Twitch’s growth in popularity has skyrocketed over the past four years. While advertisements are dominated by big brands such as Mcdonald’s, Samsung, Pizza Hut, Ragu, and other national companies, advertisers can still get into Twitch in more impactful ways.

Below are some ways to reach your target audience without spending big dollars against brands with a national presence. 

When are Twitch ads shown?

Streamers, or channels, can choose how often ads run during their streams. You can run ads on your profile if you are a Twitch Affiliate or Partner. Streamers will start as a “Streamer,” and as their channel gains popularity, they become an affiliate. Once you’re an Affiliate on Twitch, people can subscribe to your channel for $5 a month. 

Users who subscribe to a Twitch channel are exempt from seeing ads and can use emojis that the channel creator uploads. Streamers can choose when ads are shown to users who are not subscribed to their stream. A first ad is shown anywhere from the first 30 seconds to 10 mins when a user who isn’t subscribed comes to the stream. 

Each channel has the following options to run ads:

• Ad Spacing – choose how often ads are shown
• Ad Length – how long ad breaks are – ads are 15 to 30 seconds 
• Start Delay – how soon a user gets ads after coming to a stream

Why do channels have the ability to choose these options? If you’re running the bare minimum on your channel, your ad revenue split is 30%. If a channel is running the maximum, your ad venue split is 55%.

Are ads worth it?

Yes and no, this is always subjective. You can drive meaningful brand awareness or promote new products through Twitch advertisements. But there isn’t an easy way to start advertising on Twitch. When brands want to have their ads on Twitch, you have to reach out to a representative to start.

While we have not run ads for our clients, based on our research, single impressions range from $2 to $10, which is why you see national brands running ads over smaller or local companies. 

Alternatives to running ads

To put it lightly, I **** Twitch. The communities are very tightly knit and you can tune into a number of your favorite channels at any point in the day. Most users who are watching a stream or who tune in regularly are subscribed – meaning they do not get ads. A big majority of Twitch users would prefer to watch Twitch than TV shows or movies.

Why do we say this? People **** and religiously tune into their favorite channels, meaning they trust their opinion and the things they say. My favorite way that I’ve seen a company run a paid partnership was a sponsored stream. Taeha Types is one of the biggest streamers in the Makers & Crafting category. He predominately streams himself building high-end custom mechanical keyboards.

Wendy’s & UberEats partnered with Taeha for a sponsored stream. The keyboard was a custom Wendy’s Themed board that he built on stream. Halfway through the stream, Wendy’s was delivered at Taeha’s Door, pretty brilliant. Just don’t touch the keyboard with greasy fingers. There was a discount code that would only be redeemable during the duration of the stream. You could get delivery fees waived if you ordered more than $10. Also, you could order what Taeha did to be just, like, him!

Why is this a great idea?

People **** Taeha and trust what he has to say about most things. Because reactions are live and often candid, his honesty on products shines through even when he is talking about one of his sponsors. If companies took this approach more frequently, brands could see great returns. 

For example, if there is a guitarist who streams on Twitch as their full-time job and a guitar tuning application wants to increase brand awareness, they could host a sponsored stream on this streamers channel. The streamer would be upfront about the sponsored stream but also let the viewers know that they will give their honest opinion. 

During the stream, the host could give out a discount code to download the app while also giving the developers feedback during the stream. It’s essentially a double marketing tactic, pushing brand awareness to views while also getting real-time marketing research from the host as well as the live chat.

Similar to podcasts, regulars who tune in each week want to use products or services that sponsor their favorite channels. It feels good supporting the channel with its affiliate code or link. An easier way to get into promoting your brand on Twitch is to sponsor channels with a discount code. One piece of advice, please make sure your product aligns with the channel and demographic. It’s not as important to think about who the target audience is but rather what the channel is. 

For example, if you’re a new fast food truck, it would not make sense to sponsor a health and fitness channel. Alternatively, if you are a natural pet food company and you want to sponsor a channel. You could look for a channel where the streamer’s pet is the focal part of the stream. This way, you can reach new customers while supporting your marketing efforts through a furry friend that people already ****! Research and time is on your side here, it’s much better not to rush these ideas.

If you are curious about learning more or how you can figure out to sponsor a channel on Twitch, feel free to contact us to learn more! This journey can be done on your own but if you are unfamiliar with Twitch and want an expert’s opinion, we’re here to help.