Ultra.
When most people hear the word “analytics,” they may dread the idea of combing through numbers and graphs and we totally get it. However, analytics is not a dirty word.n regards to content creation, it’s super important to understand if your goal is to grow and build consistent revenue streams. While delivering a high-quality stream may be your main priority, paying attention to the analytics is equally important so you can improve your stream, stats, and earnings.
Whether you’re streaming on Instagram, Twitch, YouTube, or another platform, the one thing that all have in common (besides the unwritten rules of etiquette explained in this blog post) is that they offer creators an analytics dashboard so they can see how their content is doing. Though each streaming platform has its own set of unique analytics and ways of displaying them, there are some universally important statistics that you should grasp. Keep reading to learn more about the metrics you need to know and how to analyze your live stream to improve your content.
Average Concurrent Viewers
While you should never get wrapped up in the numbers, paying attention to the average number of viewers in your live streams can give insight into what content your audience enjoys the most. For example, if you host a Q&A-style live stream one day and a live tutorial the next and notice a significant difference in viewership, you should tweak your content strategy accordingly. You don’t have to stream the same format repeatedly, but having a healthy amount of that specific content type in your pipeline may be helpful.
Engagement
Arguably more important than the number of viewers in your live stream is the engagement during your stream. Engagement types may vary from platform to platform but what remains the same is that it’s an indicator that your audience is interested in your content. Engagement can come in many forms—likes, comments, shares, or reactions. Analyze your engagement to determine what content formats and subject matter perform best with your audience. If your audience asks for it via engagement, be sure to deliver.
New Followers
Whether you’re a new live streamer or a seasoned veteran, your number one goal is likely to grow as a streamer—that includes gaining more followers from one stream to the next. Like some of the other metrics on this list, analyzing which streams have successfully converted viewers to followers (or subscribers) is important to gauge which type of content may be best to create going forward. If your audience seems to enjoy specific types of streams, continue doing them as often as possible without feeling monotonous.
Average Time Watched
Unfortunately, most people don’t always stick around for your full stream. However, how long they stay (usually expressed in “watch minutes”) gives you an idea of how long you’re holding the viewer’s attention. Additionally, this can be a key indicator of how long you should stream. If you’re noticing your viewership declines significantly after an hour, it may be worth conducting a test of shorter streams to see if that improves statistics related to your average views over time.
Location
While many people don’t pay close attention to where their viewers live, it is, in fact, an important metric you need to keep in mind. Understanding your viewers’ location can help you determine the best time to stream (in their timezone). For example, you may be streaming at 9 PM PT and notice that most of your audience is located on the east coast (where the stream will end up going past midnight), meaning fewer people are likely to stick around to watch. Simply put, don’t stream assuming that your followers are in the same timezone as you.
It may be worth noting that testing streaming times can help you determine your specific best times to stream. Furthermore, it will help you create a schedule that makes sense for your audience.
Revenue/Tips
Let us start by saying viewers tipping (or not) is not a direct reflection of whether you had a good stream. There are too many factors that are out of your control when it comes to tipping. However, looking closely at when people are tipping (particularly the context of the stream) is an excellent indication of what types of streams are likely to bring in revenue. Additionally, if you’re driving viewers to external links (i.e., commissionable affiliate links), you may want to check those platforms to see how your streams convert. If you’re interested in learning more about making money from streaming (outside of tips), you should check out this blog post that breaks it down for you.
Although analyzing your live stream is one of those things that you may want to put off, especially in the beginning, it’s important to understand sooner than later for the sake of your growth as a streamer. Now that you’ve gotten a lesson in analyzing your live stream so you can improve every step of the way, share this with a fellow creator who would appreciate the advice.