Digital Marketing Masters Podcast

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The episode features an interview with Will Smith, a video game streamer, discussing his journey into streaming, challenges faced, and strategies for success. Will shares insights on consistency, streaming platforms, content repurposing, and ad placement on YouTube. He also talks about his favorite games and upcoming releases.

Will's Got Games
Hook Digital Marketing
Matt Rouse

[00:00:01] Narrator AI:

Welcome to the Digital Marketing Masters Podcast with your host, Matt Rouse.  

[00:00:18] Matt Rouse:

I'm at the Vivid front booth today at CEX in 2024.   And, we're gonna record an episode for Digital Marketing Masters podcast. I'm here with my guest, Will Smith. Will is a streamer. How's it going? And, specifically a video game streamer. Do you wanna introduce your channel? Sure. Yes. My channel is, Will's Got Games,  

[00:00:38] Will Smith:

and I live stream a lot of RPGs.   And I put up long form video, Call of Duty Madden, and short form video of Call of Duty and Madden as well. How did you get the idea of just gonna stream video games as a job? That's a great question. So   I spent before I started streaming, I spent 12 years in sales management. My son wasn't doing the best in school, so I decided to put my real estate license on hold and start homeschooling my son. After about a month or 2 of doing it, I was like, ah, jeez. I'm going crazy. I need some sort of work. I gotta do something.   And I said, you know what? Why not? You know, I'm already home. Why not, after I'm done with schooling with him,   why not just put it on the Internet? Right. People like it, they like it. If they don't, they don't. And   the challenge that it actually brought, the level of difficulty that comes with the territory was very unknown to me. And when   I experienced it, I said, you know what? I can make this better. I need to learn as much as I can because I want to be better at this. And so it was a hobby that turned into work, but also challenged me enough to keep me driving through. So when you talk about the challenge, is that because of the amount of different streamers there are out there doing the same thing?  



[00:01:52] Matt Rouse:

Or is it, you know, how do I work with the algorithm and the other systems that I need to, or how do I build community? Like, what are the  

[00:02:00] Will Smith:

the difficult parts of the challenges or all the things? Pretty much all of the above. At first, what was the real difficult part is I I knew that I wasn't gonna have, a 100 viewers day 1 of my stream. Right. So at the beginning, the difficult part was navigating   open waters I've never seen before.   When it comes to software,   when it comes to   algorithm,   before   0 attention to algorithm. I knew nothing about it. So jumping into   that career path, I guess you would say,   and me being a very analytical person, and I I love numbers, that drew me out more. So learning the back end of that was actually my first step.   That was the first thing that I said, you know, I gotta learn this. Right. And I got very familiar with how that works, and then I moved into the next The back end being, like, YouTube Studio and that kind of thing, or more like, how do I use,   you know, software to do streaming and stuff like that? Yeah. Yeah. So to get a little bit more into that, like, for instance, I use,   Streamlabs k. As my,   OBS or my Right. Streaming software.  

And learning that was a was a challenge of its own,   and then getting   the   quality of audio   and video and bit rate transferring from Streamlabs Labs over to YouTube, so I'm giving the the crispest or the most crisp picture I could,  

[00:03:24] Matt Rouse:

as well as audio as well. I was trying to get the audio and the video quality up. Yeah. And do you think is that   for the audience to enjoy it better, or is that also like an algorithmic thing where it's gonna it's gonna share or be more likely   to spread a channel that has a higher quality.  

[00:03:43] Will Smith:

How I like to look at it is if I turn on a YouTube video and that audio quality is just,   it sounds like someone's speaking through a hallway with static Right. I'm turning that video off. I I wanna I I don't wanna listen to you should say, like, shoddy audio. Right. So I know other people don't want to as well. And I I kind of base it off of what's do I like? When I go to somebody's channel, what are things that draw me in?   You know, is it, you know, the thumbnails? Is it the title? When I'm drawn and I actually click that video, what's keeping me there on the scale of not what they're talking about Right. But the quality of their production, I guess you could say.  

[00:04:23] Matt Rouse:

And so now you stream on YouTube. Do you also stream on other platforms   simultaneously like Twitch or Yes. I do. And it's simultaneous streaming, though? You don't stream specifically for one platform and then for another? Correct. Yeah. So  

[00:04:35] Will Smith:

I've been mainly focused on YouTube for the past few years. In the past, I'd say, 3 months, I've been experimenting more. Right. So at this point, when I go live, I am streaming on Facebook k. Instagram,   Twitter,   Twitch. I'm trying to get the approval through TikTok.   Right. I'm pretty sure they got a lot of stuff going on themselves right now. Right. And then YouTube on top of that. So it's about 4 to 5 different sites that I'm streaming to all at once. And I do stream in multiple platform or not platform, but format. So I'll do the full screen, and then for instance, on, Instagram,  

[00:05:13] Matt Rouse:

data shows that most people on Instagram are on their phone. Right. So when I stream to Instagram, I stream in a vertical format. And the stream your is it stream it's not StreamYard? What was it again? Streamlabs. Streamlabs. Streamlabs takes care of switching the video for the platform?  

[00:05:30] Will Smith:

Correct. And I I can't say that that's in the free package. That might be in the paid, paid package that they have, but they they definitely have a lot of it's all preference when you come to the streaming software. Some people like this. Some people like that.   I I enjoy what I use.   To me, it's it's simplified. I can get, you know, different music,   overlays   without having to pull in a 3rd party and hoping it's gonna work properly. It's coming straight from them into my streaming software. Right. So. Okay.  

[00:05:59] Matt Rouse:

So   and now let me ask you this. And I I think this is the question that most people ask me when they wanna get into some kind of streaming, whether it's could be video games, could be business stuff, could whatever the topic. They always say, how do I get people to watch my stream? Consistency.  

[00:06:14] Will Smith:

And and there's a lot to it. Just saying consistency is definitely a a very boiled down  

[00:06:20] Matt Rouse:

answer of it. So it's consistency   after you've met the bar of   audio quality, video quality, software,  

[00:06:27] Will Smith:

getting the back end set up, getting all the technical pieces correct. So what I suggest for people that are just starting out is make sure that you know your programs   well enough to where if you have an issue while you're streaming, you're able to fix it there on the spot quickly. We are all gonna have problems while we're live. It just happens as part of the industry. It's part of the the career path. But   figure out your software, get familiar with that, do a couple test runs and test recording videos, and relisten to them back. Get your small tweaks, and then when you're ready to go, I mean, go for it and make sure you're consistent with it. Consistency   so for instance,   there's a reason why television networks don't sporadically put your favorite episode across the whole entire thing. Right. There's a few factors in that. When are people watching?  

And if it's on it every single time, people know when to tune it. And you gotta kinda look at yourself as a, almost like TV program   in that aspect.  

[00:07:22] Matt Rouse:

When you're doing your streams,   let me ask you maybe like a kind of a 2 part question. Okay. How do you know what time you're gonna stream at, and how long do you stream for?  

[00:07:33] Will Smith:

Okay. So I I strongly recommend streaming for no less than 3 and a half, 4 hours at a time. That's for video game streaming. Correct. Yes. Yes. That is a long stream if it's like business topics. So and and I'm totally speaking on video game streaming in that aspect Yeah. Due to the fact that  

[00:07:50] Matt Rouse:

you have more time to capture users,   you know, where they're gonna come in and watch it for a bit?  

[00:07:55] Will Smith:

Correct. So for instance, to to hit the other point of your question, how do I know when to stream? How do I know when my viewers are gonna be there? I use another program   that breaks down that side of the analytics for me and tells me when people are tuning in. So what I like to do is I like to stream between 3 PM EST to about 7 PM EST. K. And during that time, I'm getting I'm trying to get the younger generation coming out of school. Right. Because they get home, what do they wanna do? They don't wanna do their homework. They wanna turn off some music. They wanna watch So I'm trying to grab that because the data shows to me that my viewers come in about 5, 6 o'clock. So if I can get a couple hours in beforehand to try to draw a new audience   and then pan it to the viewers that come in at those other times all in one, that's what I'm trying to aim for. So is there the reason for streaming a couple hours ahead of that time so that you like, the statistics  

[00:08:49] Matt Rouse:

on the website will show, oh, currently has 50 people watching or whatever it is so that more people will be likely?   Or is it that you don't get listed for a certain time after you start streaming or recommended?  

[00:09:02] Will Smith:

One of the main reasons is I don't wanna be streaming at 10 o'clock at night. Oh, yes.   So I do wanna go to bed at a decent hour. And if I'm doing at minimum 4 hours, I do about 3 and a half to 5 hours on my streams After I end up cutting it down and taking,   editing the breaks out, takes it down to a 4 hour stream would be about 3 hours and 45 minutes to because I don't have much filler in it. I, I tried to   outside of my mid midstream break where I go and get a new beverage or whatnot. Right. I I'm in front of the camera the whole time. And do you have a sponsor for your show, or I don't. You get paid by the platform?   By, I right now, I am strictly with viewership through YouTube. Right. YouTube is the only platform that I'm actually monetized with at the moment. Okay. So they give you, like, a revenue share or something for their ads to show? Yep. Outside of the actual stream itself,  

[00:09:53] Matt Rouse:

you also I've seen some of your social media stuff. Yeah. So you're also repurposing some of that content for social media? Yes.  

[00:10:02] Will Smith:

Yeah. I, geez. I repurpose a lot of stuff. So I I tell people, if you see me on camera for 5 hours a day, just know I got another 10 hours off camera that I'm that I'm doing work with. You know? Know? Because a lot of people, they see that, and they're like, oh, you just did that. So, what I do is after I'm done with my stream,   it needs time to process through YouTube. I let that process for a couple hours while I go off and I make a short or Right. Something of the sort, or I post some anime pictures on Twitter and Facebook and and whatnot. Once that video is done processing, I go in there. I add an end screen, which is going my first step is when I go in there, I add subtitles.   That's real quick, couple clicks of a button. I just let YouTube's AI generation of the what I'm saying do it. Saves me a bunch of time. Not always exactly what I'm saying, but it's pretty darn good. It's pretty close, and it's even better. Correct. Then I put a end screen on there, which is an easy way if you watch my video to the end where you could just click my picture and a quick easy subscribe. Right. Or YouTube would generate another one of my videos that best fits your interest. Right. So that's on  

[00:11:06] Matt Rouse:

on in the actual YouTube studio, you add, like, the circle for your subscription button and a photo and then Correct. You set the other one to   best video for subscriber.   Correct.  

[00:11:17] Will Smith:

Usually, what, 30 seconds at the end kind of thing? Yeah. It's about 20 seconds at the end of the video. Seconds. And I do my little sign off and and all that good jazz that we all try to Even the news anchors do it. So, hey, why can't we? Right?   But it's,   after I go through that process, I go into   editing where my ads are placed.   So when you do a video on YouTube for over 2 hours,   they only put ads up to 2 hours. So the so it's front loaded of about 40 ads. Now imagine, like, 40 ads in 2 hours. That's insane.   Yeah. So I go through, and I delete about 70 to 80% of the ads that are there. And I only because I don't know if you guys know this or not, but,   if you monetize, you have ads on the videos, and people you're watching, they choose where they put their ads or they can't. So keep that in mind. Don't get mad at YouTube all the time.  

But I I make sure that I remove most of the videos because So you take the stream, the recording of the stream, you cut out the spots where the ads were during the stream. So it's actually pretty simple. So when you go into when you click, and it adds it it's like almost like a little flag, and you grab it and you just move it, and and it just automatically places Okay. In that spot. And I put ads about every 15 to 20 minutes. That's reasonable. Yeah. It's about  

[00:12:34] Matt Rouse:

30 seconds, and you're able to skip them. Right. 4 seconds. Done any, like, testing around that to say, like, I've tried it with 10 minutes, and I tried it with 20 minutes, and 15 seems to be the sweet spot? Or are you just, like, personal choice, I think every 15 minutes is reasonable?  

[00:12:49] Will Smith:

So, like, just like when it just like before, I, I go off   how much does it annoy me when I'm watching a video?   Or even I can't stand ads. Right. I I'm not a big fan of ads. So how many ads am I personally able to take before I'm skipping someone's video or leaving the video? And I try to make it that happy medium. Yeah. Well, I mean, the ads are what pays the bills. Right? Correct. You gotta put the ads in. Correct. And I think that kind of generally speaking, I like to kind of air on the side of  

[00:13:19] Matt Rouse:

fewer ads and because I want people to keep watching rather than trying to tweak how many ads I can squeeze in,  

[00:13:26] Will Smith:

you know? And that plays a factor as well. Yeah. Because if   people are like, oh, you know what? He's got some ads, but not a whole lot. I'm gonna keep watching his stuff. I don't have to get keep getting interrupted. Now the algorithm's gonna say, oh, this person likes your content.   They're continuing to watch your content, which means we're gonna push it to other people now. Right. And so I can front load and fully load my video with a bunch of ads and annoy people, and the algorithm's gonna be like, hey. That's not cool. Yeah. Or I can do what I'm doing in hopes that  

[00:13:55] Matt Rouse:

it's going to end up bringing in more viewers, where in the end, it's actually gonna balance out. Right. So that's the retention rate. The longer the person watches your video and the more of your videos they watch,   the more likely YouTube is to recommend that to people who are demographically   similar to that person.   Correct. Right? Correct. Yes. Having written a book about the subject recently.   But, yeah. If somebody wants to watch your channel or catch up with you on social media, what's the best place for them to watch your stuff? So YouTube is my main platform on where I stream my content. But I do I'm on, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram.   Alright. What's your handle? You can find me on all of it at Will's Got Games. Will's Got Games. Yes. Also, Will has a fabulous t shirt. You can't see the the back with his QR code where you can just find his stuff. But, Will, thanks so much for being on the show, and thank you to, Vivid Front for recording today for us. Gals here have been great, and and they have a wonderful setup.  

And thanks to everybody at CEX this year. It's been a great expo so far. And, we still got about a day and a half to go. So, I think it's gonna be a great event. Thanks a lot, Will. Yeah. I'm enjoying it a lot myself. And thank you, Matthew. I definitely appreciate this opportunity to, give myself a little airtime and answer some questions that you met. Sounds good. I can't okay. Wait. One more thing before we go. Yes. What is maybe 2. What's your favorite game right now, and what game are you most looking forward to? Oh.  

[00:15:23] Will Smith:

My favorite game at the moment is Dragon's Dogma 2. K. Huge fan of it. I was a huge fan of the original one. And even if you're interested on it, you can check out, my YouTube, and I have I that's the game I've been streaming. So there you go. And the game that I'm looking forward to the most. You know what? This one might be a little   lackluster of an answer, but the new college football game. It has been 10   years since we've had a college football game,  

[00:15:51] Matt Rouse:

and it's finally back due to the the likeliness and everything with NC double a. Alright. Yeah. So I'm excited about that. Perfect. Will's got game, everybody. Go watch his channel and check out how streaming works and maybe find a new video game you like to play. Yep. Thanks, Will. Thank you.  

[00:16:10] Narrator AI:

This voice over used to be done by a human, but now it is synthetic.   Oh la la.   If you want to know if your job or business is safe from disruption,   read Matt's new book,   Will AI Take My Job?   Predictions about AI In Corporations,   Small Business, and the Workplace.   Available now on Amazon.   Trust me, it'll be worth it.