Often times I hear people talking about how their viewer numbers are down compared to previous months. They’re not hitting their bean goals like they use to and it’s becoming increasingly frustrating. I’ve sat and thought about it for a little while and I’ve come up with a few thoughts on the topic and I hope these ideas are able to help you adjust and reshape your broadcast to continue to succeed like you did before.
How Have You Set Yourself Apart?
If I come into your stream and you are playing Xbox or watching TV and paying no attention to the room, I’m going to spend exactly 2 seconds there before I leave and find something else to do. You need to be creating new and engaging content, even if there’s nobody but the bots there to see it. If you are doing nothing when somebody comes in, they’re not going to wait for you to do something entertaining. They’re going to keep it moving. If you’re doing the same thing I came in and watched yesterday, I’m not going to stick around very long either. If I can watch the same thing you’re doing in 5 other broadcasts, you need to give me a reason why I should choose your broadcast versus somebody else’s? You need to set yourself apart and have a uniqueness that people aren’t going to find some other place. If you’re doing something that other people are doing, then you need to do it BETTER!
Do People Recognize You?
Were you just in an auction and had to change your name and your profile picture for 48 hours? Did you change your profile picture or the main photo for your broadcast room to your PK banner or some other image that’s different from your normal photo? Your main profile photo is intended to be an easy way for your fans and followers to recognize you at a quick glance. It’s almost like a trademark, or a brand identifier. McDonalds doesn’t change its identity several times a week. Several of the most recognizable broadcasters in the US region like Rain, Juji, Dr. Baddie, KweenKK, AleciaGWorld all, for the most part, have the same photo and same username, day in and day out. Changing it frequently confuses people, and in some cases, makes people skip over you when you pop up in the side panel. If I’m not sure who you are, I’m not going to risk going into your broadcast. I have no idea what I’m going to be walking into. If I have to guess who you are, I’m going to keep moving.
Consistency Is The Key
If you’re the type of broadcaster who goes live any time during the day that you’re free, you might get lucky and capture other users as they swipe around the app or stop in on their lunch break. All that really is, is luck! However, if you broadcast every day at the same time, people will come to expect to find you at that time slot. For example, if you host a regular panel every night around the same time, people will grow accustomed to finding your panel at a certain time and certain place. If you’re creating content, which you should be if you’re on a streaming app like this, giving your fans a consistent schedule will allow them to budget their time and make arrangements to consume your content. Try to plan ahead and use one of your profile photo slots to post a banner about upcoming content (but NOT your main profile photo!) Even keeping that consistent is a good idea, because if people know that they can view your 3rd profile photo to see what your upcoming events are, they are more likely to try to seek the information on their own, and be able to find it when they’re trying to plan for you.
Social Network Error
For this app, networking is an important part of the cycle of being a broadcaster. If all you do is sit in your own broadcast, or sit in the same panels, or hang around the same people, you’re missing out on opportunities. This is a big app, and it’s reach is much further than you could ever imagine. There are broadcasters in other regions who would love to brag to their friends that they have friends from the North American region. Go and spend some time in other people’s broadcasts, besides your own. Not only do you have the opportunity to experience other perspectives, but you may be able to capture new fans, generate new ideas for your own content, or even just be entertained. If you sit in the same places over and over again, you are going to have the same experiences, and you’re going to bleed that group of all of their support. More importantly, your network isn’t going to grow.
Stop Supporting The Wrong People
It’s been very exciting to have some new entertainers come to the app recently. New additions like RayJ and Corey in the House have been new broadcasters who have gotten a lot of popularity in recent weeks. That’s great for viewers, and fans of those broadcasters, but that doesn’t help you and your quest to be a top broadcaster. Keep in mind, that you are a content creator yourself, so the time you spend in those rooms consuming their content, is time that you are not networking and creating your own content. These celebrities are not here to be fans of you. They might throw you some beans from time to time, but they are not here to consume your content. It might make your heart rush to be able to tell your friends that a celebrity noticed you, but in that moment you are a fan and a follower, and not an influencer or a content creator. Your focus needs to be on building your own network and building your own brand, not helping already established celebrities continue to build their empire. Remember that after this COVID-19 situation relaxes and these people go back to their regular day jobs, you are going to be left out in the cold and have to rebuild from scratch simply because you spent too much time clout chasing, and not enough time establishing relationships with people who are trying to look up to you.
Every Person Matters
You’re going to come across fans and viewers who say things that are maybe a little unusual or don’t always make sense. You’re going to experience fans who are dealing with mental illness, or some other handicap or life challenge. These are people too, and they’re people who are looking up to you and they are excited to be able to have a person connection with you. Capture those relationships and embrace them. Somebody you take the time to try to listen to, is going to be the person who shares your broadcast to their network. They’re going to be the person tapping on your screen during the entire broadcast and pushing you to the top of the popular page. They’re the ones who are going to capture and screen record your best moments so you can promote it on your bar or Instagram. Most importantly, they are going to be in the room with you keeping you active and engaged, when maybe nobody else is. Don’t ridicule or insult your viewers just because they’re a little different, make them stand out and make them feel special. A small gesture of kindness, can turn into an enormous amount of help and support.
Your Personality Sucks
Lastly, I want to talk about your personality. Everybody isn’t going to like you, that’s just for certain. Every entertainer, every public figure, and every person on the planet has critics and haters. While it can be challenging to capture every potential customer to your live streaming business, if you have a bad attitude or bad personality, then you’re not doing yourself any favors. Just remember, this app can go away at any time. Be thankful and appreciative that this opportunity exists and don’t be overly confident or constantly showboat. People are going to be turned off when you brag about how great you are, or if you have a bad attitude or think you are better than them. Be kind, be positive, and be grateful for what you have, because this isn’t going to last forever, and you’re going to want to keep those connections intact for your next project.
