Gamers are creating a living for themselves through online platforms that allow them to stream their gameplay to viewers around the world.
“I love to watch streams because the communities I enjoy watching are super welcoming and allow you to be yourself,” Humber College interior decorating student Hannah Oliviah said.
Streaming and content creation are becoming an increasingly popular career path, however, the amount of work necessary to succeed often gets overlooked.
As a content creator with six years of experience, YouTuber and Twitch streamer Kaili Klimas, also known as BlueFierceGaming, is an example of a creator who has faced challenges throughout their years creating content.
“The hardest part for a channel to succeed in building a strong community. I struggle with this, however, I try not to look at how many views I get to stay motivated, as seeing a low viewership can be discouraging,” Klimas told Humber News.
Having an audience as a content creator is crucial to success however it is not easy to obtain. The process of building a large following for content creators can take years of work.
Many content creators gain viewership by being consistent with uploads and streams, however, this can be difficult because viewers’ interests are constantly changing.
YouTuber Aaron Almushare, also known as AreuMadLoL, has learned this through his experience as a content creator with more than 135,000 subscribers.
“Eventually you’ll reach a point where the same thing won’t work anymore,” said Almushare, a Minecraft content creator and streamer.
This can discourage aspiring streamers and cause them to stop creating content. However, consistency is vital to success.
“YouTube is a brutal platform and for some people, if you don’t upload consistently enough, people will start to lose interest and YouTube will think people got tired of your content and start to leave your channel,” Almushare said.
Further, many content creators and streamers find themselves stressed out while trying to appeal to large audiences.
“Trying to find the next big thing to upload while at the same time trying to juggle a good upload schedule so people won’t leave, gets to me sometimes, and eventually I feel so burnt out that I won’t want to do anything, let alone Youtube,” Almushare told Humber News.
Although there is a lot of work involved in content creation and streaming, there are also benefits that come with the lifestyle.
“Content creation has allowed me to express my creativity. I have implemented all of my interests into my content creation for others to enjoy. Whether that would be photography videos, G FUEL reviews, or gaming videos,” Klimas said.
Klimas’ videos have also helped her get sponsorship from her favourite gaming energy drink company, which has allowed her to provide a discount code to her viewers.