One trillion minutes of content watched in 2020.

Thirty million average daily visitors.

Seven million creators making content monthly.

Those mind-blowing numbers come from livestreaming service Twitch, according to its internal data.

You’ve likely heard of Twitch, seen it in headlines or learned about it from a younger family member. This year, Twitch celebrated 10 years of pioneering live, interactive, community-first entertainment. Since 2011, Twitch has had over 67 billion hours of viewership—enough for every person on earth to have watched for over eight hours.

This viewership is powered by a massive community of creators, with over 26 million channels going live in 2020 alone. That’s the equivalent of every single person in the 10 largest cities in the U.S. starting their own channel.

So why should marketers care? Well, in today’s world of saturated social and digital channels, Twitch offers an immersive environment that fosters community around creators that have authentic, trusted relationships with their viewers.

Its live format is also a crucial part of today’s entertainment landscape. The core components that make up the service— livestreaming, real-time interactions and a powerful sense of community — allow for limitless options in verticals of all kinds. It has also played a pivotal role in turning livestreaming into the mainstream, culturally influential and rapidly growing entertainment category it is today.

And the audience is there to connect—with creators, fellow viewers and, if done right, your brand. It’s a true community and the immersive environment means viewers are engaged with the content and experience instead of just passively scrolling. 

This livestreaming revolution is undeniably exciting. But before jumping in, it’s important that you understand the livestreaming service. Authenticity is huge to Twitch viewers, and you need to know how to play by its communities’ rules and norms.

Get ready for your crash course on all things Twitch.

Before your brand can successfully advertise on Twitch, you need to understand it.

So, first things first: What happens on Twitch? Creators fire up their streams and broadcast to live audiences that they can interact with via Twitch Chat. It’s like watching your favorite sports team, but with the bonus of interfacing with the quarterback while he’s playing.

Twitch isn’t just a video service; it’s a web of communities, each with a unique set of values and shared passions. Viewers come to Twitch because they enjoy watching others who are skilled or entertaining at what they do. 

So, what kinds of content are creators streaming? Twitch started as a game-centric service and a large portion of its creators are gamers. But there is a ton more happening. From live arts and crafts projects to workout communities to cooking demos, you can find almost any category of content being streamed on Twitch. 

Twitch is fostering exciting cultural moments across the globe. Here are some major milestones from recent Twitch history.

Creator TheGrefg set a Guinness World Record for peak concurrent viewers on an individual’s stream when 2.4 million viewers tuned in simultaneously for the reveal of the streamer's Fortnite skin. 

Streamer Ibai Llanos interviewed international soccer star Lionel Messi after he announced joining Paris Saint-Germain and collected over 2.6 million views.

U.S. representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez turned to her Twitch community for support while getting out the vote during the 2020 election. Whether it was seeking advice on how to play Among Us or figuring out which setting to use on her camera on-stream, her community helped her along. Her first-ever stream with Pokimane and her streamer friends became one of the most viewed streams in Twitch history.

To help viewers discover creators they’ll love, Twitch offers relevant recommendations based on viewers' interests, and empowers creators with tags that describe content in more detail. A quick look at the tags will tell you all you need to know about the variety and depth of content; they cover everything from ballroom dancing to woodwork to K-pop.

Twitch viewers are what makes the service unique. So, who are they? Why do they love it? And what keeps them engaged?

First of all, they are young. A majority (70%) of Twitch viewers are between 16 and 34.

Although categories like Just Chatting are growing, most viewers come to the service to watch video games and esports. Unless you’re a gamer yourself, the appeal of watching someone play a video game live might be out of your scope. But it’s just like live sports. People tune in to watch skilled players and for the emotions and excitement that come with big wins, near misses and strategic power plays.

What makes the audience so different—besides the community aspect that emerges between creators and their fans—is the amount of time they spend on the service. In 2020, the Twitch community watched over 1 trillion minutes of content. And every day, Twitch affiliates and their partners create more content than is available in Netflix’s entire catalog.

So, what does a typical Twitch site visit look like?

Most Twitch viewers have a few creators they follow religiously and who they tune into any time they go live. If they subscribe to a particular creator’s channel, they might stop there first to participate in a subscribers-only Chat. When the stream starts, they are in it, sending emotes and encouragement as the creator battles through levels of a game or goes through the emotional trials of soufflé making.

Livestreaming entertainment is powered by creators. As gaming has become increasingly popular, creators are finally being recognized for their influence with mainstream audiences. More and more, we’re seeing Twitch creators signing with talent agencies, locking in sponsorship opportunities and taking part in marketing campaigns, much like athletes, entertainers and other mainstream personalities would.

Let’s look at a few well-known Twitch creators and what they stream on Twitch.

You can’t chat about livestreaming without mentioning Imane Anys, or, as she’s known around the Internet, Pokimane. The variety streamer has called Twitch her home since 2013. She describes her streams as “part gameplay, part mukbang, part Dr. Phil episode and 100% centered around having a good time with [her] viewers.” She shares her positivity with an audience of over 8 million followers.

The Botez Sisters are one of Twitch’s most popular chess creators. Chess experienced a renaissance and has seen major growth on the service throughout the pandemic (chess streaming is up 730% since the first quarter of 2020). The sisters seek collaborations with brands that share their positive energy and their values. They also look for brands that give creators freedom over the content on their channels. “On Twitch, people get to know you very well since you're live so many hours of the day. They can tell when you're not being yourself and you're not being authentic,” said Alexandra Botez. 

Chris "Sacriel" Ball, has streamed educational gaming content since 2012. On his channel, he shares combat strategy and analysis, with the goal of helping other gamers hone their skills. “My content isn’t just about [me] being good, it’s about making other people good.” Ball echoed the Botez sisters’ approach to collaborating with advertisers saying, “It's very important to be genuine. People can tell very quickly if you are trying to be somebody else. As such, I only promote things and play games that I’m genuinely interested in.”

While many streamers broadcast just for the fun of it, some are also earning real money. According to Twitch, more than 850,000 creators earn revenue from either ads or commerce on Twitch, and this number more than doubled during 2020.

So, where does the money come from? Fans can support streamers either by subscribing or through Bits. For streamers with bigger audiences, brand partnerships, in-stream ads and influencer campaigns offer lucrative streams of revenue. More on these and the opportunity for marketers later.

Ads directly support Twitch’s creators, help keep Twitch free to view and allow the livestreaming service to continue innovating and investing in their global community. In other words, advertisers play a large role in the livestreaming entertainment on Twitch.

To create ads that are truly meaningful and successful on Twitch, brands need to create experiences that will resonate with the community. Leaning in on interactivity, community values and native tools like commerce and extensions allow brands to authentically engage with viewers on Twitch. From custom creative to event sponsorships to custom minigames, advertisers are experimenting with new ways to reach gamers and livestreaming audiences.

Twitch’s in-house creative agency, the Brand Partnership Studio, helps advertisers better resonate with viewers on the service. Whether it's through collaborating with creators, sponsoring events or creating branded extensions, the Brand Partnership Studio imagines one-of-a-kind ads built to resonate with the Twitch community.

For DoorDash, the studio teamed up with streamer and diehard DoorDash fan Anthony Kongphan to turn pondering his next meal into an animated adventure that honored creators and helped build ties to the gaming community.

Brands that want to go deeper can create their own channels and characters. While this isn’t right for everyone, brands with something meaningful to contribute to the gaming or livestreaming communities can gain some real traction by integrating themselves with streamers.

LG Electronics did this with food and beverage site Foodbeast's Twitch channel. The LG Homestyle Challenge reinvented the traditional cooking show by inviting viewers to help or sabotage celebrity competitors in a live showdown on Twitch. During the first two-hour celebrity battle, rapper T-Pain went head-to-head with former Miss Universe Olivia Culpo. Viewers controlled the stars’ fates by voting on the surprise challenges, tools and ingredients, highlighting the interactivity of the livestreaming service and the versatility of LG’s kitchen appliances.

American Eagle is going another route to reach a community of engaged younger adults. Now the official apparel partner of /twitchgaming, American Eagle is producing a documentary series aimed at profiling some of the unique creators on Twitch. Featured streamers are also helping to produce a special merchandise capsule for American Eagle and curating outfits that match their style. Once each installment of the documentary premieres, creators will encourage their communities to tune in with interactive watch parties.

No matter what route you choose, it’s crucial that you understand the community and embrace the unique culture of Twitch. You have to earn the right to play in this space, so any messaging should be adding value. Celebrate the community and don’t take yourself too seriously. Viewers enter the service to have fun and be entertained—not sold to.

Illustrations by Luis Mazon