evolved beyond gaming to encompass a diverse array of content, making it a vibrant platform for various niches.

One popular category is “Just Chatting,” where Twitch streamers engage with their audience by simply talking to the camera, sharing thoughts, and creating a personal, intimate connection.

Another rising trend is the emergence of talk shows and podcasts on Twitch, providing a unique interactive experience. As with any other podcast, these transmissions usually have a host and an expert who’s interviewed.

Music and performance streams showcase live musical performances, while “Always On” channels offer 24/7 streams featuring popular content.

For those inclined towards creativity, Twitch hosts categories like “Creative” and “Art,” allowing artists to showcase their talents.

Additionally, the ASMR niche has found a place on the platform.

Lastly, Twitch has become a hub for food and drink enthusiasts, with creators sharing cooking sessions, food reviews, and delightful gastronomic experiences.

While gaming remains the cornerstone, these diverse niches contribute to the platform’s dynamic and engaging nature.

Thus, let’s take a closer look at the gaming niche.

Gaming industry

According to Exploding Topic, by 2024, there are expected to be 3.32 billion gamers worldwide. In other words, it means that more than one-third of all people on Earth play video games.

Moreover, the gaming industry is experiencing continuous growth in almost every area for several reasons.

• Growing number of people with access to the Internet across emerging markets
• Growth of game live streaming – according to GlobalWebIndex, over 1 billion people stream games
• Another 1 billion people watch live streams
• Increasing number of investments into esports betting
• Emerging market of multi-functional gaming console
• Increasing number of in-app purchases and subscription services

Those changes in the market fuel the popularity of video-game streaming with Twitch at its forefront. According to Zion Market’s research, the market is expected to grow between 2018 and 2026 from $800 million in annual sales to more than $6.9 billion.

Strangely, despite its worldwide popularity and lightning-fast growth, gaming isn’t receiving the same level of attention as other forms of entertainment, such as football.

Consequently, hardly anyone sees the vast opportunity to connect with the large numbers of consumers who spend more and more time on gaming.

The gaming industry continues to be under-utilised in reaching potential consumers. Twitch gaming isn’t an exception to this case.

50% of the platform’s creators are gamers. That’s a powerful group of Twitch streamers that shouldn’t be ignored.

Audience on Twitch – who are Twitch users?

People on Twitch are relatively younger audiences. 70% of them fall into the age range 16-34. More than one-third of that is younger than 24.

Around 80% of users identify as men. Lately, women have been joining the platform more often, but they are still tremendously outnumbered by men.

The most active countries on Twitch are The United States, Germany, and South Korea, followed by Russia and France. Besides that, the platform gets traffic from 247 other countries.

As mentioned earlier, younger audiences and teenagers (Gen Z) are prevalent on Twitch, but there is one more age group that is very numerous.

Millennials on Twitch

Surprisingly, a lot of today’s gamers are millennials who hardly represent stereotypical gamers. Gaming has become just another means of entertainment, a social activity, and a part of the millennial media diet, with two-thirds of U.S. millennials playing every month.

Millennial gamers have settled well in adulthood.

• 54% have full-time employment
• 43% have a university degree
• 46% have children

Of this group, 71% of gamers watch GVC (gaming video content), including Twitch.

Twitch is home to millennials, the most prominent target audience there. Millennials have the biggest impact on the market of all age groups.

Twitch audience & advertising

Twitch audience is socially conscious and passionate about important causes. They’re all for advertising on the platform to support their favorite broadcasters and charity initiatives.

• 76% of Twitch users believe that sponsorships are good for gaming and help their favorite streamers achieve success
• 80% of Twitch users are open to brands sponsoring gamers and teams

Since gamers aren’t really exposed to any advertising, they’re more open to such activities than other niches. It’s fertile ground and a sea of opportunities for brands who want to enter a niche full of passionate and driven consumers.

Ultimate Twitch marketing guide

In the bustling world of online content creation, Twitch has emerged as a powerhouse, initially known for gaming streams but now extending its reach to diverse niches.

Marketing on Twitch is an exciting avenue for businesses and creators to engage with audiences in real-time, fostering communities and building brands in innovative ways.

Let’s delve into the unique landscape of Twitch marketing, exploring strategies and opportunities.

Twitch influencer marketing

With 68% of gamers open to brands supporting their favorite Twitch streamers, influencer marketing in the gaming industry has massive potential.

There are many ways for brands to cooperate with popular streamers through influencer marketing.

A Twitch streamer might include a brand in the title of a live stream or on their channel page. They can also place a brand directly on a live stream, talk about a brand, or engage somehow with a product.

The possibilities are numerous, and only creativity is the limit.

Here’s an example of Mike “Shroud” Grzesiek, who cooperates with Cougar Gaming. In his stream, Mike talks about buying a case from Cougar Gaming. The site was instantly overflowed with traffic, so that it crashed. You can hear him saying this at the end of the video.

When brands are mentioned in live videos, spectators react right away.

Viewers often ask their favorite streamers about brands they’re sponsored by.

For example, Jaryd “Summit1G” Lazar is sponsored by Monster Energy Drinks and, during streams, keeps his Monster mini fridge behind him so that viewers can see it. That’s how in-video ads work on Twitch. He often gets questions about his favorite flavor and newly-released flavors.

Twitch marketing: How to find Twitch influencers

Let’s start by creating your Twitch influencer marketing strategy.

There are more than 2 million Twitch content creators, of which 10% account for 95% of views. If you feel like this platform is your way to go, tracking Twitch influencers can help:

• Identify the right influencers for your brand
• Spot emerging trends
• Build relationships
• Monitor opinions

Some data about influencers can be officially acquired via Twitch API. These are:

• Viewers
• Followers
• Popularity of streams
• Broadcasts of the most popular games

Another way to find Twitch influencers is to use the Brand24 media monitoring tool. It monitors the web in the search of keywords you provide. This may be the name of your brand, niche, or product.

Brand24 is helpful for influencer marketing as it detects potential influencers for your keyword and estimates their influencer scores.

Check out the next point to learn more about Brand24 in Twitch marketing.

Twitch monitoring 

That’s one of the things you should actually start from.

Twitch monitoring will inform your marketing strategy and help you assess if a Twitch channel is the right medium to reach your audience.

Setting up a media monitoring project is very straightforward. You just need to choose the keywords you want to track online. These can be the names of your brand, industry, or/and product.

Below, you can see what a Shein media monitoring project looks like.

On Twitch, Brand24 can monitor keywords in titles and descriptions of streams.

Your Mention Tab will show results from all social media platforms for your chosen keywords. To narrow down the results to Twitch, scroll down the right-hand panel and type “twitch.tv” in the domain filter.

This way, you can check if your audience is active on Twitch and decide if Twitch marketing is something you should engage in. You can discover a treasure trove, but it may also turn out that your audience is more active on other social media platforms.

If so, you may need to rethink your Twitch marketing strategies.

Besides collecting the mentions, Brand24 counts many Twitch metrics and provides insights based on the collected data, helping you understand your online performance and audience.

Marketing on Twitch: Branded channel

If neither Twitch influencer marketing nor traditional advertising speaks to you, you can become a Twitch streamer yourself!

One of the best examples of branded content on Twitch is Old Spice.

In 2015, Old Spice launched a stream called “Old Spice Nature Adventure”. They live-streamed the adventures of a man in the woods. Viewers could influence the man’s decisions via the Twitch chat.

There have been more than 2.6 million views, of which 1.4 million viewers engaged in the chat. The exclusive Old Spice Twitch chat emotes were used more than 105,0000 times. The campaign was hugely successful.

Gamers are a huge and highly segmented group – the paid advertising potential is vast. Your branded channel can reach tens of thousands of people by entering the gaming industry.

There’s a lot of money on the table, which makes Twitch marketing worth it.

Traditional advertising

One of the ways to advertise on Twitch is to run ads on specific Twitch channels.

Twitch ads offer various opportunities, such as video ads and banners in multiple places.

Homepage Headliner

It’s the first place users can stumble upon advertising content when they go to twitch.tv.

Super Leaderboard

This is where users search for content.

Medium rectangle

This format shows up when users search for content and scroll.

Synced Units

This one combines both ads to boot advertising.

Homepage Carousel

It’s a rotating carousel with a thumbnail for your brand on the homepage.

It’s a rotating carousel with a thumbnail for your brand on the homepage.

Twitch marketing benefits

• Engagement: Twitch offers a highly engaged audience.
• Niche Communities: Reach specific communities through various niches.
• Live Interaction: Interact with your audience through live broadcasts.
• Influencer Collaboration: Partner with influencers for authentic promotions.
• Creative Content: Diverse content options such as a talk show, an interactive live stream contest, and many more.
• Young Demographics: Connect with a younger demographic.
• Community Building: Build a dedicated community around your brand.
• Brand Exposure: Leverage Twitch’s popularity for increased brand visibility.

Embrace Twitch marketing today!

As we conclude this exploration into the realm of Twitch marketing, it’s clear that the platform’s allure extends beyond gaming.

Twitch monitoring tools empower brands to stay on top of trends, while collaborating with influencers opens doors to vast audiences. The potential to engage with a million followers is unprecedented.

As you navigate this dynamic landscape, remember that authenticity and real-time interactions are fundamental.

Embrace the possibilities Twitch offers, and let your brand’s story unfold in the vibrant tapestry of live TV.

Good luck!

FAQ

Is Twitch the right place to reach your target audience?

Twitch can be a great platform to reach your target audience, especially if your audience is interested in gaming, live streaming, or other popular niches on the platform. It provides a unique opportunity for engagement and interaction, making it suitable for businesses looking to connect with specific communities.

Is Twitch good for business?

Yes, Twitch can be excellent for business, especially for brands targeting younger audience and looking to engage with a highly active and passionate community.

How much is Twitch marketing?

Twitch marketing cost varies widely, ranging from a few hundred to several thousand dollars per campaign. Influencer partnerships on Twitch often depend on the streamer’s content popularity, with top influencers charging premium rates.

Additionally, advertising costs on Twitch can be influenced by factors such as ad formats, targeting options, and the campaign’s duration.

While Twitch marketing requires an investment, it provides a unique avenue for reaching engaged audiences in real time.