W

e get questions all the time from streamers about how they can get noticed by the Community Managers at game studios, and you know what? It’s time for some answers. We wanna give you our insights as Community Managers on what game studios (at least us) look for in potential Streamer partnerships.

For starters, if you’re reading this, you’re probably already on the right path. You’re asking the right questions and committed to doing something about it. That’s the first big step. There’s a ton of talent out there, cheap as table salt, so the saying goes. What matters is diligence. 

Game Streaming is a mammoth culture. Whether it’s Mixer, Youtube, or Twitch, new streamers are popping up everyday, eager to get a chance to become the new Ninja. 

Twitch alone has grown exponentially over the past few years. While that means the opportunity to make it professionally is more accessible, it also means it’s getting a bit crowded out there.

So how do you stand out? How do you get your streams sponsored by your favorite game studios? Well, there’s a couple of things you can do to really sizzle.

Here’s our top 5. 

1.) Be visually exciting

Consistency is key. Whether you are pitching to game studios, brands, or Streamer communities, you want people to stay on your channel and get to know the real you. This means cleaning up all the extra noise. When you are setting up you channel and designing your theme, there’s a few questions to ask yourself: How presentable is your channel? Are you using the same font throughout? Is that glaring red text distracting from your passion for Charity streaming?

Your goal should always be to keep the viewer engaged. You never know who is looking at your channel (and we are!). A distinct but clean avatar and graphic design will get you very far (and look quite snappy too). 

This doesn’t mean settling for a dry and generic professionalism. After all, you didn’t pick professional streaming to get put into a box. But it is about quality. Chances are, your wild and creative identity can get distorted by a messy and cluttered channel. You want to keep your creativity as direct and polished as possible. A cool looking channel is a streamer’s way of saying, “hello!” The more organized and sleek your channel looks, the more studios will trust you can handle sponsorship. 

P.S Don’t forget to make your business email easy to find!

2.) Know your elevator pitch

The truth is, we don’t have time to sit through your entire streams. 

You could be the funniest person with a Pokimane charm but how could we know? Part of the streamer workload is doing the homework for us. 

Give us your elevator pitch. Narrow it down. Kill your darlings and tell us what makes you unique. Show us your highlights. Make a video compilation of your best streaming moments. 

Did you get raided by a huge streamer? What about that hilarious time you couldn’t stop laughing while playing Overcooked with your friends? We wanna know these things. 

P.S Video editing doesn’t have to be a hassle. There are plenty of good tools and apps for cutting your content a million ways.

Here are a few:

• Adobe Premiere: you gotta put some time into learning the way but it’s worth it
• Splice: A free, all-in-one video editor for your phone. Great for editing on the go! 
• Canva: A good way to export your highlights to Twitter, Instagram, and personal websites. 

Add some flavor:

• VSCO Video Editor: A photography studio in your pocket. Make that profile picture pop. 
• Hypetype: Spruce up your social media banners and channel thumbnails with some hipster font. 

3.) Clear and concise communication

There are few things more annoying than an email without punctuation we have limited time and it can be hard to read code please thank you for your time

Believe it or not, the bulk of emails community managers get look like this. Right off the bat, we are having issues communicating (and it’s frustrating). As a community manager, this is the saddest thing in my mailbox. Why? Two reasons: 1) I want to get to know you and let your passion speak for itself but it sounds like you just want free stuff and 2) It hurts my brain to read. 

Clear and concise emails will win every time. They may not get a positive yes but we will certainly reply faster. When reaching out to game studios, take a good long look at your email. What is the topic line? What do you want out of this exchange?

Avoid headlines like this:

 “Need game code” 

“key request please” 

These are spammy and devoid of personality. They’re probably going to be opened last or worse, lost in our spam inbox. 

What works: 

“Family friendly streamer looking for engaging community games!”

“Fornite Guru with a passion for puns”

“Your game + my cute channel = Game. Match. Action”

Why do these work? Well, they’re written with personal branding in mind. And that doesn’t have to be icky. If your strong suit is making people laugh, tell us. If people are always telling you they watch your stream during their lunch break, tell us! All of these things make your channel unique and speak volumes about your content and audience. Plus, it gives us an idea of how you could fit into a game studios’ tone. 

4.) Be direct

What do you want from the studio? There are times when the studio, whether indie or not, is not interested in financial sponsorships. They may have their own reasons and it’s up to you to do the research.

If this is the case however, can they sponsor your stream in another way? Often times, this is a great opportunity for creativity. Is there a special in-game item you could customize with them? Could you get the first look at a new update? Depending on the willingness and size of the studio, anything is possible. Traditional sponsorships, such as keys and swag, are always good to ask for. Just remember this is a relationship: you both got to put in the work to build support and trust.

Of course, you’ll need to do your research and see what best fits your channel and following. While follower sizes don’t mean everything, it can help guide you to a better fit studio. Think of this way, building brand trust with a smaller studio is a good way to build a solid relationship and community. You’ll make it to the bigger studios if your content is effective, eye-catching, and fun to watch. 

Final Words

Above all, your content is king. Not every studio will be a good fit. You have to find the right match. At the end of the day, the most important thing is that you are letting your best qualities shine through. Streaming is part of the entertainment bizz, after all. 

To sum it up:

1. Be professional but not robotic. Let your personality shine. Brands and studios are looking for a creative partnership 
2. Build trust and a relationship. Talk to us like we are people!
3. Give a sample of your work and audience: who are you catering to? Do you have a theme? Are you part of the speed runner community? Fast talking and quippy?
4. Don’t sell yourself short. You don’t have to be the next Ninja. There’s a crowd and space out there for everyone. 
5. Have fun! You’re gonna start with one streamer but if they see you are consistent and having fun, those numbers will rise!

Did we leave anything out? We want to hear about your experiences! Tell us about your successes with game studio partnerships in the comments below!